Alabama Basketball Moves Up in Latest AP Top 25, Coaches Poll

The Crimson Tide will face the No. 1 Houston Cougars on Saturday, marking the second top-ranked opponent of the season for Alabama.

Alabama basketball will officially face its second No. 1 team of the season.

In the latest AP Top 25 released on Monday morning, the Crimson Tide moved up three spots to No. 8 while its next opponent, Houston received 37 first-place votes to remain as the top-ranked team in the nation. The Crimson Tide and the Cougars are set to play each other in Houston this Saturday (2 p.m. CT, ABC).

Should Alabama win the game, it would be only the second time in AP poll history that a single team has beaten two different No. 1 opponents during the same season.

Around the rest of the Southeastern Conference in the AP poll, Tennessee comes in as the highest-ranked SEC team at No. 7, followed by No. 8 Alabama and No. 9 Arkansas. Auburn is ranked No. 11 while Kentucky sits at No. 16. Undefeated Mississippi State entered the rankings this week at No. 23.

In the USA Today Sports Coaches Poll, Alabama moved up four spots to No. 10 while Houston was also ranked No. 1.

Here's the full AP Top 25 and Coaches Poll though five weeks of college basketball:

AP Top 25 - Week 5

(Ranking, team, record, points, first-place votes)

1. Houston (8-0) 1,502 (37)

2. Texas (6-0) 1,473 (14)

3. Virginia (7-0) 1,416 (3)

4. Purdue (8-0) 1,411 (8)

5. UConn (9-0) 1,295

6. Kansas (8-1) 1,131

7. Tennessee (7-1) 1,046

8. Alabama (7-1) 1,029

9. Arkansas (7-1) 1,021

10. Arizona (7-1) 1,013

11. Auburn (8-0) 853

12. Baylor (6-2) 841

13. Maryland (8-0) 811

14. Indiana (7-1) 759

15. Duke (8-2) 745

16. Kentucky (6-2) 596

17. Illinois (6-2) 554

18. Gonzaga (5-3) 517

19. UCLA (7-2) 479

20. Iowa State (7-1) 376

21. Creighton (6-3) 346

22. San Diego State (6-2) 265

23. Mississippi State (8-0) 187

24. TCU (6-1) 113

25. Ohio State (6-2) 81

Others receiving votes:

Iowa 70, Charleston 54, Miami (FL) 29, Virginia Tech 27, Arizona State 20, Utah 16, Wisconsin 16, UNLV 14, Texas Tech 10, West Virginia 8, Marquette 7, Xavier 6, New Mexico 3, Memphis 3, Michigan State 3, Missouri 2, North Carolina 1, Kansas State 1.

USA Today Sports Coaches Poll - Dec. 5, 2022

(Ranking, team, record, points, first-place votes)

1. Houston 8-0 757 (21)

2. Texas 6-0 736 (4)

3. Virginia 7-0 706

4. Purdue 8-0 697 (6)

5. Connecticut 9-0 651

6. Kansas 8-1 572

7. Tennessee 7-1 525

8. Arkansas 7-1 499

9. Arizona 7-1 490

10. Alabama 7-1 442

11. Indiana 7-1 384

12. Baylor 6-2 382

13. Maryland 8-0 372

14. Auburn 8-0 338

15. Duke 8-2 333

16. Kentucky 6-2 326

17. Illinois 6-2 294

18. UCLA 7-2 267

18. Gonzaga 5-3 267

20. Iowa State 7-1 239

21. Creighton 6-3 226

22. San Diego St. 6-2 141

23. Ohio St. 6-2 68

24. Iowa 6-1 57

25. Texas Christian 6-1 45

Others receiving votes:

Mississippi State 42; Virginia Tech 39; Miami-Florida 35; North Carolina 22; Charleston 21; Texas Tech 19; Wisconsin 18; West Virginia 10; Marquette 10; Rutgers 7; Xavier 6; Kansas State 6; UNLV 5; New Mexico 5; Michigan St. 5; Utah St. 4; Memphis 3; Oklahoma 2; Missouri 2.

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