Purdue stays No. 1 after loss
Purdue's unquestioned grip on No. 1 in The Associated Press men's college basketball poll is gone after a weekend loss. That didn't stop the Boilermakers from remaining at the top anyway.
The Boilermakers earned 38 of 62 first-place votes in the poll released Monday to remain at No. 1 for a third straight week and seventh time this season. Purdue was the unanimous choice last week, the first for any team this season, before falling at Indiana over the weekend for only its second loss.
The loss meant Houston collected 22 firstplace votes as it rose one spot to No. 2, followed by No. 3 Alabama and No. 4 Arizona in each claiming one.
The Boilermakers (22-2, 11-2) have a leading candidate for national player of the year in Zach Edey and Kenpom's No. 1-ranked offense (121.1 points scored per 100 possessions) to go with a top-25 defense. But they got down big, committed 16 turnovers and allowed the Hoosiers — up to No. 18 this week — to shoot nearly 53 percent in a 79-74 loss Saturday.
“When we go to Zach and we make some perimeter shots, the defense gets better sometimes when the offense flows,” Purdue coach Matt Painter said at his postgame news conference. “And you can't do that. You can always rebound, you can always take care of the ball, you can always make your free throws, those things there.”
Texas jumped five spots to No. 5, shooting past Tennessee, which fell four spots to No. 6 after losing last week at Florida.
Shaka Smart's Marquette team cracked the top 10 for the first time since 2019.
North Carolina State
earned its first AP Top 25 ranking in four years, checking in at No. 22.
COVID delays Minnesota-illinois
Minnesota's game at Illinois that was scheduled for Tuesday has been postponed because of COVID-19 health and safety protocols within the Gophers' program.
Minnesota didn't specify how many players would have been unable to play.
The Gophers (7-15, 1-11) had only eight available scholarship players for their last game, an 81-46 loss to Maryland on Saturday. Dawson Garcia (ankle) has missed the last four games, and Braeden Carrington (leg) has missed the last six. Parker Fox and Isaiah Ihnen will not play this season while recovering from knee injuries.
The game will be rescheduled
by the Big Ten, with input from both schools.
1 vs. 3 matchup looms Sunday
South Carolina beat a top opponent to remain No. 1 in the Associated Press women's college basketball poll released Monday and now has a showdown with another one looming this weekend.
The Gamecocks (23-0) topped then-no. 5 Connecticut 81-77 Sunday to remain unbeaten and stay the unanimous choice atop the poll from the 28-member media panel. After facing Auburn on Thursday, South Carolina will play No. 3 LSU on Sunday in a matchup of the last two unbeatens in Division I women's basketball.
Dawn Staley's team has won 29 consecutive games and has been No. 1 in the poll for 33 consecutive weeks. That's one week short of tying the Huskies for the thirdlongest streak atop the poll. Only Uconn (51 weeks) and Louisiana Tech (36) have had longer runs at No. 1.
While South Carolina has had a stranglehold on No. 1 for more than a year, Indiana is making its first appearance ever at No. 2 after Stanford lost to Washington.
LSU remained at No. 3 after close wins over Tennessee, Georgia and Texas A&M. The Tigers have a week to prepare for the Gamecocks.