default-cbs-image

Two top-10 teams fell this week -- one at the hands of another top-10 team -- which prompted some movement of the AP poll this week.

Here is the latest AP top 25, with first-place votes in parentheses, with records through Dec. 18. We will also highlight some key takeaways from the latest release.

1. Villanova (56)

2. UCLA (3)

3. Kansas

4. Baylor

5. Duke

6. Kentucky

7. Gonzaga

8. North Carolina

9. Creighton

10. Louisville

11. West Virginia

12. Virginia

13. Butler

14. Wisconsin

15. Purdue

16. Indiana

17. Xavier

18. Arizona

19. Saint Mary's

20. Oregon

21. Florida State

22. South Carolina

23. Southern California

24. Cincinnati

25. Notre Dame

Takeaways from this week's AP Top 25

Duke's best win isn't looking so great.

Before this weekend, Michigan State was one of the Blue Devils top three wins in non-conference play along with Rhode Island and Florida. After the Spartans fell to Northeastern at home on Sunday the resume for the Blue Devils doesn't look as impressive.

Playing in the ACC will allow them ample opportunities to claim big wins. Heck, the win over Michigan State could look more impressive if they could get healthy. A win over Michigan State on paper could have looked amazing going into conference play but not anymore.

North Carolina's chance for No. 1 seed in NCAA tournament takes a hit

It wasn't too long ago that the Tar Heels were surprisingly manhandled against Indiana in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. This weekend provided a great opportunity to rehab their public view, and instead they fell 103-100 to Kentucky in the CBS Sports Classic.

North Carolina barely broke a sweat in the Maui Invitational to open the season with solid wins over Wisconsin, Oklahoma State and Chaminade. It didn't seem unreasonable to think they should be considered a top team. But so far the two losses have come to top-10 teams -- this weekend's coming on a neutral floor. That could wind up being a ding in the resume should a No. 1 seed be in play down the road.

Butler is worthy of a higher ranking

It won't happen. Not yet, at least. But Butler's schedule and quality wins this season easily could warrant a top-10 ranking in the polls. The Bulldogs notched a big win this weekend over in-state rival Indiana. They now have three wins over top-25 teams after defeating Indiana, Cincinnati and Arizona.

Wins over Northwestern, Vanderbilt and Utah are nice feathers that Chris Holtmann can hang in his cap, too. Butler (10-1), has a tough month ahead with Villanova, Creighton and Xavier highlighting some of their biggest challenges in January. We will learn a lot about this team in the next month -- but so far they've been one of the top teams against stiff competition in the country.