College basketball rankings: Michigan State vaults into top five in Top 25 And 1 after win over Kentucky
The Spartans took down the Wildcats in a double-overtime thriller on Tuesday in the Champions Classic
By
Gary Parrish
•
1 min read
Michigan State started the season just on the wrong side of the CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings -- specifically at what would amount to a No. 27 ranking. When Villanova and Oregon lost last Friday, the Spartans were elevated to No. 25 on Saturday morning. Then Michigan State moved to No. 24 on Tuesday morning after TCU lost Monday night.
It's been a slow and steady rise.
But Tom Izzo's team is taking a big jump in Wednesday morning's Top 25 And 1 after Tuesday night's double-overtime victory over Kentucky in the Champions Classic. Michigan State is now No. 5 thanks to a worthy resume.
"We're here," Michigan State senior Joey Hauser announced after the Spartans upset the projected SEC champs. "We'll take on anyone -- anytime, any day."
Is Michigan State really the sport's fifth-best team? I have no idea. But I'm a big believer in rewarding programs for scheduling aggressively -- especially when they perform well against those aggressive schedules, which is what the Spartans have done so far. They opened by smacking Northern Arizona 73-55, then played Gonzaga tough to the final seconds before losing 64-63 on a neutral court, and then beat Kentucky 86-77 on a neutral court. So that's a 2-1 record featuring a win over the team that was No. 4 in Tuesday's Top 25 And 1 and a lone loss by a single point to the team that remains No. 1 in Wednesday's Top 25 And 1.
That's a strong start to the season and reason enough to believe Izzo has a squad that's better than its individual parts and on the way to what would be the program's 25th straight NCAA Tournament appearance.
Top 25 And 1 rankings
Biggest Movers
19
Michigan St.
5
Duke
Rk | Teams | Chg | Rcrd | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Drew Timme finished with 22 points, 13 rebounds and four assists in Friday's 64-63 win over Michigan State. The Zags' next game is Wednesday at Texas. | -- | 9-1 |
| 2 |  | R.J. Davis finished with 14 points and 10 rebounds in Tuesday's 72-66 win over Gardner-Webb. The Tar Heels' next game is Sunday against James Madison. | -- | 8-1 |
| 3 |  | Tramon Mark finished with 23 points and four rebounds in Monday's 83-45 win over Oral Roberts. The Cougars' next game is Wednesday against Texas Southern. | -- | 9-1 |
| 4 |  | Jalen Wilson finished with 25 points and 11 rebounds in Tuesday's 69-64 win over Duke. The Jayhawks' next game is Friday against Southern Utah. | 4 | 7-3 |
| 5 |  | Joey Hauser finished with 23 points and eight rebounds in Tuesday's 86-77 double-overtime win over Kentucky. The Spartans' next game is Friday against Villanova. | 19 | 8-1 |
| 6 |  | Antonio Reeves missed six of the seven shots he attempted in Tuesday's 86-77 loss to Michigan State. The Wildcats' next game is Thursday against South Carolina State. | 2 | 6-4 |
| 7 |  | Ricky Council IV finished with 15 points and seven assists in Friday's 74-48 win over Fordham. The Razorbacks' next game is Wednesday against South Dakota State. | 1 | 7-2 |
| 8 |  | L.J. Cryer finished with 20 points and four rebounds in Monday's 95-62 win over Northern Colorado. The Bears' next game is Friday against Virginia. | 1 | 7-2 |
| 9 |  | Amari Bailey finished with 11 points and five assists in Monday's 86-56 win over Norfolk State. The Bruins' next game is Friday against Illinois. | -- | 7-2 |
| 10 |  | Dereck Lively II was limited to just four points and five rebounds in Tuesday's 69-64 loss to Kansas. The Blue Devils' next game is Friday against Delaware. | 5 | 10-0 |
| 11 |  | Ryan Kalkbrenner finished with 22 points and three blocks in Monday's 94-65 win over Holy Cross. The Bluejays' next game is Thursday against UC Riverside. | 1 | 5-4 |
| 12 |  | Marcus Carr finished with 11 points and four steals in Thursday's 82-31 win over Houston Christian. The Longhorns' next game is Wednesday against Gonzaga. | 1 | 7-3 |
| 13 |  | Trayce Jackson-Davis finished with 21 points and six rebounds in Thursday's 101-49 win over Bethune-Cookman. The Hoosiers' next game is Friday against Xavier. | 1 | 8-2 |
| 14 |  | Johni Broome finished with 18 points and 13 rebounds in Tuesday's 89-65 win over Winthrop. The Tigers' next game is Friday against Texas Southern. | 1 | 7-3 |
| 15 |  | Isaac McKneely finished with 15 points and two rebounds in Friday's 89-42 win over Monmouth. The Cavaliers' next game is Friday against Baylor. | 1 | 9-1 |
| 16 |  | Oumar Ballo finished with 17 points and eight rebounds in Friday's 95-78 win over Southern. The Wildcats' next game is Thursday against Utah Tech. | 1 | 8-0 |
| 17 |  | Henry Coleman III finished with 13 points and 11 rebounds in Friday's 77-58 win over Abilene Christian. The Aggies' next game is Thursday against Murray State. | 1 | 7-3 |
| 18 |  | Hunter Dickinson finished with 31 points and seven rebounds in Friday's 88-83 win over Eastern Michigan. The Wolverines' next game is Wednesday against Pitt. | 1 | 9-0 |
| 19 |  | Santiago Vescovi missed 11 of the 13 shots he took in Sunday's 78-66 loss to Colorado. The Vols' next game is Wednesday against Florida Gulf Coast. | 1 | 7-3 |
| 20 |  | Jaedon LeDee finished with 14 points and four rebounds in Tuesday's 74-62 win over Stanford. The Aztecs' next game is Monday against Ohio State. | 1 | 5-3 |
| 21 |  | Brandon Miller finished with 19 points and eight rebounds in Tuesday's 65-55 win over South Alabama. The Crimson Tide's next game is Friday against Jacksonville State. | 1 | 7-2 |
| 22 |  | Zach Edey finished with 20 points and 13 rebounds in Tuesday's 75-70 win over Marquette. The Boilermakers' next game is Thursday against West Virginia. | 1 | 9-1 |
| 23 |  | Zed Key finished with 17 points and 13 rebounds in Thursday's 82-56 win over Charleston Southern. The Buckeyes' next game is Wednesday against Eastern Illinois. | -- | 7-2 |
| 24 |  | Yuri Collins finished with 22 points and nine assists in Tuesday's 90-84 win over Memphis. The Billikens' next game is Saturday against Maryland. | 1 | 8-1 |
| 25 |  | Terrence Shannon Jr. finished with 30 points and eight rebounds in Monday's 103-65 win over Monmouth. The Illini's next game is Friday against UCLA. | 1 | 8-2 |
| 26 |  | Tristen Newton finished with 22 points and 11 assists in Tuesday's 84-64 win over Buffalo. The Huskies' next game is Friday against UNC Wilmington. | NR | 9-1 |
IN: UConn
OUT: Dayton
