Ohio State's steady climb up the rankings continued Monday as the Buckeyes, one of only eight unbeaten teams left in college basketball, made a leap three spots all the way up to No. 3 in the latest AP Top 25 rankings. They sit behind No. 1 Louisville and No. 2 Kansas after another flawless week that included wins at then-No. 7 North Carolina and at home against Penn State.
The Buckeyes jumped ahead of Maryland, Michigan and Virginia to reach their highest ranking as a basketball program since the 2013-14 season -- when Thad Matta was coaching the Buckeyes. It's the fourth consecutive week they've been included in the top 10, a streak last accomplished at OSU under Matta.
The top two of the rankings stayed the same as last week after blemish-free weeks from Louisville and Kansas. It's the first time all season a No. 1 team has stayed No. 1 in the rankings, after Louisville took care of business this week with wins over Michigan and Pittsburgh. Kansas notched a comfortable home win over former Big 12 foe Colorado to stay steady at No. 2.
Louisville received 55 first-place votes while Kansas received four and Ohio State received five.
AP Top 25
| Rank | Team | Record | Points | Previous |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Louisville (55) | 9-0 | 1,591 | 1 |
| 2 | Kansas (4) | 7-1 | 1,486 | 2 |
| 3 | Ohio State (5) | 9-0 | 1,464 | 6 |
| 4 | Maryland | 10-0 | 1,486 | 3 |
| 5 | Michigan | 8-1 | 1,286 | 4 |
| 6 | Gonzaga | 10-1 | 1,235 | 9 |
| 7 | Duke | 9-1 | 1,232 | 10 |
| 8 | Kentucky | 7-1 | 1,170 | 8 |
| 9 | Virginia | 8-1 | 1,060 | 5 |
| 10 | Oregon | 7-2 | 905 | 13 |
| 11 | Baylor | 7-1 | 872 | 18 |
| 12 | Auburn | 8-0 | 836 | 14 |
| 13 | Memphis | 8-1 | 756 | 15 |
| 14 | Dayton | 7-1 | 672 | 19 |
| 15 | Arizona | 9-1 | 654 | 12 |
| 16 | Michigan State | 6-3 | 637 | 11 |
| 17 | North Carolina | 6-3 | 615 | 7 |
| 18 | Butler | 9-0 | 529 | 24 |
| 19 | Tennessee | 7-1 | 455 | 21 |
| 20 | Villanova | 7-2 | 485 | 23 |
| 21 | Florida State | 8-2 | 253 | 17 |
| 22 | Seton Hall | 6-3 | 250 | 16 |
| 23 | Xavier | 9-1 | 216 | NR |
| 24 | Colorado | 7-1 | 210 | 20 |
| 25 | San Diego State | 10-0 | 197 | NR |
Others receiving votes: Utah State 160, Washington 144, Purdue 130, Indiana 13, Marquette 11, Liberty 9, Saint Mary's 8, Texas 6, Florida 5, Penn State 5, Georgia 4, West Virginia 3, Richmond 3, LSU 2, Duquesne 1, DePaul 1, Virginia Commonwealth 1
