Arizona State is back at the top of the sport after another dominant week for the Wildcats.
Here’s everything you missed in Week 6 of the regular season, plus the latest AP poll.
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Arizona weathers early scare and remains perfect
For a minute, it looked like we were going to have a new No. 1 team this week.
But then Arizona jumped into action quickly and came away with a win over a ranked opponent on the road.
Despite trailing by two points at halftime for the first time this season, the Wildcats exploded in the second half to beat Alabama by 21 points on Saturday night in Birmingham. Brayden Burries also dropped 20 of his 28 points in the second half.
The win was Arizona’s fifth against a ranked opponent so far this season and its second straight after beating Auburn by nearly 30 points earlier this month. The Wildcats also beat defending national champion Florida to open the season and have wins over UCLA and UConn.
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Naturally, that keeps the Wildcats at No. 1 in this week’s polls. Alabama fell to No. 16.
The Wildcats’ win was part of a relatively simple week in college basketball. There was only one change in the top 11 in the AP poll, with Gonzaga and Houston simply swapping spots. Michigan is ranked second and Duke, which sat out last week, is ranked third. Iowa State defeated Iowa on Thursday to stay in fourth place, and UConn then moved into the top five.
The biggest surprise of the week came from Nebraska, where Jamak Lawrence stunned Illinois with a near buzzer-beater on the road. That puts the Huskers on a perfect 11-0, the best start in program history. The win over Illinois was their first in the rankings, moving them up eight spots to No. 15. Illinois now has three losses and is ranked 18th.
As for Arizona, winning the Big 12 isn’t going to be easy, first of all, there are four teams in the top ten alone. But through the first stretch of the season, the Wildcats have clearly separated themselves from the rest of the league.
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Games to watch this week
All times ET | *Denotes neutral site
Tuesday, December 16
No. 11 Louisville, No. 20 Tennessee 7 p.m. | ESPN
Saturday, December 20
22 St. John’s College, Kentucky | 12:30 PM | CBS*
No. 12 Ohio State North Carolina | 3 p.m. | CBS*
No. 8 Houston, No. 14 Arkansas | 5:30 PM | CBS*
No. 21 Auburn, No. 6 Purdue 6:30 PM | Peacock *
No. 3 Duke, No. 19 Texas Tech | 8 p.m. | ESPN*
AP Top 25
The full AP men’s basketball poll will begin Dec. 15, 2025.
1. Arizona State (9-0)
2. Michigan State (10-0)
3. Duke (10-0)
4. Iowa State (11-0)
5. University of Connecticut (10-1)
6. Purdue University (10-1)
7. Gonzaga (10-1)
8. Houston (10-1)
9. Michigan State (9-1)
10. Brigham Young University (9-1)
11. Louisville (9-1)
12. North Carolina (9-1)
13. Vanderbilt (10-0)
14. Arkansas (8-2)
15. Nebraska (11-0)
16. Alabama (7-3)
17. Kansas State (8-3)
18. Illinois (8-3)
19. Texas Tech (7-3)
20. Tennessee (7-3)
21. Auburn (8-3)
22. St. John’s College (6-3)
T23. Florida(6-4)
T23. Virginia(9-1)
25. Georgia (9-1)
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Other schools receiving votes: USC 68, Iowa State 47, Seton Hall 46, LSU 19, Kentucky 19, UCLA 16, Clemson 14, Cal State 13, Saint Mary’s 12, Arizona State 5, Villanova 5, Notre Dame 4, Indiana 4, Miami (Ohio) 4, Miami 4, Utah 2, St. Louis 1, Wisconsin 1