Kentucky rises into Top 5 of AP Poll ahead of big week

After a Feast Week of upsets, Kentucky is climbing the rankings. The Cats are now No. 4 in the AP Poll, up from No. 8 a week ago. It’s Kentucky’s highest ranking in the AP Poll since the start of the 2022-23 season. Kansas remains the No. 1 team in the country, followed by Auburn and Tennessee. Marquette rounds out the top five.

The rankings shakeup comes after half of the AP Top 10 lost last week. UConn, which was ranked No. 2 a week ago, fell to No. 25 after losing three games in the Maui Invitational. Gonzaga, Kentucky’s opponent on Saturday, fell four spots to No. 7. Clemson, who the Cats will face tomorrow in the SEC/ACC Challenge, received votes. Eight SEC teams are in the Top 25, three in the top four. Arkansas, previously No. 19, is no longer ranked after losing to Illinois.

While several top teams stumbled last week, Kentucky cruised to wins over Western Kentucky and Georgia State. The Cats are now 7-0, the best start for the program since the 2016-17 season. Kentucky leads the country in scoring (96.7 points per game), ranks No. 2 in scoring margin (28 points), and No. 3 in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.08).

This week, the competition steps up considerably. Before heading to Seattle to play No. 7 Gonzaga, the Cats travel to Clemson. The Tigers are 7-1 this season, their lone loss being at Boise State.

AP College Basketball Poll – December 2

RK	TEAM	REC	PTS	TREND
1	Kansas (35)	7-0	1499	–
2	Auburn (26)	7-0	1490	+2
3	Tennessee	7-0	1351	+4
4	Kentucky	7-0	1267	+4
5	Marquette	8-0	1246	+5
6	Iowa State	5-1	1225	-1
7	Gonzaga	7-1	1181	-4
8	Purdue	7-1	1058	+5
9	Duke	5-2	941	+2
10	Alabama	6-2	939	-1
11	Wisconsin	8-0	903	+4
12	Oregon	8-0	806	+14
13	Florida	8-0	782	+5
14	Cincinnati	6-0	774	+2
15	Baylor	5-2	567	+2
16	Memphis	6-1	500	+10
17	Houston	4-3	402	-11
18	Pittsburgh	7-1	374	+8
19	Illinois	6-1	351	+7
20	North Carolina	4-3	292	-8
21	Oklahoma	7-0	266	+5
22	Texas A&M	6-2	207	-2
23	Ole Miss	6-1	165	–
24	San Diego State	4-2	143	+2
25	UConn	5-3	123	-23

Others Receiving Votes: Michigan St. 108, Arkansas 104, Texas 97, Michigan 95, Arizona St 89, Indiana 72, Drake 58, Xavier 33, Utah St. 28, Louisville 27, West Virginia 26, Clemson 25, BYU 24, Dayton 24, Texas Tech 22, Nebraska 22, Mississippi St. 20, Ohio St. 19, Maryland 13, UCLA 13, Creighton 12, Saint Mary’s 11, Georgia 10, St. John’s 7, Loyola Chicago 4, Florida St. 3, DePaul 3, UC Irvine 2, Columbia 2.

Kentucky in other National Rankings

Looking at all the rankings from college basketball writers and personalities, Kentucky is either top five or just outside.

• CBS Sports’ Kyle Boone: No. 4
• The Athletic: No. 5
• Andy Katz: No. 5
• Jon Rothstein: No. 5
• CBS Sports’ Gary Parrish: No. 6
• John Fanta: No. 6
• On3’s Jamie Shaw: No. 6

The Cats also debuted at No. 8 in the first NET Rankings of the season, which would put them in the running for a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Gonzaga was No. 3, Clemson No. 18. Just two of 19 teams on Kentucky’s schedule that would be projected to make the field of 68 as of today, Dec. 2.