Where Michigan basketball stands in AP top 25 rankings after 1-0 week
Michigan basketball (4-2) has moved around quite a bit in the Associated Press’ top 25 rankings already this season, and finds itself at No. 24 this week after slotting No. 20 a week ago.
The Wolverines played just one game in the past week, which saw them beat Tarleton State last Wednesday, 65-54. Michigan had a 16-point lead early in the second half but it was a five-point game with less than three minutes to play, which clearly didn’t impress the voters.
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The Maize and Blue have a big opportunity this week, but are also faced with a tremendous challenge. They’ll take on North Carolina in Chapel Hill Wednesday for the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, before hosting San Diego State Saturday afternoon. The Tar Heels have lost two games, versus Purdue and Tennessee in back-to-back days Nov. 21 and Nov. 22, and don’t have any notable wins, but will have home-court advantage.
San Diego State, which was picked to finish second in the Mountain West, fell to BYU and USC but has the nation’s 13th-ranked defense in adjusted efficiency under head coach Brian Dutcher, a former Michigan assistant who coached U-M head man Juwan Howard.
The Wolverines will then play their first two Big Ten games — at Nebraska and at home against Minnesota — Dec. 7 and Dec. 11, before reentering non-conference play for the last two weeks of December.
A team with seven newcomers, including six freshmen, Michigan has plenty to work on in the early going.
“Michigan looked wobbly while fending off Tarleton State at home on Wednesday, 65-54,” The Athletic‘s Seth Davis wrote Monday. “The Wolverines all but frittered away a 16–point second-half lead and committed a whopping 21 turnovers in the loss.
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“Two things are evident thus far with this team. First, 6-1 senior point guard DeVante’ Jones is still finding his way while dealing with the upgrade from Coastal Carolina. Second, if 6-8 senior forward Brandon Johns can’t be more of a legit stretch four (12.5 percent from 3), then he will continue to do more harm than good on the offensive end. Defenses don’t have to play Johns on the pick-and-pop, which leaves them free to crowd Hunter Dickinson in the post. The Wolverines better solve these two problems quickly, because they’re playing at North Carolina on Wednesday night.”
Analytics site Kenpom.com still sees Michigan as one of the nation’s top squads, slotting the Maize and Blue ninth overall. Michigan has the 12th-most efficient offense and is 10th in adjusted defensive efficiency. Their schedule is the 90th-toughest in America.
The Wolverines are one of four Big Ten teams in the AP rankings, joining No. 2 Purdue, No. 22 Michigan State and No. 23 Wisconsin. Purdue won its lone game last week, 97-40 against Nebraska Omaha, while Michigan State beat Loyola Chicago and No. 22 UConn, before falling to No. 3 Baylor in the Battle 4 Atlantis championship game. Wisconsin is coming off a massive three-game stretch that saw it win the 2021 Maui Jim Invitation behind wins over Texas A&M (69-58), No. 12 Houston (65-63) and St. Mary’s (61-55).
Michigan will take on Wisconsin just once, in Madison, but will have home-and-homes with Purdue and Michigan State.
Here is a look at the complete rankings for this week:
College Basketball AP Top 25
- Duke (51)
- Purdue (9)
- Gonzaga (1)
- Baylor
- UCLA
- Villanova
- Texas
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Arkansas
- Arizona
- BYU
- Tennessee
- Florida
- Houston
- Alabama
- UConn
- Memphis
- Iowa State
- USC
- Auburn
- Michigan State
- Wisconsin
- Michigan
- Seton Hall
Others receiving votes: Illinois 111, St. Bonaventure 106, LSU 93, Ohio State 75, Indiana 63, Colorado State 59, Xavier 46, Texas Tech 34, Marquette 23, North Carolina 9, Iowa 9, San Francisco 7, Loyola Chicago 3, Virginia Tech 3, Louisville 2, Wake Forest 2, Ohio 1, Iona 1.
