Luke DeCock’s AP Top 25 basketball poll ballot: Week 12
As a sort of “house rule,” I’ve been leaving teams on COVID pauses where they are, which in Michigan’s case meant the Wolverines sat at No. 4 for three straight weeks while other teams rotated through the No. 3 and No. 5 spots. (Florida State had been paying a mortgage on the 23rd spot as well, until this week.)
While normally I wouldn’t move a team down off a winning week, Michigan’s return to action — and impressive win off the layoff at Wisconsin — prompted a reassessment of the top of the ballot which saw Illinois shuffled down to fourth and in a virtual dead heat with Ohio State in the 4-5 comparison.
I would have liked to rank San Diego State or Belmont or both, and I often save the 25th spot for a deserving mid-major, but Kansas and Arkansas are in the top 25 in both KenPom and Wins Above Bubble and it seemed unfair to leave them off in favor of teams that weren’t even close. (San Diego State was 23rd and 50th, Belmont 73rd and 41st, respectively.) In a week when the bottom of the ballot was less deserving or more spots opened up, they both might both have made it. If they keep winning, they should get a nod in one of the two remaining polls.
As for the top of the ballot, BYU was probably the last hurdle between Gonzaga and an undefeated regular season. Combined with Baylor’s COVID pause, the window for debate on the No. 1 spot has all but closed.
THIS SEASON’S BALLOTS
Preseason | Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11
THIS WEEK’S TOP 25 BASKETBALL BALLOT
1. Gonzaga (last week: 1)
2. Baylor (2)
3. Michigan (4)
4. Illinois (3)
5. Ohio State (5)
6. Virginia (7)
7. USC (8)
8. Alabama (11)
9. Houston (12)
10. Iowa (14)
11. Villanova (6)
12. Creighton (18)
13. West Virginia (9)
14. Wisconsin (13)
15. Oklahoma (25)
16. Loyola-Chicago (16)
17. Texas (19)
18. Tennessee (17)
19. Florida State (23)
20. Texas Tech (15)
21. Missouri (10)
22. Purdue (20)
23. Colorado (22)
24. Arkansas (NR)
25. Kansas (NR)
OUT Rutgers (21), UCLA (24)
This story was originally published February 15, 2021 at 9:40 AM.
