Kentucky, Kansas, North Carolina Each Place Two on Wooden Award Late-Season Top 20
Kentucky, Kansas and North Carolina each placed
Kentucky, Kansas and North Carolina each placed
Villanova, Gonzaga, Baylor and Kansas are the
Villanova came from 13 down in the
On the day the new Associated Press poll came out, both the No. 1 and 2 teams in the nation lost on Tuesday night.
Shortly after West Virginia beat No. 2 Kansas at home, Marquette stunned No. 1 Villanova, 74-72, sparking a court-storming.
After Katin Reinhardt hit two free throws to put the Golden Eagles up by 2 points, Villanova got one more chance with 10.4 seconds remaining.
A driving layup by Jalen Brunson (19 points, 4 assists) didn’t fall and the Wildcats couldn’t convert on the putback.
Down goes No. 1 Villanova pic.twitter.com/lQY0aUIA2G
— Adam Zagoria (@AdamZagoria) January 25, 2017
Marquette closed the game on a 19-4 run in the last 5:14. The Golden Eagles led the game for 22 seconds.
By JIM O’CONNELL
Villanova and Kansas remain the top two teams in The Associated Press college basketball poll while Gonzaga moved up to third.
The Wildcats (19-1) beat Seton Hall and Providence last week and received 35 first-place votes from the 65-member national media panel on Monday. This is the seventh week on top this season for Villanova.
Kansas (18-1) was No. 1 on 28 ballots. Last week, the Jayhawks had 32 first-place votes, compared with 28 for Villanova.
VILLANOVA, Pa. — Jay Wright and the Villanova Wildcats are the defending national champions, and the current No. 1 team in the country.
But they’re still learning.
“I think we learned a great lesson last year,” Wright said about Villanova achieving their No. 1 ranking. “We learned a lesson again when we went to Butler. You keep learning from it, that’s what we take from it.”
After scooping up their 47th straight victory at the Pavilion Monday night in a 76-46 rout of Seton Hall, the Wildcats improved to 18-1 on the season. For a senior laden team whose been to the pinnacle of success in the world of college basketball, the idea that the group can learn much more may seem foreign.
For a team coached by the likes of Wright, it’s nothing out of the ordinary.
Villanova is back atop The Associated Press’s men’s basketball poll after last week’s No. 1 team, Baylor, finally suffered a loss at West Virginia.
The Wildcats (17-1) sat at the pinnacle of the AP list in every poll released since Dec. 5, excluding last week.
Despite getting the top nod this week, with a total of 1,580 points, Villanova received the second most first-place votes with 28. Kansas (16-1) took home the most first-place votes with 32. UCLA with three, and Gonzaga with two were the only other teams to receive first-place votes.
Currently in the middle of Big East play, Villanova will face Seton Hall at home Monday night in hopes to affirm their spot as the nation’s top basketball team.
