Where UK stands in new college hoops top 25 polls, NET & power rankings

The Kentucky Wildcats are falling hard after their upset loss to Seton Hall.

It’s not so much that Kentucky lost a game on a neutral court to a team that could contend for an at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament.

No, it’s the fact that Kentucky consistently looked average during their seven-game winning streak against mostly cupcake teams that had no business being within 15 points. Saturday was more of a confirmation that this Kentucky team simply isn’t good right now, which is why they’re falling in the polls.

The latest Coaches Poll as Kentucky down to the No. 18 spot. That 10-spot drop was the biggest any team suffered this week.

Gonzaga is no longer the No. 1 team after losing 76-73 to Tennessee on Sunday. Kansas is back to being the top team, followed by Duke, Virginia, Tennessee and Michigan. Fellow SEC team Auburn actually holds the No. 8 spot previously occupied by Kentucky.

Coaches Top 25 Poll

1. Kansas Jayhawks
2. Duke Blue Devils
3. Virginia Cavaliers
4. Tennessee Volunteers
5. Michigan Wolverines
6. Gonzaga Bulldogs
7. Nevada Wolf Pack
8. Auburn Tigers
9. Michigan State Spartans
10. Florida State Seminoles
11. Texas Tech Red Raiders
12. North Carolina Tar Heels
13. Virginia Tech Hokies
14. Ohio State Buckeyes
15. Buffalo Bulls
16. Villanova Wildcats
17. Mississippi State Bulldogs
18. Kentucky Wildcats
19. Wisconsin Badgers
20. Arizona State Sun Devils
21. Iowa Hawkeyes
22. Houston Cougars
23. Maryland Terrapins
24. Kansas State Wildcats
25. Nebraska Cornhuskers

The AP Poll has Kentucky slipping to the No. 19 spot. I scoured the internet to see how various AP voters ranked their individual top 25s this week, and several of them left Kentucky off their ballots.

AP Top 25 Poll

1. Kansas Jayhawks
2. Duke Blue Devils
3. Tennessee Volunteers
4. Gonzaga Bulldogs
5. Michigan Wolverines
6. Virginia Cavaliers
7. Nevada Wolf Pack
8. Auburn Tigers
9. Michigan State Spartans
10. Florida State Seminoles
11. Texas Tech Red Raiders
12. North Carolina Tar Heels
13. Virginia Tech Hokies
14. Buffalo Bulls
15. Ohio State Buckeyes
16. Wisconsin Badgers
17. Villanova Wildcats
18. Mississippi State Bulldogs
19. Kentucky Wildcats
20. Arizona State Sun Devils
21. Marquette Golden Eagles
22. Iowa Hawkeyes
23. Furman Paladins
24. Houston Cougars
25. Syracuse Orange

Sports Illustrated actually gave Kentucky more respect then it probably deserves at No. 15.

The latest NBC Sports, The Athletic and CBS Sports rankings don’t include Kentucky. Neither does ESPN’s latest power rankings (only 16 teams). This comes after the Wildcats ranked in the 8-13 range of most rankings last week.

Perhaps the only ranking that really matters is the NCAA’s NET, which has Kentucky falling down to the No. 36 spot after rising to No. 17 last week. Seton Hall was actually ranked 105th before beating Kentucky, which brought them up to No. 90. That’s still a really bad loss that could haunt Kentucky come Selection Sunday, but thankfully, we’re still a ways away from the NCAA Tournament.

It’s clear this team needs as much time as it can get before the postseason begins.

Do you think Kentucky deserves to be a top-25 team right now?