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Last week was a good one for the Kentucky Wildcats, are are climbing in all of the major polls and rankings.
Sure, they struggled more than most expected vs. Vanderbilt and Texas A&M, but in the end, the Cats came away with two victories. The same cannot be said for the rest of college basketball, as seven teams ranked ahead of Kentucky suffered defeats last week.
The new AP Poll has the Cats checking in at the No. 12 spot, up from No. 18 last week. Auburn, who Kentucky will play on the road this week, is ranked No. 15, so we’ve got a top-15 clash this Saturday.
Kentucky is up to No. 14 in the latest Coaches Poll, while Auburn checks in at No. 12, so the opposite of the AP Poll.
AP Top 25 Poll
- Duke Blue Devils
- Michigan Wolverines
- Tennessee Volunteers
- Virginia Cavaliers
- Gonzaga Bulldogs
- Michigan State Spartans
- Kansas Jayhawks
- Texas Tech Red Raiders
- Virginia Tech Hokies
- Nevada Wolf Pack
- Florida State Seminoles
- Kentucky Wildcats
- North Carolina Tar Heels
- Auburn Tigers
- Marquette Golden Eagles
- Buffalo Bulls
- NC State Wolfpack
- Ole Miss Rebels
- Maryland Terrapins
- Oklahoma Sooners
- Houston Cougars
- Villanova Wildcats
- Iowa Hawkeyes
- Mississippi State Bulldogs
- Indiana Hoosiers
Coaches Top 25 Poll
- Virginia Cavaliers
- Duke Blue Devils
- Tennessee Volunteers
- Michigan Wolverines
- Gonzaga Bulldogs
- Michigan State Spartans
- Virginia Tech Hokies
- Kansas Jayhawks
- Texas Tech Red Raiders
- Nevada Wolf Pack
- Florida State Seminoles
- Auburn Tigers
- Marquette Golden Eagles
- Kentucky Wildcats
- North Carolina Tar Heels
- NC State Wolfpack
- Houston Cougars & Buffalo Bulls
- N/A
- Oklahoma Sooners
- Ole Miss Rebels
- Villanova Wildcats
- Maryland Terrapins
- Mississippi State Bulldogs
- Iowa Hawkeyes
- Indiana Hoosiers
The Wildcats moved up to No. 12 in the Sports Illustrated rankings
Kentucky is now at No. 10 in the NBC Sports Top 25.
The new NCAA Power 36 rankings still have Kentucky checking in at No. 13:
ESPN now lists Kentucky at No. 11 of their power rankings.
The Wildcats are up to No. 11 in the NCAA Net rankings.
All told, it’s clear that Kentucky can get a top-four seed in the NCAA Tournament if they can have a good finish in SEC play. That’s easier said than done based on how hard the schedule is getting. They’re set to have top-25 matchups with Auburn, Mississippi State and Kansas over the next two weeks. If Kentucky can win two or even three of them, they’ll get back in the conversation for a 1 seed in March.
We will upload the Coaches Top 25 Poll when it comes out later.