Arizona just won’t budge. We are officially in the middle of January 2026, and the Wildcats have basically parked themselves at the top of the mountain. It’s wild because everyone keeps waiting for the wheels to fall off, but they just keep rolling. They took 60 out of 61 first-place votes this week. That is absolute dominance.
Honestly, the ap poll rankings basketball junkies look for every Monday morning have become a bit of a battlefield lately. You’ve got the traditionalists who swear by the AP writers, and then you’ve got the math nerds yelling about KenPom and NET ratings. It’s a lot. But here is the thing: the AP Poll still has this weird, almost mystical grip on the sport that a spreadsheet just can’t replicate.
Why Arizona and UConn Are the Teams to Beat Right Now
Look at the men's side. Arizona is sitting pretty at 17-0. They aren't just winning; they’re demoralizing people. Tommy Lloyd has them playing this brand of basketball that feels like a track meet where the other team forgot their shoes. Iowa State is currently stalking them at No. 2, having jumped over Michigan.
Speaking of Michigan, they took a tumble to No. 4 after Wisconsin finally handed them a loss. It happens. But even with that loss, the analytics people—like the ones at Bart Torvik—still think Michigan is the best team in the country. This is exactly why the ap poll rankings basketball voters get so much heat. They value the "zero" in the loss column more than anything else.
Then you have the women's poll. It's UConn’s world, and we’re just living in it. They are the unanimous No. 1 right now. All 32 voters agreed. That doesn't happen often. They are winning Big East games by an average of 47 points. It’s barely even basketball at that point; it’s a clinic. South Carolina moved up to No. 2, and UCLA is right there at No. 3.
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The Rise of the "Underdogs"
Vanderbilt is the story nobody saw coming. Seriously. Both their men’s and women’s programs are in the Top 10. The men cracked the top 10 for the first time since the 2011-12 season. They are 16-1 and look like a legit threat in the SEC. Nebraska is also doing things they haven't done since 1966, sitting at No. 8.
It’s easy to forget that these rankings aren't just numbers. They are livelihoods. When a team like Utah State or Seton Hall cracks the Top 25 (which they both did this week), it changes the entire energy on campus. It's a stamp of "we belong."
How the AP Poll Rankings Basketball Actually Work
It’s not some supercomputer in a basement. It’s 62 people. That’s it. Sportswriters and broadcasters from all over the country. They each submit a list of 1 to 25. A first-place vote gets 25 points, a second-place vote gets 24, and so on.
It sounds simple. In reality, it’s chaos.
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Voters have to watch hundreds of games, or at least pretend to. They are human. They have biases. They have "eye tests" that fail them. Sometimes a voter might penalize a team for a "bad win," while another voter thinks a "good loss" is better than a blowout against a cupcake school.
The Controversy of the Eye Test vs. Analytics
The big argument in 2026 is whether the AP Poll even matters. If the NCAA Tournament selection committee uses the NET (NCAA Evaluation Tool), why do we care what a writer in Des Moines thinks?
- Momentum: A high AP ranking builds "buzz."
- Recruiting: High school kids want to see that number next to the school name on ESPN.
- Seeding: While the committee doesn't officially use the AP Poll, the human element of the committee is definitely influenced by the season-long narrative the poll creates.
The gap between No. 1 and No. 2 in the men's poll was huge this week, but Michigan is still the "efficiency" king. If you go to a site like KenPom, Michigan is significantly higher than Arizona in net rating. This creates a weird rift. Do you trust what you see (wins and losses) or what the numbers say (efficiency and potential)?
Notable Shifts This Week
Alabama had a rough one. They fell five spots to No. 18. Losses to Vanderbilt and Texas did them in. If you’re a Bama fan, it feels like the sky is falling, but they’re still in the mix.
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Florida is back! The Gators were preseason No. 3, fell all the way out of the rankings, and now they’ve clawed back to No. 19. That is the definition of a roller coaster.
On the women's side, the SEC is just a gauntlet. They have nine teams in the Top 25. Nine. Five of the top seven teams are SEC schools. It’s essentially a mini-tournament every single Tuesday and Thursday night. Texas fell two spots after LSU—led by Kim Mulkey—beat them 70-65. That game was a heavyweight fight.
The Road to March
We are roughly two months away from Selection Sunday. The ap poll rankings basketball results we see now are the foundation for the brackets. If Arizona stays No. 1, they are locked for a top seed in the West. If UConn stays unanimous, they aren't leaving the East regional.
But things get weird in February. Injuries happen. Fatigue sets in. A team like Houston (No. 7) or Duke (No. 6) is just one hot streak away from jumping into that top tier.
Actionable Insights for Fans
If you are trying to use these rankings to predict your bracket or just understand the landscape, here is what you should do:
- Check the "Others Receiving Votes" list. That’s where the sleepers live. Teams like Saint Louis or Miami (OH) are right on the edge. If they break in, they usually have a ton of momentum.
- Look at the point gap. If the gap between No. 5 and No. 6 is small, expect those teams to flip-flop every week. If it’s large, the voters have reached a consensus.
- Compare to the NET. If a team is No. 10 in the AP but No. 30 in the NET, they are "overrated" by the media and might be a prime candidate for an early exit in March.
- Watch conference clusters. When a conference like the Big 12 or SEC has five teams in the Top 15, their internal games matter more. A "loss" in that conference might actually help a team's strength of schedule more than a "win" elsewhere.
The AP Poll is a snapshot. It’s a weekly drama. It’s flawed, biased, and sometimes totally wrong—and that’s exactly why we can’t stop talking about it. Keep an eye on the Monday afternoon drops; they are the only thing keeping the conversation alive until the real madness starts in March.