After getting back in the win column with victories over Rutgers and Indiana, Ohio State climbed back into the top 15 in the country Monday.
The Buckeyes jumped three spots, checking in at No. 13 in the Associated Press Top 25 poll, after falling eight spots in last week's rankings.
Ohio State is joined in the top-25 by fellow Big Ten teams Michigan State, Purdue and Michigan. The Spartans, fresh off of their outright Big Ten regular season title, held onto their No. 2 ranking for the third straight week, while Purdue jumped one spot to No. 8 in the country following wins over Illinois and Minnesota to close the regular season.
Michigan checks in at No. 15 after ending the regular season with five straight wins, including an 85-61 shellacking of Maryland in the regular season finale.
The Buckeyes, holding the No. 2 seed in the Big Ten Tournament, will take the court on Friday in the quarterfinal round of the bracket against the winner of the No. 7 Penn State vs. No. 10 Northwestern matchup. Tip is set for 6:30 from New York City on BTN.
| RANK | TEAM | RECORD | PTS | 1st VOTES | PREV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | VIRGINIA | 26-2 | 1,608 | 48 | 1 |
| 2 | MICHIGAN STATE | 28-3 | 1,571 | 17 | 2 |
| 3 | XAVIER | 25-4 | 1,422 | – | 4 |
| 4 | VILLANOVA | 25-4 | 1,416 | – | 3 |
| 5 | DUKE | 24-5 | 1,362 | – | 5 |
| 6 | KANSAS | 23-6 | 1,272 | – | 8 |
| 7 | GONZAGA | 27-4 | 1,231 | – | 6 |
| 8 | PURDUE | 26-5 | 1,178 | – | 9 |
| 9 | NORTH CAROLINA | 22-7 | 1,140 | – | 10 |
| 10 | CINCINNATI | 25-4 | 1,013 | – | 11 |
| 11 | WICHITA STATE | 23-5 | 945 | – | 13 |
| 12 | TEXAS TECH | 22-7 | 887 | – | 6 |
| 13 | OHIO STATE | 24-7 | 791 | – | 16 |
| 14 | AUBURN | 24-5 | 781 | – | 12 |
| 15 | MICHIGAN | 24-7 | 753 | – | 17 |
| 16 | TENNESSEE | 21-7 | 564 | – | 19 |
| 17 | RHODE ISLAND | 23-4 | 558 | – | 18 |
| 18 | CLEMSON | 21-7 | 499 | – | 15 |
| 19 | ARIZONA | 22-7 | 450 | – | 14 |
| 20 | WEST VIRGINIA | 21-8 | 429 | – | 21 |
| 21 | NEVADA | 25-5 | 386 | – | 20 |
| 22 | SAINT MARY'S (CAL) | 27-4 | 318 | – | 22 |
| 23 | KENTUCKY | 20-9 | 174 | – | – |
| 24 | MIDDLE TENNESSEE | 23-5 | 144 | – | 24 |
| 25 | HOUSTON | 22-6 | 45 | – | 23 |
