The ascent has stopped – for now.
Ohio State rose from No. 7 to No. 4 in last week's Associated Press top-25 poll, but it didn't move up any more on Monday after beating Maryland and Indiana. The 17-4 Buckeyes remained at No. 4 in the latest ranking to start the week.
They are still behind No. 1 Gonzaga, No. 2 Baylor and No. 3 Michigan, which officially sets up this weekend's game versus the Wolverines as a top-four matchup between Big Ten rivals who most project as No. 1 seeds in the NCAA tournament as of now. Third-ranked Michigan and fourth-ranked Ohio State will meet at 1 p.m. Sunday in the Schottenstein Center for their only regular season showdown.
The Buckeyes, whose ranking increased the five prior weeks, have cemented themselves as a national contender based on their recent play. They've won six games in a row, beating Wisconsin, Penn State, Michigan State, Iowa, Maryland and Indiana consecutively during the stretch, and also have been victorious in nine of their past 10 games. They're 10-4 in the Big Ten and have lost only once – by two points to Purdue – since the second week of January.
Four fellow Big Ten teams join Ohio State in this week's poll.
| RANK | TEAM | RECORD | PTS | PREV | CONFERENCE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GONZAGA | 20–0 | 1,595 (59) | 1 | West Coast |
| 2 | BAYLOR | 17–0 | 1,541 (5) | 2 | Big 12 |
| 3 | MICHIGAN | 14–1 | 1,469 | 3 | Big Ten |
| 4 | OHIO STATE | 17–4 | 1,402 | 4 | Big Ten |
| 5 | ILLINOIS | 14–5 | 1,290 | 6 | Big Ten |
| 6 | HOUSTON | 17–2 | 1,171 | 8 | American Athletic |
| 7 | VIRGINIA | 15–3 | 1,130 | 9 | Atlantic Coast |
| 8 | ALABAMA | 17–5 | 1,086 | 11 | Southeastern |
| 9 | OKLAHOMA | 13–5 | 1,072 | 12 | Big 12 |
| 10 | VILLANOVA | 13–3 | 1,061 | 5 | Big East |
| 11 | IOWA | 15–6 | 911 | 15 | Big Ten |
| 12 | TEXAS | 13–5 | 886 | 13 | Big 12 |
| 13 | WEST VIRGINIA | 14–6 | 837 | 14 | Big 12 |
| 14 | CREIGHTON | 16–5 | 794 | 19 | Big East |
| 15 | TEXAS TECH | 14–6 | 792 | 7 | Big 12 |
| 16 | FLORIDA STATE | 11–3 | 625 | 17 | Atlantic Coast |
| 17 | USC | 17–3 | 587 | 20 | Pacific 12 |
| 18 | VIRGINIA TECH | 14–4 | 514 | 18 | Atlantic Coast |
| 19 | TENNESSEE | 14–5 | 453 | 16 | Southeastern |
| 20 | MISSOURI | 13–5 | 413 | 10 | Southeastern |
| 21 | WISCONSIN | 15–7 | 274 | 21 | Big Ten |
| 22 | LOYOLA CHICAGO | 18–4 | 167 | 22 | Missouri Valley |
| 23 | KANSAS | 15–7 | 141 | – | Big 12 |
| 24 | ARKANSAS | 16–5 | 111 | – | Southeastern |
| 25 | SAN DIEGO STATE | 15–4 | 75 | – | Mountain West |
