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College Basketball Rankings: Projected Top 25 for Week 17

By Connor Muldowney

Feb 25, 2017; Lexington, KY, USA; Kentucky Wildcats guard Malik Monk (5) celebrates with teammates forward Wenyen Gabriel (32) and forward Edrice Bam Adebayo (3) during the game against the Florida Gators in the second half at Rupp Arena. Kentucky defeated Florida 76-66. Mandatory Credit: Mark Zerof-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 25, 2017; Lexington, KY, USA; Kentucky Wildcats guard Malik Monk (5) celebrates with teammates forward Wenyen Gabriel (32) and forward Edrice Bam Adebayo (3) during the game against the Florida Gators in the second half at Rupp Arena. Kentucky defeated Florida 76-66. Mandatory Credit: Mark Zerof-USA TODAY Sports /
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Feb 25, 2017; Austin, TX, USA; Kansas Jayhawks guard Frank Mason III (0) guards against Texas Longhorns guard Kerwin Roach, Jr. (12) at the Frank Erwin Center. Kansas won 77-67. Mandatory Credit: Erich Schlegel-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 25, 2017; Austin, TX, USA; Kansas Jayhawks guard Frank Mason III (0) guards against Texas Longhorns guard Kerwin Roach, Jr. (12) at the Frank Erwin Center. Kansas won 77-67. Mandatory Credit: Erich Schlegel-USA TODAY Sports /
5

Oregon Ducks

26-4, Last Week: 6

Maybe Oregon needed a couple of close contests like it got in Week 16 against Cal and Stanford, both on the road. The Ducks had been rolling for some time without any real scares, but Cal nearly took them down, but Dillon Brooks hit a huge 3-pointer to give Oregon the last-second win. Not to be outdone, the Stanford Cardinal took Oregon down to the wire, only to lose by two. The Ducks are tied with Arizona atop the Pac-12 standings with just one game to play, will they win the conference crown?

4

Gonzaga Bulldogs

29-1, Last Week: 1

The perfect season is over. While the quest for perfection was knocked by just about everyone who follows college basketball strictly because of the lack of serious competition in the WCC, it’s extremely difficult to go undefeated in any major Division 1 sport, no matter the level of difficulty on the schedule. Gonzaga lost a tough game to BYU on Saturday night at home, dropping the Bulldogs to 29-1 on the year and, in my opinion, No. 4 in the country.

3

Villanova Wildcats

27-3, Last Week: 2

Villanova has been waiting for a Gonzaga loss to reclaim that top spot in the rankings for weeks, but the Wildcats stumbled against No. 22 Butler early in Week 16. That shot down any hope for jumping to No. 1 if the Bulldogs had somehow lost — and they did — but the Wildcats rebounded with a win over No. 23 Creighton to end the week. While I think the reigning national champs will drop a bit, it’ll likely be just one spot to No. 3. Jay Wright’s squad still looks like a No. 1 seed.

2

UCLA Bruins

26-3, Last Week: 5

Believe it or not, there are still some people out there who don’t believe UCLA deserves a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Although the Bruins are essentially out of the conference title race, barring a miracle, they will be ranked No. 2 on Monday. This team has proven itself time and time again, even beating Arizona on the road Saturday evening in a huge No. 5 vs. No. 4 matchup. If the Bruins can win both games this week and then make it to the Pac-12 title game, they will more than likely get a No. 1, if not the top overall seed.

1

Kansas Jayhawks

26-3, Last Week: 3

Kansas is really starting to heat up and that’s bad news for the rest of college basketball. Everyone knows that perennially, this is one of the programs that can take home the national title and no one would be all that surprised. With guys like Frank Mason III and Josh Jackson, there may not be a team that can match up, talent-wise, in the nation. The Jayhawks extended their winning streak to six with wins over TCU and Texas and will likely be the new No. 1 on Monday afternoon.