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College basketball rankings: Week 6 AP Top 25 predictions

By Connor Muldowney

PHOENIX, ARIZONA - DECEMBER 09: Jordan Bowden #23 of the Tennessee Volunteers celebrates after defeating the Gonzaga Bulldogs in the game at Talking Stick Resort Arena on December 9, 2018 in Phoenix, Arizona. The Volunteers defeated the Bulldogs 76-73. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
PHOENIX, ARIZONA - DECEMBER 09: Jordan Bowden #23 of the Tennessee Volunteers celebrates after defeating the Gonzaga Bulldogs in the game at Talking Stick Resort Arena on December 9, 2018 in Phoenix, Arizona. The Volunteers defeated the Bulldogs 76-73. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /
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EAST LANSING, MI – DECEMBER 03: Michigan State Spartans guard Cassius Winston (5) pushes the ball up the floor in transition during a Big Ten Conference college basketball game between Michigan State and Iowa on December 3, 2018, at the Breslin Center in East Lansing, MI. (Photo by Adam Ruff/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
EAST LANSING, MI – DECEMBER 03: Michigan State Spartans guard Cassius Winston (5) pushes the ball up the floor in transition during a Big Ten Conference college basketball game between Michigan State and Iowa on December 3, 2018, at the Breslin Center in East Lansing, MI. (Photo by Adam Ruff/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

Florida State’s loss to Villanova feels like an eternity ago as the Gators have beaten No. 19 Purdue, Troy and Connecticut since. None of those wins has been overly impressive as the biggest one has been by 16 points against the Trojans. No victory over Connecticut is ever easy, but an eight-point victory has to instill some confidence in this Florida State squad, but they need to find a true go-to scorer as Terance Mann leads the way with 12.1 points per game.

Ending the early session of Big Ten action against No. 18 Iowa, the Spartans look to be facing a tall task in stopping the red-hot Hawkeyes, but Michigan State made it look easy. It pounced on Iowa early and didn’t let up, beating the Hawkeyes by 22 points in East Lansing for an impressive ranked victory, and then the Spartans ended the week with a four-point road win against Florida. Not a bad week for Tom Izzo and Co.

Not many people saw Bruce Pearl having much success after his days in Tennessee were over with, but he has pieced together a solid program at fellow SEC program Auburn. The Tigers may very well be the best team in the SEC and they’re playing as well as anyone in the country with an 8-1 record following wins over UNC Asheville and Dayton. Bryce Brown and that potent offense are a scary sight.

It took a mammoth comeback against No. 20 Arizona State for the Nevada Wolfpack to remain undefeated on the year, and with the win over the Sun Devils, they won their lone game of the week. Nevada found itself down by 12 at the half, but Caleb Martin and Co. stormed back to seal the deal with a 72-66 triumph. This is a team that could seriously go undefeated this season, but because of the weaker schedule, the Wolfpack may not get the respect they deserve.

While I think Gonzaga is a top-five team in the country despite losing to Tennessee in Week 5, you can’t justify dropping Kansas, Duke, Virginia or Michigan from that range after winning all of their games. Gonzaga will get an opportunity to climb back into the top-five, but for now, the Bulldogs will be No. 6 after a tough loss to No. 7 Tennessee. This one is tough to predict, but the Bulldogs could find themselves anywhere from No. 3-6 in the Week 6 rankings.