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College basketball rankings: Week 11 AP Top 25 predictions

By Connor Muldowney

TALLAHASSEE, FL - JANUARY 12: Jack White #41, Tre Jones #3, Javin DeLaurier #12 and RJ Barrett #5 of the Duke Blue Devils huddle up during the game against the Florida State Seminoles at Donald L. Tucker Center on January 12, 2019 in Tallahassee, Florida. #1 Ranked Duke defeated #13 Florida State 80 to 78. (Photo by Don Juan Moore/Getty Images)
TALLAHASSEE, FL - JANUARY 12: Jack White #41, Tre Jones #3, Javin DeLaurier #12 and RJ Barrett #5 of the Duke Blue Devils huddle up during the game against the Florida State Seminoles at Donald L. Tucker Center on January 12, 2019 in Tallahassee, Florida. #1 Ranked Duke defeated #13 Florida State 80 to 78. (Photo by Don Juan Moore/Getty Images) /
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INDIANAPOLIS, IN – NOVEMBER 16: KJ Buffen #14 of the Mississippi Rebels brings the ball up court during the game against the Butler Bulldogs at Hinkle Fieldhouse on November 16, 2018 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN – NOVEMBER 16: KJ Buffen #14 of the Mississippi Rebels brings the ball up court during the game against the Butler Bulldogs at Hinkle Fieldhouse on November 16, 2018 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /

Chris Holtmann’s Ohio State Buckeyes had been one of those three teams that looked like serious Big Ten title contenders, but after losing to Michigan State at home seemed to get this team down. The Buckeyes have now lost three straight games after losing to Rutgers and Iowa on the road in Week 10 and the Buckeyes will go from borderline top-10 to holding on to a spot in the rankings by a thread.

Losing by 16 points to Purdue seems like something that could demoralize a team, but Iowa has been red-hot ever since that defeat in West Lafayette a couple weeks ago. In fact, the Hawkeyes, who were ranked at the time of the loss, have since won three straight, including wins over ranked teams in Nebraska and Ohio State. This team will find its way back into the rankings this week.

It wasn’t exactly a banner week for Mississippi State as it stared a potential jump into that top-10 range but slipped and fell — two times. The Bulldogs lost at South Carolina and then again to a red-hot Ole Miss team by a combined nine points. This team will need to have a near-perfect end to the conference season if it wants a chance at the SEC title.

Was there a team that had a better week than Ole Miss? It’s hard to say, but two wins over ranked teams, one on the road and one at home, has to be enough to get the Rebels in the AP Top 25 for the first time this season. The Rebels are now 13-2 overall and tied atop the SEC standings with a 3-0 record. Since losing to Cincinnati, the Rebels have won 10 straight games.

Lon Kruger no longer has superstars such as Trae Young or Buddy Hield to lead his team, but he has a balanced attack which has led to a strong start to the season. Unfortunately, the Sooners lost to Texas Tech at home in their biggest game of the year before beating a ranked TCU squad just a few days later. Do those games cancel out? No, but the rest of the AP Top 25 struggled in Week 10, so expect Oklahoma to retain a spot.