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College basketball rankings: Week 13 AP Top 25 predictions – Vols stay hot

By Connor Muldowney

KNOXVILLE, TN - JANUARY 26: Tennessee Volunteers forward Grant Williams (2) and guard Admiral Schofield (5) talk during a college basketball game between the Tennessee Volunteers and West Virginia Mountaineers on January 26, 2019, at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, TN. (Photo by Bryan Lynn/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TN - JANUARY 26: Tennessee Volunteers forward Grant Williams (2) and guard Admiral Schofield (5) talk during a college basketball game between the Tennessee Volunteers and West Virginia Mountaineers on January 26, 2019, at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, TN. (Photo by Bryan Lynn/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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MADISON, WISCONSIN – JANUARY 26: Ethan Happ #22 of the Wisconsin Badgers handles the ball while being guarded by Ryan Taylor #14 of the Northwestern Wildcats in the second half at the Kohl Center on January 26, 2019 in Madison, Wisconsin. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
MADISON, WISCONSIN – JANUARY 26: Ethan Happ #22 of the Wisconsin Badgers handles the ball while being guarded by Ryan Taylor #14 of the Northwestern Wildcats in the second half at the Kohl Center on January 26, 2019 in Madison, Wisconsin. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images) /

Iowa State is like a cockroach. The Cyclones have lost three conference games this season, but it still finds a way to impress AP voters and remain in the AP Top 25. It’ll do so yet again despite losing at Kansas by four as it ended the week with a quality 14-point road win over No. 20 Ole Miss. This team can make some noise in the Big 12, but it needs to show more consistency.

Will Illinois fall from the rankings completely? I’m going to say no just because the Terrapins had a string of strong weeks before falling twice. One loss was on the road against a red-hot Michigan State team and the next was a forfeited home game to play Illinois at Madison Square Garden which led to a 78-67 defeat. It was an ugly loss seeing as Illinois has had a bad season, but the Terrapins are still one of the top teams in the Big Ten and arguably a Top 25 team in the nation.

I’d love to see more consistency from NC State, but the ACC is just beating up on each other this season. Louisville took care of the Wolf[ack in Week 12 with an 84-77 win but they bounced back to beat Clemson by a couple at home. Not the most impressive week for this team, but the Tigers are still no pushovers despite an 11-8 record. Can the Wolfpack string together a win streak?

How do you hold on to a spot in the rankings after losing by 21 points to Kentucky on the road? By taking care of No. 16 Auburn at home over the weekend. Mississippi State was on the verge of losing a spot in the rankings, but the Bulldogs stepped up to hand Auburn its second loss of the week, effectively knocking the Tigers from the AP Top 25 while keeping its spot near the bottom.

A win over Michigan just last week seems to have given Wisconsin new life. Before that, the Badgers lost two straight against Purdue and at Maryland by a combined eight points, but they have won three consecutive games. The first was against Michigan by 10, then at Illinois by 12 and then again at home versus Northwestern by 16. This team seems to be playing its best basketball of the season and it’ll find its way back into the AP Top 25.