Duke drops to No. 7 in latest AP Poll

Duke dropped three positions to No. 7 in the AP Top 25 poll this week following a 94-81 defeat to North Carolina in coach Mike Krzyzewski’s final home game on Saturday. After finishing the regular season with a 23-8 record, the Tar Heels cracked the poll for the first time since November, coming in at No. 25. 

Duke dropped 94-81 to rival North Carolina in head coach Mike Krzyzewski’s last home game at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Saturday, the most prominent setback of the week. 

North Carolina Tar Heels at Duke Blue Devils [Coach K’s FINAL HOME GAME] | Full Game Highlights

Coach K made it clear that the loss wasn’t the end of the road, however, for Duke’s 2022 campaign.

“Today was unacceptable, but the season has been very acceptable,” Krzyzewski said. “And the season isn’t over, all right?”

A national title, which would be the sixth in the Coach K era at Duke, would make the UNC loss a minor footnote in the story of the legendary coach’s final season.

Meanwhile, both Kansas and Baylor won and will now share the Big 12 title. Arizona won to finish three games ahead of everybody else in the Pac-12. Auburn won to secure the outright SEC title. Murray State won to extend its winning streak to 20 games and grab the Ohio Valley Conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. 

As of now, Gonzaga, Arizona and reigning national champion Baylor remained atop Monday’s poll. Rick Barnes’ squad tied Purdue for No. 9 to crack the top 10 for the first time this season. 

Big Rises/Falls

Villanova rose three spots after beating No. 11 Providence and Butler last week

Murray State moved up three spots to No. 19 after winning the Ohio Valley Conference tournament.

Southern California had the biggest fall of the week, tumbling five spots to No. 21 after losses to Arizona and UCLA.

No. 18 Houston fell four spots after losing to Memphis.

Coming In/Out

No. 23 Colorado State joined No. 25 North Carolina as the poll’s new additions, bumping Ohio State and Alabama from last week’s rankings. 

Top 25 AP Poll:

1. Gonzaga
2. Arizona
3. Baylor
4. Auburn
5. Kentucky
6. Kansas
7. Duke
8. Villanova
9. T-9. Purdue
10. T-9. Tennessee
11. Providence
12. Wisconsin
13. UCLA
14. Texas Tech
15. Arkansas
16. Illinois
17. Saint Mary’s
18. Houston
19. Murray State
20. Connecticut
21. USC
22. Texas
23. Colorado State
24. Iowa
25. North Carolina

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