Men's basketball AP Poll: Arizona survives scare, holds onto No. 1 spot after latest major win

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Arizona is running it back leading the sport after what turned out to be another dominant week for the Wildcats.

Here’s everything you missed in the sixth week of the regular season, and the latest Associated Press poll.

Arizona survives early scare to stay perfect

For a brief minute, it looked like we were going to have a new No. 1 team this week.

But then, quickly, Arizona kicked into gear and picked up yet another commanding road win over a ranked opponent.

The Wildcats, despite entering the break down by two points for their first halftime deficit of the season, erupted in the second half to pick up a 21-point win over Alabama on Saturday night in Birmingham. Brayden Burries dropped 20 of his 28 points in the second half, too.

The win marked the fifth for Arizona against a ranked opponent so far this season, and the second straight after it beat Auburn by almost 30 earlier this month. The Wildcats also beat defending national champions Florida to open the season, and picked up wins over UCLA and UConn.

Naturally, that kept the Wildcats at No. 1 in the poll this week. Alabama fell to No. 16.

The Wildcats’ win was part of what was a relatively straightforward week of college basketball. There was just one change in the top 11 spots of the AP Poll, with Gonzaga and Houston just swapping spots. Michigan held at No. 2, and Duke, which was off this past week, held at No. 3. Iowa State, which held on to beat Iowa on Thursday, remained at No. 4 and UConn then rounded out the top five.

The biggest surprise of the week came from Nebraska, which stunned Illinois with a near-buzzer-beater from Jamarques Lawrence on the road. That got the Huskers to a perfect 11-0, which is the best start in program history. The win over Illinois, which was their first ranked win, pushed them up eight spots to No. 15. The Illini, now with three losses, moved to No. 18.

As for Arizona, winning the Big 12 won’t be an easy thing to do There are four teams in the top 10 alone, for starters. But over the first stretch of the season, the Wildcats have clearly separated themselves from the rest of the pack in the league. 

Games to watch this week

All times ET | * denotes neutral site

Tuesday, Dec. 16

No. 11 Louisville at No. 20 Tennessee | 7 p.m. | ESPN

Saturday, Dec. 20

No. 22 St. John’s at Kentucky | 12:30 p.m. | CBS *
Ohio State at No. 12 North Carolina | 3 p.m. | CBS *
No. 8 Houston at No. 14 Arkansas | 5:30 p.m. | CBS *
No. 21 Auburn at No. 6 Purdue | 6:30 p.m. | Peacock *
No. 3 Duke at No. 19 Texas Tech | 8 p.m. | ESPN *

AP Top 25

The full Associated Press men’s basketball poll from December 15, 2025.

1. Arizona (9-0)
2. Michigan (10-0)
3. Duke (10-0)
4. Iowa State (11-0)
5. UConn (10-1)
6. Purdue (10-1)
7. Gonzaga (10-1)
8. Houston (10-1)
9. Michigan State (9-1)
10. BYU (9-1)
11. Louisville (9-1)
12. North Carolina (9-1)
13. Vanderbilt (10-0)
14. Arkansas (8-2)
15. Nebraska (11-0)
16. Alabama (7-3)
17. Kansas (8-3)
18. Illinois (8-3)
19. Texas Tech (7-3)
20. Tennessee (7-3)
21. Auburn (8-3)
22. St. John's (6-3)
T23. Florida (6-4)
T23. Virginia (9-1)
25. Georgia (9-1)

Others receiving votes: USC 68, Iowa 47, Seton Hall 46, LSU 19, Kentucky 19, UCLA 16, Clemson 14, California 13, Saint Mary's 12, Arizona State 5, Villanova 5, Notre Dame 4, Indiana 4, Miami (Ohio) 4, Miami 4, Utah State 2, Saint Louis 1, Wisconsin 1