NCAA Basketball

College Basketball Top 25 Rankings: RantSports’ Week 10 Poll

RantSports’ College Basketball Top 25 Rankings: Week 10 Poll

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Several deserving teams were left out of the top 25 rankings this week due to lack of quality wins (Oklahoma State and Ohio State), but that doesn’t mean they are unable to jump back into them by next week. It’s conference time throughout college basketball, which means every single game is crucial for NCAA Tournament hopes. Here are RantSports’ official top 25 college basketball rankings for Week 10.

No. 25 Wyoming Cowboys

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Troy Babbitt-USA TODAY Sports

No. 25 Wyoming Cowboys

Wyoming Basketball
Troy Babbitt-USA TODAY Sports

The Cowboys have dominated in conference play and already have 15 wins.

No. 24 Dayton Flyers

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Rob Leifheit-USA TODAY Sports

No. 24 Dayton Flyers

Dayton basketball
Rob Leifheit-USA TODAY Sports

Dayton quietly continues to rack up wins and are undefeated in A-10 play.

No. 23 Baylor Bears

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Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

No. 23 Baylor Bears

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Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Baylor fits the “lack of quality wins” profile. The Bears need to upset Iowa State to remain in the top 25.

No. 22 Texas Longhorns

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Ray Carlin-USA TODAY Sports

No. 22 Texas Longhorns

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Ray Carlin-USA TODAY Sports

The Longhorns are falling rapidly. They must turn things around soon, or they could be a bubble team after spending most of the season in the top 10.

No. 21 Seton Hall Pirates

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Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports

No. 21 Seton Hall Pirates

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Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports

The most surprising team in the Big East, Seton Hall knocked off Villanova and looks like a legitimate contender in the conference.

No. 20 Northern Iowa Panthers

Northern Iowa
Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports

No. 20 Northern Iowa Panthers

Northern Iowa
Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports

Upset by Evansville, NIU will be looking forward to its looming match-up with Wichita State. It needs to focus between then and now, however.

No. 19 Oklahoma Sooners

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No. 19 Oklahoma Sooners

OU Hoops
Brendan Maloney-USA TODAY Sports

Oklahoma finally got good wins over Texas and Baylor, but lost to Kansas State.

No. 18 Arkansas Razorbacks

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Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

No. 18 Arkansas Razorbacks

Arkansas Basketball
Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

The second best team in the SEC, Arkansas just keeps on winning.

No. 17 North Carolina Tar Heels

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Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

No. 17 North Carolina Tar Heels

UNC Hoops
Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

UNC pulled a massive upset over Louisville just days after a disappointing loss to Notre Dame. If this team can get it together, it will be a legitimate threat out of the ACC.

No. 16 VCU Rams

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Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

No. 16 VCU Rams

VCU Basketball
Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

VCU is once again one of the best mid-major teams in the country. It’ll have to remain focused with three straight away games coming up next.

No. 15 West Virginia Mountaineers

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Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

No. 15 West Virginia Mountaineers

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Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

A loss to Iowa State is nothing to frown at. The Mountaineers are still one of the best teams in the conference.

No. 14 Maryland Terrapins

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Mike Granse-USA TODAY Sports

No. 14 Maryland Terrapins

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Mike Granse-USA TODAY Sports

The Terrapins were upset by Illinois, but they bounced back with a win over Purdue. Look for this team to pull off some upsets moving forward.

No. 13 Wichita State Shockers

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Scott Sewell-USA TODAY Sports

No. 13 Wichita State Shockers

Wichita State Basketball
Scott Sewell-USA TODAY Sports

Undefeated in conference play, Wichita State should cruise to the tournament as a three or four seed.

No. 12 Iowa State Cyclones

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Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

No. 12 Iowa State Cyclones

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Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Coming off of an impressive win over WVU, the Cyclones face Baylor next. It looks like Kansas, West Virginia and ISU are the elite teams in the Big 12.

No. 11 Notre Dame Fighting Irish

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No. 11 Notre Dame Fighting Irish

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Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports

The most efficient team in the country, Notre Dame lost at the hands of the undefeated Virginia Cavaliers. One loss in 12 games leaves the Fighting Irish as one of the best teams in college basketball.

No. 10 Arizona Wildcats

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No. 10 Arizona Wildcats

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Godofredo Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

The Wildcats are slowly getting their groove back. However, they face No. 8 Utah on Jan. 17, and just lost to Oregon State.

No. 9 Kansas Jayhawks

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No. 9 Kansas Jayhawks

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Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

The Jayhawks are on a four-game winning streak and have rebounded from their upset loss at Temple.

No. 8 Utah Utes

No. 8 Utah Utes
Russ Isabella-USA TODAY Sports

No. 8 Utah Utes

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Russ Isabella-USA TODAY Sports

Utah is still undefeated in PAC 12 play, but play Arizona in two games. Something has to give.

No. 7 Wisconsin Badgers

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Jim O'Connor-USA TODAY Sports

No. 7 Wisconsin Badgers

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Jim O'Connor-USA TODAY Sports

Wisconsin is not a good team without Frank Kaminsky. This has to be concerning for the Badgers moving forward.

No. 6 Louisville Cardinals

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Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

No. 6 Louisville Cardinals

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Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

North Carolina closed the game better than Louisville, but the Cardinals’ defense still makes them one of the best teams in the country.

No. 5 Villanova Wildcats

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No. 5 Villanova Wildcats

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Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

The Wildcats have rebounded since losing to Seton hall. Expect them to keep winning and receive a No. 1 seed in the 2015 NCAA Tournament.

No. 4 Duke Blue Devils

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No. 4 Duke Blue Devils

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Rob Kinnan-USA TODAY Sports

Duke got caught unaware by NC State, but should bounce back.

No. 3 Gonzaga Bulldogs

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No. 3 Gonzaga Bulldogs

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James Snook-USA TODAY Sports

Gonzaga should run the table in the WCC, so expect it to stay around the top five for the remainder of the season.

No. 2 Virginia Cavaliers

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Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports

No. 2 Virginia Cavaliers

UVA Hoops
Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports

I’ve been debating all season on whether or not to put UVA above Duke. The Blue Devils helped both me and Virginia out by losing to NC State. Well-deserved ranking for an all-around talented team.

No. 1 Kentucky Wildcats

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No. 1 Kentucky Wildcats

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Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

Kentucky survived several close games to open SEC play, but undefeated is undefeated.

Taylor Sturm is a Featured Basketball Writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @TSturmRS, like him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.

 

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