Arizona Loses No. 1 Ranking
Arizona lost its No. 1 spot in both the Coaches Poll and AP Top 25 after suffering back-to-back defeats to Kansas and Texas Tech last week. The Wildcats' fall shakes up the college basketball landscape as the regular season nears its close.
- Michigan has taken over the No. 1 spot in the polls for the first time since 2013, receiving 60 of 61 first-place votes in the AP Poll. Houston and Duke are now ranked No. 2 and No. 3, respectively, with Arizona falling to No. 4. - The two losses were the first of the season for Arizona, snapping a 23-game winning streak. The first defeat was an 82-78 loss on the road against then-No. 9 Kansas. - The second loss occurred at home in a 78-75 overtime thriller against No. 16 Texas Tech. The game was featured on ESPN's "College Gameday" and had a sellout crowd of 14,688. - In the loss to Texas Tech, Wildcats star freshman Koa Peat suffered a lower leg injury in the second half and did not return. Another key player, Dwayne Aristode, missed the game entirely due to the flu. - JT Toppin of Texas Tech had a standout performance in their victory over Arizona, scoring 31 points and grabbing 13 rebounds. For Kansas, Flory Bidunga led the way with a double-double of 23 points and 10 rebounds. - Arizona's schedule doesn't get any easier, as they are set to face two more ranked opponents in their next two games: No. 23 BYU and No. 2 Houston. According to the ESPN Basketball Power Index, Arizona has the most difficult remaining schedule in the nation.
