Both Florida and Florida State moved up in this week’s Associated Press Top 25 poll. The Gators earned the 12th position, up from 13th last week, while the Seminoles climbed four spots to claim the No. 15 ranking.
Florida moved up despite a loss at No. 9 Kentucky on Saturday. While they played the Wildcats tough in the 76-66 loss on the road, the Gators were impressive in their 81-66 takedown of a good South Carolina team.
The Seminoles’ rise came on the strength of a victory over an overmatched Boston College team on Monday and a rare road win on Saturday. Their 76-74 escape at Clemson was only their second win away from home over the past seven games.
Three Florida teams now reside in the top 25 with Miami’s ascension to the 25th spot. During the week the Hurricanes beat then-No. 14 Virginia on the road and followed that up with a 55-50 win at home over then-No. 10 Duke.
Florida State finishes out the regular season with a game at Duke on Tuesday and a home game against the Hurricanes on Saturday. Florida hosts surging Arkansas on Wednesday and travels to Vanderbilt on Saturday. Miami is at Virginia Tech on Monday night.
Following Gonzaga’s loss over the weekend, the Kansas Jayhawks are the top-ranked team this week. Despite losing at home to No. 13 Butler, Villanova stayed at No. 2 while UCLA climbed to third and Gonzaga fell to fourth.
Butler made the biggest jump by leaping nine spots with two road wins, including at Villanova.
With Miami joining the top 25, the ACC placed seven teams in the poll. Somehow, the voters continue to believe in No. 23 Virginia, who continues to struggle and now has nine losses.
Kentucky and Florida are the only two SEC ranked teams, while the Big 12 has four and the Pac 12 three. The Big 10, Big East, West Coast and American Conference placed two each, while the Missouri Valley Conference has one.
