After a pair of double-digit victories over American Athletic Conference foes last week, Wichita State (13-2) rose four spots into a tie with Purdue for the No. 5 ranking in the latest Associated Press poll released on Monday.
There was a mass shuffle atop the rankings, as four of the top five teams lost last week. Villanova (14-1) regained the top spot in the poll, followed by West Virginia (14-1), Virginia (14-1), and Michigan State (15-2). WSU and Purdue each received 1,225 points in the poll, just ahead of No. 7 Duke with 1,222.
Even though only 21 voters had WSU ranked No. 5 or higher, the Shockers were able to move up in the poll because 58 of the 65 voters had them in the top-10. It is the highest ranking for WSU since being ranked No. 3 on Dec. 11.
After losing to Texas Tech and beating TCU, Kansas dropped two spots to No. 12. Texas Tech moved up to No. 8, while Oklahoma fell to No. 9 and TCU remained at No. 16.
Fellow AAC unbeaten Cincinnati (14-2) moved up five spots to No. 14. No other AAC team received votes in the poll.
Among WSU's past opponents, Notre Dame (13-3) and Baylor (11-4) are not ranked but are among teams receiving votes.
