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Virginia escaped its last out of conference tune-up game, if you can call it that, with a 56-52 victory over Cal, in what might be considered its finest win of the season so far.
With its thrilling 73-70 win over then-No. 6 Kentucky, ACC foe Louisville jumped in the AP poll from 10 up to 6. Virginia will be traveling to Louisville on Wednesday this week to face the Cardinals, which proved against Kentucky that not only does Louisville have one of the top defenses in the country, but they also have the ability to be a consistent scoring threat.
Associated Press Poll, Week of 12/26
| RK | TEAM | RECORD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|
| RK | TEAM | RECORD | PTS |
| 1 | Villanova (56) | 12-0 | 1,614 |
| 2 | UCLA (3) | 13-0 | 1,518 |
| 3 | Kansas | 11-1 | 1,461 |
| 4 | Baylor (6) | 12-0 | 1,458 |
| 5 | Duke | 12-1 | 1,375 |
| 6 | Louisville | 11-1 | 1,260 |
| 7 | Gonzaga | 12-0 | 1,222 |
| 8 | Kentucky | 10-2 | 1,171 |
| 9 | North Carolina | 11-2 | 1,113 |
| 10 | Creighton | 12-0 | 1,049 |
| 11 | West Virginia | 11-1 | 933 |
| 12 | Virginia | 10-1 | 892 |
| 13 | Butler | 11-1 | 837 |
| 14 | Wisconsin | 11-2 | 772 |
| 15 | Purdue | 11-2 | 745 |
| 16 | Indiana | 10-2 | 709 |
| 17 | Xavier | 10-2 | 548 |
| 18 | Arizona | 11-2 | 512 |
| 19 | Saint Mary's | 10-1 | 407 |
| 20 | Florida State | 12-1 | 326 |
| 21 | Oregon | 11-2 | 321 |
| 22 | USC | 13-0 | 248 |
| 23 | Cincinnati | 10-2 | 207 |
| 24 | Notre Dame | 10-2 | 204 |
| 25 | Florida | 9-3 | 76 |
Virginia drops one spot in the Coaches Poll after Louisville leapfrogged the Hoos with a four-spot jump to No. 7.
Coaches Poll, Week of 12/26
| RK | TEAM | RECORD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|
| RK | TEAM | RECORD | PTS |
| 1 | Villanova (27) | 12-0 | 771 |
| 2 | UCLA (2) | 13-0 | 736 |
| 3 | Kansas (1) | 11-1 | 695 |
| 4 | Baylor | 12-0 | 656 |
| 5 | Duke (1) | 12-1 | 641 |
| 6 | Gonzaga | 12-0 | 600 |
| 7 | Louisville | 11-1 | 560 |
| 8 | Kentucky | 10-2 | 537 |
| 9 | Creighton | 12-0 | 531 |
| 10 | North Carolina | 11-2 | 522 |
| 11 | Virginia | 10-1 | 454 |
| 12 | West Virginia | 11-1 | 438 |
| 13 | Butler | 11-1 | 397 |
| 14 | Wisconsin | 11-2 | 347 |
| 15 | Purdue | 11-2 | 331 |
| 16 | Indiana | 10-2 | 285 |
| 17 | Xavier | 10-2 | 277 |
| 18 | Arizona | 11-2 | 232 |
| 19 | St. Mary's | 10-1 | 214 |
| 20 | Florida St. | 12-1 | 161 |
| 21 | Oregon | 11-2 | 148 |
| 22 | Southern California | 13-0 | 136 |
| 23 | Cincinnati | 10-2 | 93 |
| 24 | Notre Dame | 10-2 | 92 |
| 25 | South Carolina | 9-2 | 57 |
Virginia - Louisville tips off at 7:00 ET on Wednesday, December 28. The Hoos open their ACC home schedule against No. 20 Florida State on New Year’s Eve at 2:00 p.m.