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NCAA Top 25 update: UVA moves into AP/Coaches Poll Rankings

Look Hoooooos ranked!

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Yes, this is another Malcolm celebration shot.
Yes, this is another Malcolm celebration shot.
Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sport

It's about time!  Two more road wins over Notre Dame and (formerly #18) Pittsburgh were enough for the Virginia Cavaliers to crack the top 25 for the first time since November 11th.  UVA is ranked 20th in the AP Poll and 21st in the Coaches Poll.

Last week, the Hoos came up just short, as the Hoos sat 29th and 27th in the two major polls.  But Malcolm Brogdon's buzzer-beater against a quality opponent was enough to garner plenty of attention to allow the Hoos to surge into the rankings.  Doug Doughty moved UVA into his top 25 at 18th, the RTD's Mike Barber at #20, and Dick Vitale put Virginia at 21.  (You can check other voters here.  Coaches' votes are private).

The computers, which aren't biased by pacism or held back by the "friction" that tends to affect the polls, are even more bullish than the pollsters.  Here's a sample:

Ken Pomeroy: #7 (#82 in offense, #2 in defense. Projected 15-3 finish.)

Sagarin: #13 (#17 in "Predictor," the system's best way of projecting future games)

LRMC: (Not yet updated, 18th before the win at Pitt).

BPI (ESPN): #19

RPI (ESPN): #15  (The fact that the team's RPI is in line with its performance is very good news for seeding come March).

Syracuse moved to #1 in the AP Poll after edging past Duke at home, while previously top-ranked Arizona fell at Cal and dropped to #2.  Florida, Wichita State, and SDSU round out the top 5.

In total, 4 ACC teams are ranked - Syracuse at 1, Duke at 11, UVA at 20, and Pitt at 25.  Past UVA opponents Wisconsin, VCU, and SMU failed to crack the top 25, but all received votes.  Looking ahead, the ACC should have 4 teams that are virtual locks for the Big Dance (UVA, Syracuse, Duke, and Pitt), and 3 teams with a shot to play themselves in (UNC, FSU, Clemson, in order of likelihood).

Remember - last week, when UVA did not appear in the top 25, most Wahoo fans noted that the team's placement in the rankings does not matter.  Now that "Virginia" appeared in the polls, that caveat still holds true.  The polls are virtually irrelevant in terms of anything that matters - conference rankings, NCAA tournament seeding, etc.  The only real effects are the fun of seeing the little "20" next to UVA's name, additional media coverage, and a target on the team's back every time they take the court.

The full AP Poll is below.

Rank Team Record Pts Previous
1 Syracuse Orange (65) 21-0 1625 2
2 Arizona Wildcats 21-1 1517 1
3 Florida Gators 19-2 1482 3
4 Wichita St. Shockers 23-0 1447 4
5 San Diego St. Aztecs 19-1 1370 5
6 Villanova Wildcats 19-2 1252 9
7 Cincinnati Bearcats 21-2 1182 13
8 Kansas Jayhawks 16-5 1141 6
9 Michigan St. Spartans 19-3 1136 7
10 Michigan Wolverines 16-5 949 10
11 Duke Blue Devils 17-5 940 17
12 Creighton Bluejays 18-3 790 20
13 Saint Louis Billikens 20-2 728 19
14 Louisville Cardinals 18-4 723 12
15 Texas Longhorns 17-4 719 25
16 Iowa St. Cyclones 16-4 717 16
17 Iowa Hawkeyes 17-5 669 15
18 Kentucky Wildcats 16-5 653 11
19 Oklahoma St. Cowboys 16-5 420 8
20 Virginia Cavaliers 17-5 364 29
21 Oklahoma Sooners 17-5 361 23
22 Connecticut Huskies 17-4 252 26
23 Gonzaga Bulldogs 20-3 237 27
24 Memphis Tigers 16-5 114 22
25 Pittsburgh Panthers 18-4 110 18
Others receiving votes: Wisconsin 79, Ohio State 45, VCU 44, SMU 15, New Mexico 12, California 9, UCLA 9, Harvard 4, George Washington 3, LSU 3, Tennessee 2, American University 1, Southern Miss 1

And here's this weeks Coaches Poll:

Rank Team Record Pts Prev Change
1 Syracuse Orange (32) 21-0 800 2 1
2 Wichita State Shockers 23-0 745 3 1
3 Arizona Wildcats 21-1 725 1 -2
4 Florida Gators 19-2 720 4
5 San Diego State Aztecs 19-1 680 5
6 Villanova Wildcats 19-2 596 9 3
7 Cincinnati Bearcats 21-2 570 15 8
8 Michigan State Spartans 19-3 546 6 -2
9 Kansas Jayhawks 16-5 498 7 -2
10 Louisville Cardinals 18-4 474 7 -3
11 Duke Blue Devils 17-5 409 16 5
12 Creighton Bluejays 18-3 404 20 8
13 Iowa Hawkeyes 17-5 377 12 -1
14 Kentucky Wildcats 16-5 372 11 -3
15 Saint Louis Billikens 20-2 362 21 6
16 Michigan Wolverines 16-5 328 14 -2
17 Iowa St. Cyclones 16-4 290 18 1
18 Texas Longhorns 17-4 287 NR
19 Oklahoma State Cowboys 16-5 227 10 -9
20 Gonzaga Bulldogs 20-3 214 24 4
21 Virginia Cavaliers 17-5 197 NR
22 Pittsburgh Panthers 18-4 99 17 -5
23 Oklahoma Sooners 17-5 94 25 2
24 Wisconsin Badgers 17-5 72 13 -11
25 Ohio State Buckeyes 17-5 67 23 -2