Illinois is one of the top four teams in the country. Whether that remains the case when the actual Final Four crystalizes later this month remains to be seen.Illinois moves up to No. 4 in the latest AP poll, released Monday. Will this give them a fighting chance at a No. 1 seed in the upcoming NCAA Tournament? It’s possible, but to get there, Illinois needs to take care of business this week. A huge game in Ann Arbor against No. 2 Michigan looms Tuesday. Another tough road test lurks Saturday at No. 7 Ohio State.Three of the top five teams in the country hail from the Big Ten (Iowa is at No. 5). Loyola-Chicago moves into the top 20 while Oklahoma State, Purdue and Colorado make up the three newcomers this week.Here are the rest of this week’s rankings:
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1/25
Previous Rank: 1
Points: 1,571 (59)
Last Week: Beat Santa Clara, Loyola Marymount
Next Game: Next Monday (WCC Tournament)
2/25
Previous Rank: 3
Points: 1,512 (4)
Last Week: Beat Iowa, Indiana
Next Game: Tuesday vs. Illinois
3/25
Previous Rank: 2
Points: 1,450
Last Week: Beat Iowa State, lost to Kansas
Next Game: Tuesday at West Virginia
4/25
Previous Rank: 5
Points: 1,350
Last Week: Beat Nebraska, Wisconsin
Next Game: Tuesday at Michigan
5/25
Previous Rank: 9
Points: 1,266
Last Week: Lost to Michigan, beat Ohio State
Next Game: Thursday vs. Nebraska
6/25
Previous Rank: 10
Points: 1,210
Last Week: Beat TCU, Kansas State
Next Game: Tuesday vs. Butler
7/25
Previous Rank: 4
Points: 1,163
Last Week: Lost to Michigan State, Iowa
Next Game: Saturday vs. Illinois
8/25
Previous Rank: 6
Points: 1,130
Last Week: Lost to Arkansas, beat Mississippi State
Next Game: Tuesday vs. Auburn
9/25
Previous Rank: 12
Points: 1,109
Last Week: Beat Western Kentucky, South Florida
Next Game: Sunday vs. Memphis
10/25
Previous Rank: 8
Points: 942
Last Week: Beat St. John’s, lost to Butler
Next Game: Wednesday vs. Creighton
11/25
Previous Rank: 11
Points: 897
Last Week: Beat Miami, lost to North Carolina
Next Game: Wednesday vs. Boston College
12/25
Previous Rank: 20
Points: 847
Last Week: Beat Alabama, LSU
Next Game: Tuesday at South Carolina
13/25
Previous Rank: 17
Points: 785
Last Week: Lost to Texas, beat Baylor
Next Game: Thursday vs. UTEP
14/25
Previous Rank: 13
Points: 669
Last Week: Beat DePaul, lost to Xavier
Next Game: Wednesday at Villanova
15/25
Previous Rank: 14
Points: 650
Last Week: Beat Kansas, lost to Texas Tech
Next Game: Tuesday at Iowa State
16/25
Previous Rank: 7
Points: 584
Last Week: Lost to Kansas State, Oklahoma State
Next Game: Monday at Oklahoma State
17/25
Previous Rank: NR
Points: 553
Last Week: Beat Texas Tech, Oklahoma
Next Game: Monday vs. Oklahoma
18/25
Previous Rank: 18
Points: 494
Last Week: Lost to Oklahoma State, beat Texas
Next Game: Tuesday vs. TCU
19/25
Previous Rank: 22
Points: 406
Last Week: Beat Boise State (twice)
Next Game: Wednesday at UNLV
20/25
Previous Rank: 21
Points: 367
Last Week: Beat Southern Illinois (twice)
Next Game: Friday at MVC Tournament
21/25
Previous Rank: 15
Points: 362
Last Week: Lost to Duke, N.C. State
Next Game: Monday vs. Miami
22/25
Previous Rank: 16
Points: 335
Last Week: Lost to Georgia Tech, beat Wake Forest
Next Game: Wednesday vs. Louisville
23/25
Previous Rank: NR
Points: 192
Last Week: Beat Penn State
Next Game: Tuesday vs. Wisconsin
24/25
Previous Rank: NR
Points: 150
Last Week: Beat USC, UCLA
Next Game: Thursday vs. Arizona State
25/25
Previous Rank: 23
Points: 106
Last Week: Lost to Illinois
Next Game: Wednesday at Purdue