NCAA Week 4 AP Poll: Who's Up, Who's Down

Dec 3, 2025

Kirby, L. (2025). Yexel Lendeborg [Photo], Imagn Images

The opening month of the college basketball season is now in the books. Some of the top schools continue to compete in preseason tournaments and high-powered non-conference games as the calendar year prepares to turn, signaling the start of conference play.

The top two teams remain the same, with Purdue and Arizona still occupying the No. 1 and No. 2 spots, respectively. Michigan is up to No. 3 in the rankings, while Duke and UConn round out the top 5. Six through 10 in order include Louisville, Michigan State, Houston, BYU, and Iowa State.

Here are this week’s notable movers in the AP Top 25:

No. 3 Michigan Wolverines (up 4 spots)

The Wolverines made a big move in the latest AP poll, moving into the top 3 after victories over two ranked teams, Auburn and Gonzaga. Those wins allowed head coach Dusty May to lift the Players Era Tournament Trophy with his team.

It wasn't just the quality of victories, though, in the Players Era Tournament that propelled them into the No. 3 spot; it was how they beat them. Michigan scored over 100 points in each game, beating Auburn by 30 and Gonzaga by 40. The 40-point win was the second-largest win ever by a Big Ten school over an AP-ranked opponent.

The Wolverines’ offense has been scary over the last two weeks, highlighted by senior forward Yaxel Lendeborg, who has a 61.3-percent field goal percentage.

No. 7 Michigan State (up 4 spots)

Basketball in Michigan is hot right now. After beating Iowa 71–52 on Tuesday, the Spartans are now 8-0, their best start in 10 years. After wins to open the season over No. 14 Arkansas and No. 12 Kentucky, the Spartans cruised to an easy victory last week over No. 16 North Carolina, helping lift them into the top 10.

Jaxon Kohler has led the way for Michigan State, scoring 14.2 points per game and shooting 52.5 percent from the field. The Spartans have a massive game coming on Saturday against No. 4 Duke.

No. 17 Vanderbilt (up 7 spots)

Vanderbilt isn’t just shining on the football field this year; they’re also dominating on the court. The offense has been the big story, with the Commodores ranked No. 2 in total offense with 97.1 points per game. They are also shooting 40.1 percent behind the arc and rank in the top 12 with over 20 assists per game.

The highlight win for the Commodores thus far has been a 25-point thrashing of Saint Mary’s. Vanderbilt will be tested, however, once conference play starts, with Alabama, Tennessee, and Florida all ranked above them.

Also up: No. 10 Iowa State (up five spots), No. 13 Tennessee (up four spots), No. 21 Kansas (up five spots)

No. 8 Houston (down 5 spots)

While it’s been a solid start for the 8–1 Cougars, they’ve shown some vulnerability over the past two weeks. After escaping with a one-point win over Auburn, they struggled to get past an unranked Syracuse squad and then lost to No. 17 Tennessee over the weekend.

Winning the Big 12 will be a challenge this year, given the strength of teams like No. 2 Arizona, No. 9 BYU, and No. 10 Iowa State. Houston has a pretty soft schedule upcoming before conference play gets underway.

No. 15 Florida (down 5 spots)

The Gators dropped out of the top 10 and could fall further after losing to Duke on Tuesday night by a point. The defending national champions are off to a 5–2 start, with both losses coming against top 5 teams (Arizona and Duke).

The Gators are still trying to adjust after losing a lot of players from their championship team, including Walter Clayton Jr., Alijah Martin, and Will Richard. Alex Condon, arguably the team’s best returning player, is leading the team with a 53.6-percent field goal percentage. The Gators should be able to go on a run, not playing another ranked team until January 10 (No. 13 Tennessee).

No. 23 St. John’s (down 9 spots)

It’s been a rough start for Rick Pitino’s team, which was a popular pick to win the national championship earlier in the season. The Red Storm have lost two of their last three, including an 11-point defeat to Auburn over the weekend. Sitting at 4–3, the Red Storm are on the verge of going from the top 5 to start the season to outside the top 25.

The next month will include some interesting reunions for Pitino. They face his most recent team, Iona, on December 13. They then host Kentucky on December 20 and Providence on January 3. The schedule sets up well for the Red Storm moving forward, allowing them a chance to climb back up the standings.

Written by T. John Kovack

T. John Kovack has been a sports journalist and editor for over 15 years. From New Jersey, he has dedicated a lot of his life to covering sports such as basketball, football, golf, and baseball. Kovack first became interested in the NBA by watching Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, and Larry Bird take the league by storm, which helped grow the game’s popularity and paved the way for today’s current players.