Ohio State moves up to No. 15 in AP Men’s Basketball Poll

The Ohio State Buckeyes picked up a big win last Wednesday against Illinois, and improved to an 8-1 mark on the season. Voters have taken even greater notice in Chris Holtmann’s squad, as OSU moved up to No. 15 in the latest edition of the AP Poll.

For the Bucks, it’s an improvement from last week, where they were No. 19. The move was helped in large part by losses from Wisconsin, Iowa and Kentucky, who are now all below Ohio State in this week’s rankings.

Atop the poll is Kansas, the No. 2 from a week ago. The Jayhawks are a perfect 8-0 on the season, and hold a majority (57) of the first-place votes. Behind the Bill Self coached squad, is Duke. The Blue Devils are 9-1 on the season, with their lone loss to Gonzaga Bulldogs at the Maui Invitational.

Tennessee comes in at No. 3, thanks to defeating the then-No. 1 Bulldogs over the weekend. Gonzaga isn’t too far removed for the top after their loss; they filed in at No. 4. Rounding out the top five is Michigan, the highest ranked team in the Big Ten.

A total of six B1G teams grace this week’s poll, with Michigan State (No. 9) being the only other team in the top-10. Fun fact: Indiana is in a three-way tie with Syracuse and Kansas State for the No. 25 spot.

Ohio State can help their chances in moving up in next week’s poll by handling Bucknell this weekend. The Buckeyes-Bison clash is scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 15 at noon ET. The game is to be broadcast on BTN.