Penn State men’s basketball cracks the top 10 in the AP Top 25 for the first time since 1996
Penn State men’s basketball has climbed higher in the The Associated Press Top 25 poll after another two wins in the past week, and has tied the highest ranking the program has ever earned.
The Nittany Lions are No. 9 in the most recent poll, released Monday, with 1,024 voting points, the highest they’ve been ranked this season. They were No. 13 in the last poll and have now moved up four weeks in a row. They received 787 voting points last week.
This is the third time in school history the team has been ranked in the top 10. The other two times were in mid-February of the 1995-1996 season and in the final AP Poll of the 1953-1954 season. They were also ranked No. 9 on those occasions.
Head coach Pat Chambers has led Penn State to an 20-5 record on the season and a 10-4 record in the Big Ten. The Nittany Lions won both games they played in the last week to extend their winning streak to eight. They defeated Purdue Tuesday night on the road, 88-76, then beat Northwestern at home on Saturday, 77-61.
The two wins have helped keep Penn State near the top of the Big Ten standings. The Nittany Lions are a game back from first place in the conference, with only Maryland ahead of them. If the two teams tie in the standings, Penn State will win conference title via a head-to-head win over the Terps in December.
The Nittany Lions are among four Big Ten teams that are ranked in Monday’s poll, alongside Maryland (No. 7), Iowa (No. 20), and Ohio State (No. 25). The conference also has four teams receiving voting points outside the top 25. Michigan State has the second-most points among the group with 87 while While Michigan has the third-most points with 83 and Illinois has the ninth-most with 12. Rutgers also received six voting points.
The Nittany Lions will be back in action Tuesday in an important home matchup. They’ll take on Illinois in the first of two games this week. The Fighting Illini are the No. 32 team in the country, according to Ken Pomeroy’s KenPom rankings.
They’ll head back on the road after the game with Illinois to take on the Indiana Hoosiers Sunday afternoon. The Hoosiers are the No. 49 team in the country in the KenPom rankings, the second-lowest ranked team in the Big Ten..
The next AP Poll will be released at noon Feb. 24.
AP Top 25 men’s basketball poll
(Monday, Feb. 17, 2020)
1. Baylor 1,559
2. Gonzaga 1,518
3. Kansas 1,434
4. San Diego State 1,404
5. Dayton 1,294
6. Duke 1,285
7. Maryland 1,194
8. Florida State 1,088
9. Penn State 1,024
10. Kentucky 1,011
11. Louisville 837
12. Villanova 824
13. Auburn 818
14. Oregon 742
15. Creighton 718
16. Seton Hall 672
17. West Virginia 552
18. Colorado 501
19. Marquette 404
20. Iowa 254
21. Butler 242
22. Houston 237
23. BYU 188
24. Arizona 102
25. Ohio State 95
Others receiving votes: Texas Tech 92, Michigan State 87, Michigan 83, LSU 55, Rhode Island 39, Virginia 32, Cincinnati 14, Stephen F. Austin 14, Illinois 12, Northern Iowa 9, Utah State 8, Rutgers 6, Florida 6, East Tennessee State 5, Saint Mary’s 4, Tulsa 3, Richmond 3, SMU 2, New Mexico State 2, Wright State 1, Arizona State 1
This story was originally published February 17, 2020 at 12:36 PM.
