Kentucky still No. 1; Seton Hall, VCU, Arkansas, ODU join poll

Kentucky maintained its lofty status as the unanimous top-ranked team in men's college basketball, while the first week of conference play helped shake up the bottom of the new poll.

Seton Hall, VCU, Arkansas and Old Dominion are newcomers to this week's rankings, replacing Washington, Northern Iowa, Colorado State and Georgetown.

Kentucky was off last week and will start conference play Tuesday at home against Ole Miss. The Wildcats received all 64 first-place votes to remain an undisputed choice at the top of the poll for a fifth straight week.

Duke, Virginia, Wisconsin and Louisville remained unchanged from last week, while the remainder of the top 10 features Gonzaga, Arizona, Villanova, Utah and Texas. Villanova dipped two spots from sixth after suffering its first loss of the season on Saturday against Seton Hall.

The second 10 consists of Maryland, Kansas, Notre Dame, West Virginia, Wichita State, Oklahoma, Iowa State, North Carolina, Seton Hall and VCU. Iowa State tumbled eight spots from ninth after a Saturday loss to South Carolina.

Seton Hall not only knocked off Villanova, but also topped a ranked St. John's squad last week to secure its spot in the rankings for the first time this year. VCU was ranked earlier this season, but fell out after late November losses to Villanova and Old Dominion.

The last five teams ranked this week are Baylor, Ohio State, Arkansas, St. John's and Old Dominion. St. John's had the biggest fall within the poll, plummeting nine places from 15th after losses to Seton Hall and Butler.

Arkansas was also ranked earlier this season, while Old Dominion is in the poll for the first time in the program's history. The Monarchs, playing in Conference USA, have won nine straight games.

Washington was 21st last week, but followed a stunning first loss of the season on Dec. 28 to Stony Brook with losses in its first two Pac-12 games at California and Stanford. Northern Iowa was 23rd and lost at Evansville on New Year's Day, while Colorado State was 24th and 14-0 before a loss at New Mexico on Saturday. Georgetown, which was the lone newcomer last week at No. 25, lost its Big East opener on New Year's Eve at Xavier.

In addition to a pair of top-25 battles on Monday between North Carolina and Notre Dame and Texas and Oklahoma, the first week of January is filled with ranked matchups.

Villanova and St. John's will meet at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday, while Kansas plays its first Big 12 game on Wednesday at Baylor. Saturday's slate features Louisville at North Carolina and Virginia at Notre Dame in the ACC, plus a Big 12 tussle between Iowa State and West Virginia in Morgantown.

[SportsNetwork.com]