Men's Basketball AP Poll: Despite Two Wins, UCLA Slips Amid Chaos

Houston took over at No. 1 in a week of major shakeups that cost the Bruins some points near the bottom of the top 25.

Despite winning both of their games since the last votes came in, the Bruins took a slight tumble in the rankings.

UCLA men's basketball (5-2) fell from No. 19 to No. 21 in the latest edition of the AP Poll on Monday. The Bruins earned 346 points – down from 506 points from a week ago – ultimately falling victim to big leaps from other surprise standouts.

The week began with a one-sided win over Pepperdine, as UCLA emerged with a 100-53 victory. Bellarmine gave the Bruins a little more trouble on Sunday, but they still won 81-60 – a larger margin of victory than Duke had over the Knights earlier in the week.

UCLA is apparently still being penalized for its recent back-to-back losses to Illinois and Baylor at the Continental Tire Main Event. The Illini stayed put at No. 16 this week, while the Bears actually climbed up a spot to No. 6.

There was plenty of movement at the top, with Houston taking over at No. 1 following North Carolina's losses to Iowa State and Alabama. Those results sent the Tar Heels flying all the way down to No. 18 – the most drastic drop of the week.

Arizona climbed 10 spots to No. 4, while Purdue jumped 19 spots to No. 5 after the teams won the Maui Invitational and Phil Knight Legacy championships, respectively. UConn also moved up 12 spots to No. 8 after winning to Phil Knight Invitational.

UCLA has two ranked opponents on its remaining nonconference schedule, starting with a road game at Maryland on Dec. 14. The Terrapins improved to 6-0 with a win over Coppin State, which bumped them up to No. 22.

Kentucky is the other ranked team coming up for the Bruins, although coach John Calipari's squad fell from No. 15 to No. 19 amid all the chaos. That game will take place on Dec. 17 at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

In the meantime, though, UCLA will open up Pac-12 play against Oregon and Stanford, neither of whom received votes.

The full AP Poll is listed below:

1. Houston (6-0), 1534 points (45 first-place votes)
2. Texas (5-0), 1467 (8)
3. Virginia (5-0), 1408 (2)
4. Arizona (6-0), 1341
5. Purdue (6-0), 1307 (8)
6. Baylor (5-1), 1111
7. Creighton (6-1), 1100
8. UConn (8-0), 1099
9. Kansas (6-1), 990
10. Indiana (6-0), 938
11. Alabama (6-1), 860
11. Arkansas (5-1), 860
13. Tennessee (5-1), 848
14. Gonzaga (5-2), 845
15. Auburn (7-0), 733
16. Illinois (5-1), 643
17. Duke (6-2), 614
18. North Carolina (5-2), 541
19. Kentucky (4-2), 472
20. Michigan State (5-2), 469
21. UCLA (5-2), 346
22. Maryland (6-0), 282
23. Iowa State (5-1), 198
24. San Diego State (4-2), 189
25. Ohio State (5-1), 108

Others Receiving Votes: TCU 45, Iowa 31, Charleston 20, West Virginia 14, Mississippi State 12, Texas Tech 11, Michigan 8, Wisconsin 6, Arizona State 6, UNLV 6, Miami (FL) 5, Missouri 2, Oklahoma 2, St. John's 1, Virginia Tech 1, New Mexico 1, Kansas State 1

Follow Connon on Twitter at @SamConnon
Follow All Bruins on Twitter at @FN_AllBruins
Like All Bruins on Facebook at @FN.AllBruins
Subscribe to All Bruins on YouTube

Read more UCLA stories: UCLA Bruins on Sports Illustrated
Read more UCLA men's basketball stories: UCLA Men's Basketball on Sports Illustrated