Spartans Move Up To No. 1 In AP Basketball Poll
12/25/2000 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 25, 2000
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Michigan State, unbeaten in its first nine games of the 2000-01 season and its last 20 games overall, moved into the No. 1 position in the Associated Press college basketball poll released Christmas Day. It marks the first time Michigan State has occupied the nation's top ranking during the regular season since Jan. 10, 1979.
The Spartans received 46 first-place votes and 1,605 points from the national media panel to move up one place from last week. Stanford (9-0), which knocked off Duke 84-83 in the Pete Newell Classic last Thursday, also moved up one spot in the poll, picking up 19 first-place votes and 1,579 points. Duke (10-1) dropped from first to third in the rankings.
"It's exciting for our program to be ranked No. 1 and it's a great Holiday gift for our fans," Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo said. "Unfortunately, the ranking means very little right now. It's exciting because it has been nearly 22 years since Michigan State was last ranked No. 1 during the regular season but this ranking means nothing in the big picture. What matters most is where this team is ranked when the final poll is released next April.
"With back-to-back Final Four appearances, this program has played in a lot of big games over the last two years and the players have learned how to deal with the national media attention so this No. 1 ranking shouldn't be a distraction."
Michigan State, the defending national champion, becomes the third team to hold the nation's top ranking this season, joining Duke, which held the No. 1 spot for weeks until losing to Stanford, and Arizona, which was the preseason No. 1 selection and stayed there for the first two weeks of the regular season.
The Spartans, idle since a 72-57 victory over Seton Hall in the Jimmy V Classic Dec. 19, return to action Wednesday, Dec. 27 against Bowling Green (4-4) at 8 p.m. EST at the Palace of Auburn Hills (Mich.).
Associated Press Top 25
The Associated Press Top 25 college basketball poll, with number of first-place votes and record in parentheses, total points and previous ranking:
RANK TEAM RECORD PTS PVS1. Michigan St (46)9-0 1,605 22. Stanford (19) 9-0 1,579 33. Duke 10-1 1,487 14. Wake Forest 10-0 1,396 65. Florida 8-1 1,286 76. Tennessee 10-1 1,166 47. Kansas 10-1 1,165 98. Virginia 8-0 1,120 149. Illinois 9-3 1,096 510. Connecticut 9-1 1,036 1111. Seton Hall 7-2 967 812. Arizona 6-3 965 1013. Wisconsin 8-1 803 1614. North Carolina 7-2 759 1515. Syracuse 9-1 712 1216. USC 9-1 595 1317. Oklahoma 9-1 586 1818. Maryland 7-3 426 2019. Cincinnati 8-2 411 2220. Alabama 9-1 362 1721. Georgetown 10-0 348 2322. Notre Dame 7-2 319 2123. Iowa 9-1 223 1924. Mississippi 11-1 204 2425. Iowa St 10-1 162 NROTHERS RECEIVING VOTES: Texas 83, St Bonaventure 43, Villanova 39, Missouri 34, Arkansas 30, Oklahoma St 26, Xavier 21, Charlotte 20, Marshall 13, Penn St 7, Richmond 4, Dayton 3, Georgia Tech 3, Minnesota 3, Vanderbilt 3, LSU 2, Purdue 2, So Mississippi 2, Utah 2, Boston College 1, Coll of Charltn 1, Fresno St 1, Kent 1, Ohio St 1, Oregon 1, SMU 1.
DROPPED FROM RANKINGS: No. 25 Arkansas.
