AP Top 25: Duke is No. 1 in men’s poll entering March Madness; St. John’s rises

Duke remained atop The Associated Press Top 25 men’s college basketball poll on Monday, one day after the committee that selects the 68-team field for the NCAA Tournament went with Auburn as the No. 1 overall seed.

The Blue Devils (31-3) earned 49 of 59 first-place votes in the latest poll after sweeping the ACC regular-season and tournament titles. That marks Duke’s second straight week at No. 1, the first such stint in the three-year tenure of Jon Scheyer as the successor to retired Hall of Famer Mike Krzyzewski.

[Read more: 2025 March Madness bracket predictions: Picks and analysis from FOX Sports writers]

Houston also stayed at No. 2 while collecting six first-place votes, followed by SEC Tournament champion Florida and then Auburn — which had spent a national-best eight weeks at No. 1 in the AP Top 25 this season. The Gators and Tigers each earned the remaining two first-place votes, and the top four teams of the AP Top 25 all earned 1-seeds for March Madness with Sunday night’s bracket unveiling.

St. John’s climbed one spot to No. 5 after winning the Big East title, with Rick Pitino guiding the Red Storm to its highest ranking since spending a week at the same spot in January 1991. Tennessee, Alabama, Michigan State, Texas Tech and Louisville rounded out the top 10.

[Read more: With Rick Pitino at the helm, possibilities for St. John’s seem endless]

No. 21 Arizona and No. 24 Gonzaga were the week’s new additions, though they had both been in the poll for numerous weeks this season. They replaced Marquette and Illinois.

The SEC, which had a record 14 teams earn NCAA Tournament bids, had seven ranked teams, followed by the Big Ten’s six, the Big 12’s five and the ACC’s three.

Here’s the full AP Top 25: 

1. Duke

2. Houston 

3. Florida

4. Auburn

5. St. John’s 

6. Tennessee

7. Alabama

8. Michigan State

9. Texas Tech 

10. Louisville 

11. Maryland

12. Clemson 

13. Wisconsin 

14. Michigan 

15. Iowa State

16. Memphis

17. BYU

18. Kentucky

19. Texas A&M 

20. Saint Mary’s

21. Arizona

22. Purdue

23. Missouri 

24. Gonzaga

25. Oregon

Reporting by The Associated Press.

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