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College Basketball Talk’s Top 25: We have a new No. 1 team in America

Villanova v Purdue

WEST LAFAYETTE, IN - NOVEMBER 14: Josh Hart #3 of the Villanova Wildcats goes up for a shot against the Purdue Boilermakers at Mackey Arena on November 14, 2016 in West Lafayette, Indiana. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)

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1. Villanova (5-0, Last Week: No. 2): The Wildcats went 4-0 this week. Not only did they go on the road and beat Purdue but they also went down to the Charleston Classic and swept through that tournament with relative ease. I’m not sure they’re the best team in the country but it’s hard to argue against their résumé.

2. Kentucky (4-0, 4): The win over Michigan State sounds good, but the Spartans aren’t actually all that good this season, at least not right now. A 21-point win over the Spartans isn’t a season-defining win this year.

3. Indiana (3-0, 5): The Hoosiers smoked two more hapless opponents this week. I’m not totally sold that this team is a top five team just yet, but they did beat Kansas on a neutral court and Kansas beat Duke on a neutral court. So here we are.

4. Kansas (2-1, 6): They’re still my pick to win the national title, even if I came away more impressed with Duke after Kansas beat them.

5. Duke (4-1, 1): All I need to say about the Blue Devils is right here.
RANKINGS: AP Poll | Coaches Poll | NBCSports.com

6. North Carolina (4-0, 7): They’ve steam-rolled a bunch of teams they should steam-roll. With the Maui Invitational starting this week, we should know enough about the Tar Heels come Thanksgiving.

7. Oregon (2-1, 3): Ditto for the Ducks, who lost at Baylor by 17 points but who are still playing without their all-american Dillon Brooks. He’s expected to be in the lineup Monday for their Maui opener.

8. Gonzaga (3-0, 9): Gonzaga’s win over San Diego State is going to look a lot better on paper in March than it actually was, as the Aztecs are banged up.

9. Louisville (3-0, 10): Undefeated. Untested.

10. Virginia (3-0, 8): I dropped UVA two spots with the news of Austin Nichols’ dismissal. I’m not ready to drop them farther than that yet, not until I see what Tony Bennett can do with these guys.
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11. Arizona (3-0, 11)
12. Xavier (5-0, 14)
13. UCLA (3-0, 13)
14. Syracuse (3-0, 17)
15. Baylor (3-0, NR)
16. Creighton (4-0, 19)
17. Wisconsin (2-1, 12)
18. Virginia Tech (3-0, 18)
19. Purdue (2-1, 16)
20. Rhode Island (4-1, 22)
21. Saint Mary’s (3-0, 23)
22. Michigan (4-0, UR)
23. Cincinnati (3-1, 20)
24. Dayton (2-1, 21)
25. Maryland (4-0, 25)

DROPPED OUT: No. 15 Michigan State, No. 24 Florida State

NEW ADDITIONS: No. 15 Baylor, No. 22 Michigan