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College basketball rankings: Arizona No. 2 in AP, 3rd in Coaches poll

Forget Syracuse. The Arizona Wildcats fell to No. 3 behind Wichita State in the USA Today Coaches poll.

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Peter G. Aiken-USA TODAY Sports

The Arizona Wildcats fans chattering on Twitter about the Syracuse Orange might want to take a break for now. While Syracuse remained the No. 1 team with a 23-0 record in both polls, it was the Wildcats taking a hit in the rankings this week despite sweeping the Oregon Ducks and Oregon State Beavers.

While UA remains No. 2 in the Associated Press Poll, it fell to No. 3 in the USA Today Coaches rankings with the Wichita State Shockers leap-frogging the Wildcats with their 25-0 record.

Is it fair? Certainly, coaches realize how hard perfection is, even for a team playing in the Missouri Valley Conference. And no doubt, Wichita State is a good squad. A very similar Shockers team has taken last year's postseason run to the bank. Remember, Wichita State would have played Arizona had the Wildcats not fallen victim to Ohio State in the Sweet 16.

The Shockers went on to beat the Buckeyes in the Elite Eight round.

No matter the rankings, the Wildcats seem to be in decent shape for the time being. In the postseason, the margin for error is thin without Brandon Ashley, yet Arizona seems to have found the swagger heading into a dangerous game in Tempe on Valentine's Day. One game at a time, as the smart people say.

AP Top 25

Rank Team Record Pts Prev
1 Syracuse Orange (65) 23-0 1625 1
2 Arizona Wildcats 23-1 1525 2
3 Florida Gators 21-2 1477 3
4 Wichita St. Shockers 25-0 1445 4
5 San Diego St. Aztecs 21-1 1373 5
6 Villanova Wildcats 21-2 1288 6
7 Kansas Jayhawks 18-5 1234 8
8 Duke Blue Devils 19-5 1130 11
9 Michigan St. Spartans 20-4 1025 9
10 Cincinnati Bearcats 22-3 970 7
11 Iowa St. Cyclones 18-4 925 16
12 Saint Louis Billikens 22-2 908 13
13 Louisville Cardinals 19-4 866 14
14 Kentucky Wildcats 18-5 769 18
15 Michigan Wolverines 17-6 702 10
16 Iowa Hawkeyes 18-6 686 17
17 Virginia Cavaliers 19-5 608 20
18 Creighton Bluejays 19-4 552 12
19 Texas Longhorns 18-5 417 15
20 Memphis Tigers 18-5 333 24
21 Wisconsin Badgers 19-5 242 26
22 Ohio St. Buckeyes 19-5 214 27
23 SMU Mustangs 19-5 205 29
24 Connecticut Huskies 18-5 194 22
25 Pittsburgh Panthers 20-4 175 25

USA Today Coaches Poll

Rank Team Record Pts Prev
1 Syracuse Orange (32) 23-0 800 1
2 Wichita St. Shockers 25-0 744 2
3 Arizona Wildcats 23-1 742 3
4 Florida Gators 21-2 711 4
5 San Diego St. Aztecs 21-1 675 5
6 Villanova Wildcats 21-2 629 6
7 Kansas Jayhawks 18-5 569 9
8 Louisville Cardinals 19-4 529 10
9 Duke Blue Devils 19-5 511 11
10 Michigan St. Spartans 20-4 479 8
11 Cincinnati Bearcats 22-3 467 7
12 Saint Louis Billikens 22-2 427 15
13 Kentucky Wildcats 18-5 403 14
14 Iowa St. Cyclones 18-4 369 17
15 Iowa Hawkeyes 18-6 333 13
16 Virginia Cavaliers 19-5 310 21
17 Creighton Bluejays 19-4 305 12
18 Michigan Wolverines 17-6 254 16
19 Texas Longhorns 18-5 170 18
20 Ohio St. Buckeyes 19-5 162 25
21 Wisconsin Badgers 19-5 158 24
22 Memphis Tigers 18-5 152 NR
23 Pittsburgh Panthers 20-4 148 22
24 Gonzaga Bulldogs 21-4 78 20
25 Oklahoma Sooners 18-6 55 23