Alabama jumped Houston for the No. 1 spot in the final AP Top 25 of the 2022-23 college basketball season. The swap atop the poll comes after the Crimson Tide swept through the SEC Tournament with three double-digit victories in three days against opponents who were each selected to the NCAA Tournament. The impressive showing helped the Crimson Tide land the No. 1 overall seed for the Big Dance.
Houston couldn't hold on to the top spot following a 75-65 loss to Memphis in the AAC Tournament final on Sunday. The Cougars played without AAC Player of the Year Marcus Sasser after he suffered a groin injury in Saturday's semifinal win over Cincinnati.
Other action in the final poll includes Purdue rising two spots to No. 3 after winning the Big Ten Tournament on Sunday. Similarly, Texas received a two-spot bump to No. 5 after beating Kansas to win the Big 12 Tournament; however, the Jayhawks narrowly stayed ahead of the Longhorns at No. 4, despite the result.
Rising the most in the poll was Duke, which climbed nine spots to No. 12 after winning the ACC Tournament. The Blues Devils enter the NCAA Tournament with momentum under first-year coach Jon Scheyer and a roster full of freshmen who are finding a rhythm.
The full AP Top 25 is below, with first-place votes in parenthesis.
AP Top 25
1. Alabama (48)
2. Houston (9)
3. Purdue (3)
4. Kansas
5. Texas
6. Marquette
7. UCLA
8. Arizona
9. Gonzaga
10. UConn
11. Baylor
12. Duke
13. Xavier
14. Virginia
15. Kansas State
16. Miami
17. Texas A&M
18. San Diego State
19. Saint Mary's
20. Tennessee
21. Indiana
22. TCU
23. Missouri
24. Memphis
25. Florida Atlantic
Others receiving votes: Creighton 94, Oral Roberts 58, Kentucky 39, Iowa State 32, VCU 26, Utah State 15, Penn State 11, Charleston 10, West Virginia 2, Drake 2, Kent State 2, Northwestern 2
