Cyclones drop one spot in this week’s polls

This week, 60 percent of the men’s basketball teams in the Big 12 find themselves ranked in the AP Top 25. The Iowa State Cyclones dropped one spot to No. 14 in the poll, while their opponent next Saturday, the Texas Longhorns, jumped into the poll for the first time this season at No. 24.

Iowa State also dropped one spot in the USA Today Coaches poll to No. 15. 

No. 3 Oklahoma, No. 6 Kansas, No. 10 West Virginia and No. 21 Baylor are the other four Big 12 teams in the AP poll. The Villanova Wildcats are the nation’s new No. 1 team after their win over Providence this weekend.

No. 2 Maryland, No. 4 Iowa and No. 5 Xavier round out the top five. Texas A&M was one of the biggest fallers of the week dropping out of the top 10 to No. 15.

Villanova is also the No. 1 team in the RPI rankings to start the week followed by Oklahoma, Oregon, Maryland and Virginia. Iowa State is No. 13, Kansas is No. 6 and Iowa is close behind at No. 8.

The Big 12 has six teams in the RPI top 50 with West Virginia at No. 10, Texas at No. 20, and Kansas State at No. 40. Texas A&M (No. 17), Colorado (No. 26) and Chattanooga (No. 38) give Iowa State nine teams on their schedule in the top 50.

Jared Stansbury

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Jared a native of Clarinda, Iowa, started as the Cyclone Fanatic intern in August 2013, primarily working as a videographer until starting on the women’s basketball beat prior to the 2014-15 season. Upon earning his Bachelor’s degree in Journalism and Mass Communication from Iowa State in May 2016, Jared was hired as the site’s full-time staff writer, taking over as the primary day-to-day reporter on football and men’s basketball. He was elevated to the position of managing editor in January 2020. He is a regular contributor on 1460 KXNO in Des Moines and makes regular guest appearances on radio stations across the Midwest. Jared resides in Ankeny with his four-year-old puggle, Lolo.

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