The February 8, 2016 AP Men's Basketball Poll is out, and hey, look who's still in the Top 5: it's Iowa, right there at No. 4, literally one point behind Oklahoma. Here's the Top 5 for your perusal:
It's not the Hawkeyes' highest spot in the polls this year—two weeks ago, they hit No. 3 behind Oklahoma and UNC—but it does mark the first time this season (and likely the first time since 1987) that the Hawkeyes have received first-place votes in the AP poll.
It's great to see how robust Iowa's esteem among pollsters has been this season, though that's as much a factor of how often Top 5 teams have lost this season; it's not like the Hawkeyes managed to crack some virtually impenetrable gang of leviathans and wedge its way in. But that's the great thing about rankings—someone's got to be in there, so it might as well be Iowa, who just keeps taking care of business.
Now, if you don't mind us, we're going to celebrate the fact of 11 first place votes in a most quiet and dignified fashion.