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Welcome to POLLWATCHIN', where we watch polls. Let's get to the polls we're watchin while watchin' polls.
AP Top 25
After a quiet week in which Iowa only played one game, the Hawkeyes didn't see much movement in the Top 25 polls. Iowa moved up one spot to No. 15 in the AP Poll. Creighton and Virginia leapfrogged the Hawkeyes after big wins over Villanova and, uh, Clemson (?), respectively. Iowa State, Kentucky, and Michigan fell back on losses.
| Rank | Team | Record | Pts | Prev |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Syracuse Orange (64) | 25-0 | 1624 | 1 |
| 2 | Florida Gators (1) | 23-2 | 1543 | 3 |
| 3 | Wichita St. Shockers | 27-0 | 1489 | 4 |
| 4 | Arizona Wildcats | 23-2 | 1427 | 2 |
| 5 | Duke Blue Devils | 20-5 | 1296 | 8 |
| 6 | San Diego St. Aztecs | 22-2 | 1232 | 5 |
| 7 | Cincinnati Bearcats | 23-3 | 1157 | 10 |
| 8 | Kansas Jayhawks | 19-6 | 1129 | 7 |
| 9 | Villanova Wildcats | 22-3 | 1020 | 6 |
| 10 | Saint Louis Billikens | 23-2 | 1019 | 12 |
| 11 | Creighton Bluejays | 21-4 | 991 | 18 |
| 11 | Louisville Cardinals | 21-4 | 991 | 13 |
| 13 | Michigan St. Spartans | 21-5 | 788 | 9 |
| 14 | Virginia Cavaliers | 21-5 | 752 | 17 |
| 15 | Iowa Hawkeyes | 19-6 | 721 | 16 |
| 16 | Wisconsin Badgers | 21-5 | 609 | 21 |
| 17 | Iowa St. Cyclones | 19-5 | 597 | 11 |
| 18 | Kentucky Wildcats | 19-6 | 579 | 14 |
| 19 | Texas Longhorns | 20-5 | 577 | 19 |
| 20 | Michigan Wolverines | 18-7 | 421 | 15 |
| 21 | Connecticut Huskies | 20-5 | 382 | 24 |
| 22 | Memphis Tigers | 19-6 | 204 | 20 |
| 23 | UCLA Bruins | 20-5 | 169 | NR |
| 24 | Ohio St. Buckeyes | 20-6 | 133 | 22 |
| 25 | Gonzaga Bulldogs | 23-4 | 112 | NR |
Coaches Poll
Iowa stayed steady at No. 15 in the Coaches Poll, as well, under nearly the same circumstances. Creighton and Virginia moved up, while Kentucky and Iowa State moved down. The coaches already had Michigan ranked below Iowa, because coaches are smart.
| Rank | Team | Record | Pts | Prev |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Syracuse Orange (32) | 25-0 | 800 | 1 |
| 2 | Florida Gators | 23-2 | 752 | 4 |
| 3 | Wichita St. Shockers | 27-0 | 747 | 2 |
| 4 | Arizona Wildcats | 23-2 | 679 | 3 |
| 5 | Louisville Cardinals | 21-4 | 618 | 8 |
| 6 | Duke Blue Devils | 20-5 | 611 | 9 |
| 7 | San Diego State | 22-2 | 591 | 5 |
| 8 | Kansas Jayhawks | 19-6 | 554 | 7 |
| 9 | Cincinnati Bearcats | 23-3 | 526 | 11 |
| 10 | Saint Louis Bilikens | 23-2 | 513 | 12 |
| 11 | Villanova Wildcats | 22-3 | 506 | 6 |
| 12 | Creighton Bluejays | 21-4 | 423 | 17 |
| 13 | Virginia Cavaliers | 21-5 | 416 | 16 |
| 14 | Michigan St. Spartans | 21-5 | 406 | 10 |
| 15 | Iowa Hawkeyes | 19-6 | 375 | 15 |
| 16 | Kentucky Wildcats | 19-6 | 302 | 13 |
| 17 | Texas Longhorns | 20-5 | 278 | 19 |
| 18 | Wisconsin Badgers | 21-5 | 255 | 21 |
| 19 | Iowa State Cyclones | 19-5 | 227 | 14 |
| 20 | Michigan Wolverines | 18-7 | 159 | 18 |
| 21 | Connecticut Huskies | 20-5 | 158 | NR |
| 22 | Gonzaga Bulldogs | 23-4 | 128 | 24 |
| 23 | Ohio State Buckeyes | 20-6 | 97 | 20 |
| 24 | Memphis Tigers | 19-6 | 85 | 22 |
| 25 | UCLA Bruins | 20-5 | 72 | NR |
Brackets!
ESPN's Joe Lunardi keeps Iowa at a No. 5 seed, though it is presumably the top No. 5: Iowa again gets the play-in game winner, now an intersaint battle between St. John's and St. Joseph's, with Cincinnati remaining on the other side of the 4/5 matchup. The Big Ten got six team in, with Minnesota grabbing a No. 10 seed.
CBS' Jerry Palm has Iowa in a 5/12 matchup with MAC champion Toledo, with Virginia on the other side of the third round matchup. After all, everyone has been clamoring for that rematch from last year's NIT. Palm also has six Big Ten teams in the field, but cautions that Nebraska is getting close.
USA Today puts Iowa in a -- you guessed it -- No. 5 seed against the winner of the Tennessee/Georgetown play-in game. As with Lunardi, Cincinnati is on the other side of the pod. Like everyone else, Shelby Mast has six Big Ten teams in the field, though Nebraska is now in consideration.
Dave Ommen of NBC Sports puts Iowa on the No. 5 line with play-in participants BYU and Georgetown. Virginia gets the opposing No. 4 seed. SIx Big Ten teams are in, with Minnesota playing [REDACTED] in a 6/11 game.
SB Nation's Chris Dobbertean puts out his brackets on Friday, meaning he doesn't yet have the Michigan and MSU losses (and that last week's bracket didn't have Iowa's clubbing of Michigan). He remains bullish on Iowa, though, giving the Hawkeyes a No. 4 seed and pairing them with OVC champion Belmont. Saint Louis is on the other side of that 4/5 matchup.
BONUS! Dobbertean has a new bracket out today although it's less friendly to Iowa; he has them dropping down to a 5-seed, with Virginia moving up to the 4-seed line. In fact, he has Iowa and Virginia in the same pod, so they could see one another in the Sweet 16 if chalk held in that portion of the bracket. Iowa's paired with North Dakota State in this bracket.
