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Sunday's game vs. Michigan State was hardly of "must-win" importance for Wisconsin, if you take any stake in such labels. After all, the Big Ten title is almost assuredly, sadly out of reach, and the Badgers will certainly garner a fair NCAA tournament seed. The latest ESPN bracketelogy has UW as a No. 4 seed in the West, two wins away from potentially facing No. 1 seed Arizona. Considering the full details of this season, that seems fair.
One additional, bonus lining, though, came Monday morning when the latest AP Top 25 was released and included Wisconsin yet again. Last week, the Badgers fell out all together and also landed on the brink at No. 24 in the USA TODAY Coaches Poll. Now, they're No. 21 in both.
Michigan State remains the cream of the Big Ten crop after a 1-1 week, holding steady at No. 9 in the AP poll and dropping two spots to No. 10 in the Coaches. Next is Michigan (No. 15 in the AP, No. 18 in the Coaches after going 1-1) and Iowa (Nos. 16, 15, respectively, at 1-1). After Wisconsin at No. 21, Ohio State rounds out the conference top-25ers at No. 22 in the AP and No. 20 in the Coaches after a pair of wins.
Next up for Wisconsin is Minnesota at home on Thursday followed by a trip to Michigan on Sunday.
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 |
