Rebels move up to 17th in AP vote, coaches rankings
The UNLV basketball team, at 15-2 off to its best start since the 1992-93 season, continued its climb in the national rankings Monday, moving up to No. 17 in both The Associated Press and the USA Today/ESPN coaches polls.
The Rebels were ranked No. 19 in the AP poll and No. 20 in the coaches poll last week.
UNLV won two games last week, routing Central Arkansas 124-75 at the Thomas & Mack Center on Wednesday night and outlasting Hawaii 74-69 in Honolulu on New Year's Eve.
UNLV, which has won six straight games, concludes its nonconference schedule Thursday when it plays at Cal State Bakersfield.
Syracuse (15-0) remained No. 1 in both polls, followed by Kentucky, North Carolina, Baylor and Duke in the AP rankings, and Kentucky, Duke, North Carolina and Baylor in the coaches' rankings.
Syracuse was No. 1 in the AP poll for a fourth straight week, and Pittsburgh fell out of the poll for the first time since the middle of 2009-10.
The Orange received 60 first-place votes from the 65-member national media panel. Kentucky, which moved up one spot to second, got the other five.
North Carolina, Baylor and Duke all jumped two places to third through fifth. Ohio State dropped from second to sixth after losing at Indiana. Missouri, Connecticut, Georgetown and Michigan State round out the top 10.
Louisville, which lost to Georgetown and Kentucky, dropped from fourth to 11th.
No. 23 Kansas State and No. 25 Gonzaga enter the rankings on six-game winning streaks. Creighton fell out from 21st. Pittsburgh, losers of three straight, dropped out from 22nd.
AROUND THE NATION
BAYLOR STAYS PERFECT -- At Waco, Texas, Perry Jones III had 14 points and 12 rebounds, and fourth-ranked Baylor remained undefeated with a 61-52 victory over Texas A&M in the Big 12 opener for both teams Monday night. The Bears (14-0) have started the season with the first 14-game winning streak in school history. Elston Turner had 21 points for Texas A&M (9-4).
VIRGINIA WINS 11TH STRAIGHT -- At Baton Rouge, La., Sammy Zeglinski scored 17 points, including a big 3-pointer late in the game, to help Virginia to a 57-52 victory over Louisiana State. Joe Harris added 14 points, also hitting a 3-pointer late for the Cavaliers (13-1), who have won 11 straight games. Justin Hamilton had a career high 21 points for the Tigers (10-4), who had their winning streak end at seven.
MOUNTAIN WEST CONFERENCE
BRONCOS BEATEN -- At Fresno, Calif., Steven Shepp scored a career-high 18 points to go with seven assists as Fresno State (7-8) beat Boise State, 72-59. Kenny Buckner led the Broncos (10-5) with 13 points off the bench.
