Badgers jump into AP Top 25 poll with 3-0 start

For the first time this season, the Wisconsin Badgers men's basketball team has found itself in the AP Top 25.

Wisconsin slides in at No. 25 after beginning the year 3-0, with wins over Xavier and Houston Baptist in the past week propelling the Badgers into the poll. The Badgers are one of six Big Ten teams to make the poll, joining Michigan, Michigan State, Iowa, Ohio State and Purdue.

Ethan Happ has led the way with three double-doubles, averaging 18.3 points and 12.0 rebounds per game. D'Mitrik Trice has drained 13 of 20 attempts from deep (65 percent), and Brad Davison is doing it all, logging 11/7 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.3 assists per contest.

The Badgers square off against Stanford on Wednesday afternoon to launch the "Battle 4 Atlantis" tournament, held in the Bahamas.



AT THE TOP

The only major movement in the top 10 involved Villanova dropping out and Michigan (5-0) climbing from No. 18 to ninth. Nevada (3-0) remained sixth and North Carolina (4-0) seventh. Auburn moved up one spot and Kentucky (3-1) rounded out the first 10.

BIG RISERS

The Wolverines were the biggest movers, while Virginia Tech (4-0) climbed three spots to No. 13. Clemson was No. 16, followed by UCLA, TCU and LSU after each of them also moved up three spots.

ALSO SLIDING

Marquette joined Villanova and Syracuse in dropping from the poll after the Golden Eagles (3-1) were routed by Indiana. Oregon (3-1) dropped from No. 13 to No. 21 after splitting its games against Iowa and Syracuse in New York.

BIG TEN NEWCOMERS

Iowa (4-0) leaped into the poll at No. 20 after beating Oregon and blowing out UConn to win the 2K Classic. It's the first time the Hawkeyes have been ranked since the final poll of the 2015-16 season.

The other newcomers this week were also from the Big Ten: Ohio State (4-0) entered at No. 23 after beating Creighton and South Carolina State, and Wisconsin squeaked in ahead of another Big Ten rival in Nebraska at No. 25.