After capturing the Wooden Legacy title with wins over Pepperdine, Penn and Wake Forest, Arizona moved up two spots to No. 12 in the Associated Press men's basketball poll.
The Wildcats are now the highest-ranked team in the Pac-12, followed by Oregon at 13, Colorado at 20 and Washington at 22.
Of UA's two ranked December opponents, Baylor (Dec. 7) is No. 16 and Gonzaga (Dec. 14) is No. 11Β
FWIW, my ballot had Colorado 14, Arizona 15, and Oregon 18 while I dropped Washington out because of several new entrants (Michigan, Oklahoma State, Butler and San Diego State). I moved Michigan in all the way at No. 5 and the Wolverines landed even higher at No. 4 overall.
Michigan's Battle 4 Atlantis championship, with wins over North Carolina and Gonzaga, resulted in a tie for the highest jump ever into the poll after not being ranked the week before. Kansas also made the jump to No. 4 on Nov. 27, 1989.
(It was virtually the opposite fate of Arizona in 2017-18, when the Wildcats entered the Battle 4 Atlantis at No. 2 and then fell out entirely after going 0-for-3).
Arizona is No. 19 in Kenpom (which incorporates past history during the early season) and No. 12 in Sagarin.
