Steve Hewitt’s college hoops Top 25: Duke back at No. 1 after impressive win over Gonzaga

Editor’s note: Herald sports reporter Steve Hewitt is a voter in the Associated Press college basketball Top 25 poll. Every week through the end of the season, he’ll write a column providing some analysis and thoughts from his poll.

If you thought Mike Krzyzewski would be going out quietly, think again.

In the final season of Krzyzewski’s legendary career, Duke is a real threat to win its Hall of Fame coach’s sixth national championship. In case there was any doubt, the Blue Devils are heading into December as the No. 1 team in the country — their first time atop the poll in two years — after their instant-classic 84-81 win Friday over previously No. 1 Gonzaga.

With likely Top 2 NBA pick Paolo Banchero leading the charge, Duke has a good mix of talent and experience. They showed that Friday. Banchero anchored them to a halftime lead with 20 first-half points, but hampered by cramps in the second half, his teammates picked him up. Wendell Moore Jr. and Mark Williams held off Drew Timme, Chet Holmgren and Gonzaga, proving the Blue Devils have one of the best frontcourts in the nation.

With a perfect 7-0 record and two wins over Top 10 teams, including the No. 1 team, Duke was my clear-cut new No. 1, as well as 50 other AP voters. Gonzaga dropped just one spot because of a convincing win over previously No. 2 UCLA and a narrow loss to Duke, while Purdue certainly had a case to crack the Top 2 as the Boilermakers continue their impressive start to the season. Those three teams represent a clear Tier 1 as the best teams in the country, with Baylor nipping at their heels.

It was a chaotic week in college hoops, which saw no team from last week’s Top 25 hold the same position in the new poll. Twelve teams from last week’s Top 25 lost a game, including nine instances to previously unranked teams.

Iowa State was one of the biggest movers after continuing their undefeated start with wins over Xavier and previously No. 9 Memphis. The Cyclones were No. 15 in my poll, and No. 18 in the AP’s. St. Bonaventure, Illinois and Virginia Tech dropped out of my poll with losses, and Wisconsin and Ohio State found themselves back in it with wins over Houston and Seton Hall, respectively.

Link to Associated Press Top 25 for Nov. 22, 2021

Steve Hewitt’s Top 25 ballot, Nov. 29, 2021

1. Duke
2. Gonzaga
3. Purdue
4. Baylor
5. UCLA
6. Villanova
7. Texas
8. Kentucky
9. Arkansas
10. Kansas
11. Arizona
12. BYU
13. Tennessee
14. Florida
15. Iowa State
16. Michigan State
17. UConn
18. USC
19. Wisconsin
20. Houston
21. Memphis
22. Alabama
23. Auburn
24. Ohio State
25. Seton Hall

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