UConn rises to top of poll

With no more unbeaten teams left, Connecticut took over the No. 1 spot in the Associated Press college basketball poll Monday.

Two days after Duke, Florida and Pittsburgh lost, the Huskies (16-1) moved from No. 3 to the top of the rankings for the sixth time in school history and the first since January 2004. The Blue Devils, Gators and Panthers were the last three undefeated Division I teams.

The Huskies are one of seven Big East teams in the Top 25, tying the record for most schools from one conference. The Atlantic Coast Conference and Big Ten have each done it twice, and the ACC did it most recently last season.

Duke (17-1), which had been No. 1 since the preseason poll, dropped one spot after losing, 87-84, at Georgetown on Saturday. The victory sent the Hoyas (12-4) into the Top 25 for the first time since Dec. 31, 2001.

Florida (17-1), second in the poll the last two weeks, dropped to No. 5 after losing, 80-76, at Tennessee on Saturday. The win got the Volunteers (12-3) back in the rankings after being out for four weeks.

Pittsburgh (15-1) lost, 55-50, at St. John’s on Saturday and fell from ninth to No. 12.

Connecticut received 64 first-place votes and 1,790 points from the 72-member national media panel. The Huskies have spent a total of 21 weeks at No. 1. The longest run was 10 straight polls in 1998-99, when they won the first of their two national championships.

“It’s always good to be No. 1 in anything, but it’s not great at this time of year. I want it at the beginning of April, but I’ll take it now,” Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun said. “Being No. 1 isn’t a goal of ours like the Big East championship or the national championship, but we feel we’re one of the better programs in the country for the last 15 years, and being No. 1 is another notch for us as a total program.”

Duke was No. 1 on seven ballots and had 1,711 points. Memphis and Texas each moved up one place to third and fourth, respectively.

Following Florida was Villanova (13-2), which received one first-place vote, Gonzaga, Illinois, West Virginia and Washington.