Back-to-back losses drop KU to No. 13 in latest AP poll

Kansas guard Lagerald Vick, center, and Kansas guard Devonte' Graham (4) dive on a loose ball with Arizona State guard Tra Holder (0) during the second half, Sunday, Dec. 10, 2017 at Allen Fieldhouse.

Rare back-to-back losses for Kansas this past week cost the Jayhawks 11 spots in the Associated Press Top 25.

Previously ranked No. 2 in the nation, KU’s men’s basketball team dropped all the way down to No. 13 in the new rankings released Monday.

Kansas (7-2) first lost to unranked Washington (7-3) at Sprint Center — the Huskies followed up the upset with a 97-70 home defeat to No. 12 Gonzaga.

Next, KU dropped another Pac-12 matchup on Sunday at Allen Fieldhouse, where Arizona State remained undefeated.

The ASU victory jumped the Sun Devils from No. 16 in the country to No. 5.

Only No. 1 Villanova (10-0), No. 2 Michigan State (9-1), No. 3 Wichita State (8-1) and No. 4 Duke (11-1) currently rank ahead the Sun Devils (9-0).

The Jayhawks, meanwhile, now have 12 teams in front of them, including one from the Big 12 — No. 11 West Virginia (9-1), which defeated No. 16 Virginia this past week.

Three other Big 12 programs rank among the top 25: No. 14 TCU (10-0), No. 21 Baylor (7-2) and No. 24 Texas Tech (7-1).

Before this past week, Kansas had survived a stretch of 146 games without consecutive losses.

The last time Bill Self’s program lost twice in a row was in 2013, when the Jayhawks came up short on the road at Colorado and at Florida.