Baylor MBB Ranked No. 1 for Third-Straight Season

[Kaye, David]

BAYLOR ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS – Dec. 13, 2021

Baylor MBB Ranked No. 1 for Third-Straight Season
Bears have earned a No. 1 ranking in four of last six seasons
For more information contact: David Kaye, 254-709-5147, David_Kaye at baylor.edu<mailto:David_Kaye at baylor.edu>

WACO, Texas – Baylor men’s basketball is ranked No. 1 in the Dec. 13, 2021, AP Top 25 poll released Monday, extending the Bears’ streak to three-consecutive seasons earning a No. 1 national ranking.

Baylor’s No. 1 ranking came unanimously, with all 61 first-place votes. It’s the first time the Bears have been unanimously ranked No. 1 in the AP Top 25, which doesn’t publish a postseason poll. The Bears also received 30 of 32 first-place votes in this week’s coaches’ poll.

The Bears have now been ranked No. 1 at some point in four of six seasons since achieving the program’s first No. 1 ranking on Jan. 9, 2017. This marks a school-record 43rd-consecutive week the Bears have been ranked, which is the nation’s third-longest active streak behind only Gonzaga and Villanova.

Baylor has been top-10 ranked for a school-record 35-consecutive weeks, and BU was top-5 for 29-straight weeks before being ranked No. 8 in the 2021-22 preseason poll.

The Bears achieved the No. 1 ranking by starting the season 9-0 with marquee wins against No. 6 Villanova, now-No. 12 Michigan State, Arizona State, Stanford and VCU. BU won the 2021 Battle 4 Atlantis, joining Villanova as the tournament’s only two-time champions.

Head coach Scott Drew’s team won its eighth-consecutive game against top-10 ranked opponents by limiting No. 6 Villanova to its fewest points since 1979 in a 57-36 win on Sunday. The Bears improved to 18-3 against ranked teams over the last three seasons, with wins over ranked Villanova teams in each of the last three years.

Baylor holds the nation’s longest active winning streak at 15-straight, with all 15 wins by at least 8 points. The Bears are a combined 63-6 over the last three years, which is the nation’s best record among Power-5 teams. BU has also set school records with 33-consecutive non-conference wins dating back to Nov. 2019 and 19-consecutive home wins dating back to February 2020.

This is the ninth time Baylor has received a No. 1 national ranking. The Bears were No. 1 for the first time on Jan. 9, 2017, then spent five consecutive weeks ranked No. 1 from Jan. 20 through Feb. 17 in 2019-20. BU was No. 1 in the 2020-21 preseason coaches’ poll and No. 1 in the final coaches’ poll on April 6, 2021.

There have been 11 programs to earn No. 1 national rankings since 2016-17, and Baylor joins Gonzaga, Duke and Kansas as the only teams ranked No. 1 in four of the last six seasons. Kentucky, Villanova and Michigan State have been ranked No. 1 in two of the last six years, while Louisville, Tennessee, Virginia and Purdue are the only other teams ranked in the top spot since 2016-17.

Baylor returns to action Saturday when it travels to Eugene, Ore., to play its third game of the season against a Pac-12 opponent. The Bears take on Oregon at 9 p.m. CT on ESPN2, with Dave Flemming and Sean Farnham calling the action.

AP TOP 25 – DEC. 13, 2021
1. Baylor (61) – 1525
2. Duke – 1429
3. Purdue – 1319
4. UCLA – 1312
5. Gonzaga – 1291
6. Alabama – 1202
7. Kansas – 1181
8. Arizona – 1172
9. Villanova – 924
10. USC – 810
11. Iowa State – 798
12. Michigan State – 707
13. Auburn – 693
14. Houston – 683
15. Ohio State – 656
16. Seton Hall – 635
17. Texas – 583
18. Tennessee – 390
19. LSU – 376
20. UConn – 360
21. Kentucky – 345
22. Xavier – 301
23. Colorado State – 251
24. Arkansas – 241
25. Texas Tech – 164

Others receiving votes: Wisconsin 156, North Carolina 85, Providence 57, Oklahoma 46, San Francisco 36, Illinois 31, West Virginia 24, Loyola Chicago 20, Michigan 8, St. Bonaventure 6, BYU 4, Minnesota 3, Creighton 1.

COACHES’ POLL – DEC. 13, 2021
1. Baylor (30) – 797
2. Duke (1) – 747
3. UCLA – 679
T4. Purdue – 663
T4. Gonzaga – 663
6. Arizona – 658
7. Kansas – 613
8. Alabama (1) – 612
9. USC – 443
10. Villanova – 415
11. Iowa State – 398
12. Michigan State – 376
13. Houston – 369
14. Auburn – 345
15. Ohio State – 338
16. Seton Hall – 337
17. Texas – 255
18. Tennessee – 250
19. Arkansas – 203
20. LSU – 184
21. Kentucky – 182
22. UConn – 181
23. Colorado State – 153
24. Texas Tech – 123
25. Xavier – 117

Others receiving votes: Wisconsin 110, Providence 41, San Francisco 36, North Carolina 31, Florida 17, Oklahoma 13, St. Bonaventure 11, Loyola Chicago 10, BYU 9, Minnesota 7, Illinois 6, West Virginia 5, Saint Mary's 2, Weber State 1



BAYLOR MBB No. 1 NATIONAL RANKINGS

Jan. 9, 2017 (AP & Coaches)

Jan. 20, 2020 (AP)

Jan. 27, 2020 (AP & Coaches)

Feb. 3, 2020 (AP & Coaches)

Feb. 10, 2020 (AP & Coaches)

Feb. 17, 2020 (AP & Coaches)

Nov. 12, 2020 (Coaches)

April 6, 2021 (Coaches)

Dec. 13, 2021 (AP & Coaches)



www.BaylorBears.com






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David Kaye | Assistant AD for Communications
Department of Athletics | Baylor University
C: 254-709-5147

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