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The Other Top 25: Undefeated Mountain West trios make big jumps

UNLV, New Mexico and Utah State are a combined 22-0 this season

NCAA Basketball: Colorado State at Utah State
Coach Ryan Odom and guard Steven Ashworth have led the Utah State Aggies to a 7-0 start this season. They are one of the best 3-point shooting teams in the country.
Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports

After the top four spots remain the same in this week’s Other Top 25, the top teams in the Mountain West saw major increases in their rankings. UNLV moved into a tie for No. 5 with Memphis. New Mexico jumped up to eighth. Utah State came in just outside the top 10 and was tied for 11th with Saint Louis.

The Runnin’ Rebels sit at 8-0 on the season, which is their best start in 11 years. In their one game this week, they picked up a 95-78 win at San Diego. They shot 52.5% from the field for the game and held a 21-point edge at halftime. UNLV knocked down 13 3-pointers and buried 48% of their attempts from long range.

The Lobos, who were previously tied for 23rd in the Other Top 25, moved to 7-0 with a victory at Saint Mary’s this week. New Mexico beat the Gaels 69-65 despite falling behind 13-2 out of the gate. Five players notched double figures Jaelen House paced the squad with 17 points, six steals and five rebounds. Morris Udeze and Donovan Dent each netted 13 points. Jamal Mashburn Jr. scored 12 points, and Josiah Allick tallied 10 points. The Lobos are off to their best start in a decade.

The Aggies also made a big jump after coming in at 22 a week ago. They improved to 7-0 with wins over Utah Tech and San Francisco this week. Steven Ashworth tallied his third 25+ point game with 27 points off the bench in the win over Utah Tech. In USU’s win over San Francisco, five players netted double figures. The Aggies rank second in the nation in 3-point field goal percentage at 44.6%.

Six teams were previously unranked and made their way into the top 25. Boise State jumped to No. 14. Santa Clara was No. 18. Indiana State and Portland tied for 20th. Florida Atlantic came in tied for 23rd, and Kent State rounded out the rankings.

Bryant, Tulane, Wyoming, UC Santa Barbara, Western Kentucky and Davidson were each dropped from the rankings.

The Other Top 25: Dec. 5, 2022

Rank Team (First-Place Votes) Points Record Previous
Rank Team (First-Place Votes) Points Record Previous
1 Houston (3) 75 8-0 1
2 Gonzaga 72 5-3 2
3 San Diego State 69 6-2 3
4 Saint Mary's 60 6-3 4
T-5 Memphis 56 6-2 13
T-5 UNLV 56 8-0 11
7 Charleston 54 8-1 7
8 New Mexico 49 7-0 T-23
9 UAB 44 7-1 12
10 Drake 43 7-1 6
T-11 Utah State 38 7-0 22
T-11 Saint Louis 38 7-2 5
13 Towson 31 8-1 T-16
14 Boise State 25 6-2 NR
15 Toledo 24 5-3 10
16 North Texas 22 6-2 14
17 San Francisco 20 7-2 8
18 Santa Clara 19 7-2 NR
19 Nevada 17 7-2 T-23
T-20 Indiana State 15 8-1 NR
T-20 Portland 15 7-4 NR
22 Furman 14 6-2 20
T-23 Dayton 13 5-4 19
T-23 Florida Atlantic 13 7-1 NR
25 Kent State 12 6-2 NR

Others Receiving Votes:

Western Kentucky 11; Duquesne 11; Davidson 10; Siena 8; Bryant 7; UC Irvine 6; Richmond 5; Marshall 5; VCU 3; Fordham 3; UMass 3; Wyoming 3; Charlotte 2; BYU 2; Louisiana 1; James Madison 1

Dropped from Ranking:

Bryant; Tulane; Wyoming; UC Santa Barbara; Western Kentucky; Davidson