Week 6 College Basketball AP Poll: Arizona Flexes, Nebraska Shocks, and the Chaos Continues

If you thought we’d get a quiet week in college basketball before the holiday break truly kicks in, you clearly haven’t been paying attention. The latest AP Poll Top 25 dropped, and while the top of the mountain looks the same, the path to get there is getting rockier by the minute.

We are deep enough into the season now that “small sample size” is no longer a valid excuse for your team playing terrible defense. Resumes are being built, hearts are being broken, and we haven’t even really hit the meat of conference play yet. Let’s dive into the madness of Week 6, shall we?

Arizona is Playing a Different Game Than Everyone Else

Let’s be honest: what Tommy Lloyd is doing down in Tucson is bordering on disrespectful. The Wildcats held onto the No. 1 spot, receiving 42 first-place votes in the AP Poll, and frankly, they’ve earned every single one of them.

They didn’t just beat No. 12 Alabama this week; they ran them out of the gym. A 96-75 drubbing that felt over before the halftime buzzer sounded. Brayden Burries looked like a man possessed, dropping 28 points, while Motiejus Krivas casually put up a 14-point, 14-rebound double-double.

However, here’s the kicker that should terrify the rest of the country: Arizona is the first team in AP Poll history to knock off five ranked opponents in their first nine games. Read that again. Five. Most bubble teams pray for two ranked wins all season. Arizona has five before Christmas. They’ve taken down Florida, UCLA, UConn, Auburn and now Bama. At 9-0, the Wildcats aren’t just a tournament team; they look like the team that’s going to ruin your perfect bracket in March.

Michigan: The Quiet Juggernaut

While Arizona is grabbing headlines with their heavyweight prizefights, Michigan is quietly putting together a masterpiece of a season in Ann Arbor. The Wolverines sit at No. 2 in the AP Poll, snagging 15 first-place votes, and sit pretty at a perfect 10-0.

They had a week that would make any coach smile. First, they dismantled Villanova by nearly 30 points. Then, they welcomed Maryland to Big Ten play by hanging 101 points on them. Yaxel Lendeborg was unstoppable against the Terps, pouring in 29 points and grabbing eight boards.

The debate right now is fascinating. Do you value Arizona’s strength of schedule—walking through fire and coming out unburned? Or do you value Michigan’s absolute dominance over whoever is put in front of them? For now, the voters lean Arizona, but the Wolverines are breathing down their necks.

The Cornhuskers Are For Real (No, Seriously)

If you had Nebraska being 11-0 and ranked No. 15 on your bingo card, you are lying.

This is a football school, right? Not anymore. The Cornhuskers surged eight spots in the polls this week, and it’s arguably the best story in the sport right now. They are off to their best start in program history.

They went into Illinois—a tough place to play—and pulled off an 83-80 thriller that had more drama than a primetime soap opera. Jamarques Lawrence drained a three with 0.2 seconds left to seal the deal. That is the kind of shot that defines a season. It’s the kind of momentum that turns a “nice start” into a legitimate run.

Nebraska fans, I know you’re waiting for the other shoe to drop because sports fandom is pain, but enjoy this. Your squad is playing inspired ball.

The Best of the Rest

Elsewhere in the Top 10, things held relatively steady, mostly because teams took care of business.

Duke (No. 3): The Blue Devils took the week off. Must be nice, right? They sat at home, watched everyone else sweat, and kept their ranking. Work smarter, not harder.

Iowa State (No. 4): The Cyclones are quietly 11-0 after dismantling Eastern Illinois. Milan Momcilovic continues to be a bucket-getter, and this team defense is suffocating.

UConn (No. 5): The Huskies had a solid week, grabbing wins over Florida and Texas. Beating the Gators sent Florida tumbling down the rankings, proving once again that UConn is not a team you want to see on your schedule in December.

The Fallout

Speaking of Florida, ouch. The reigning national champs took a tumble, dropping five spots to No. 23 after that loss to UConn. They are sitting at 6-4. Is it time to panic in Gainesville? Probably not yet, but 0-3 against ranked opponents is a stat that will keep the coaching staff up at night.

As we look toward Week 7, the pressure is only going to mount. The “unbeaten” list is shrinking. The targets on the backs of Arizona and Michigan are growing. And somewhere, a mid-major is plotting an upset that will ruin our entire week.

God, I love this sport.