Wisconsin basketball has been hot ever since their loss to Illinois. In that time, they beat Butler, steamrolled Iowa, beat Rutgers on the road, and even took care of their rival Minnesota. It's been a good stretch, and things are clicking. They were just outside of the AP Top 25 last week and receiving votes, and now they should be able to crack into it; if they don't, it's a slight. There's no other way to put it.
The big news in this week's AP Top 25 is the loss to No. 1 Tennessee. That was huge news, and there will be a shake-up at the top. Most likely, Auburn will go to No. 1, and Tennesee will drop somewhere in the top 5. The other big news is that No. 17 Oklahoma had two ranked losses this week. There's a legit chance they go from 17 to out of the rankings. Let's assume that as we go forth with projecting Wisconsin's admission into the top 25. Here's what also happened at the bottom of the top 25:
No. 20 - Purdue: Win over Rutgers, Win over Nebraska
No. 21 - West Virginia: Loss to Arizona, Win over Colorado
No. 22 - UCLA: Loss to Michigan, Loss to Maryland
No. 23 - Ole Miss: Win over Arkansas, Win over LSU
No. 24 - Michigan: Win over UCLA, Win over Washington
No. 25 - Utah State: Win over San Jose State, Win over Boise State
We can assume Oklahoma, UCLA, and potentially even West Virginia (though there's a case they could land at 24 or 25). That's three spots open in the top 25. Who is deserving that is right on the cusp?
The top vote-getters from last week were Pitt, Arkansas, Nebraska, Baylor, and Wisconsin. Pitt, Arkansas, and Nebraska all lost at least once last week. We can assume they will stay outside the top 25. Baylor won twice, and Wisconsin won twice. Is there any team that could make a big jump?
Yes, Georgia. The Bulldogs beat two ranked SEC teams this last week in Kentucky and Oklahoma. They will almost assuredly jump into the top 25, and Baylor and Wisconsin should be among the other two spots. If only two spots are available, Wisconsin still has a better resume than Baylor and should jump over them. The only negative you can give the Badgers from this last week is they played two teams lower in the Big Ten and the net: Rutgers and Minnesota.
Prediction: Wisconsin will be ranked No. 24.