Top 45 countdown

Very quickly, this week's AP basketball ballot, plus another 20 teams. It'll be highly subject to change in the next week or two, as programs start to rack up games against comparable competition.

The biggest riser this week was Syracuse, which went from the mid-30s to No. 4. The Orange beat California and North Carolina, and it's unlikely anyone has a better set of victories at this stage (with the possible exception of Villanova, which defeated Mississippi and Dayton).

As for Maryland? The Terps check in at No. 20, but like most of the teams around them, there really isn't that much known about this bunch so far. Perhaps the last two games in Maui will provide some clarity.

The rundown:

1. Kansas (3-0)
2. Michigan State (4-0)
3. Texas (2-0)
4. Syracuse (4-0)
5. Purdue (3-0)
6. Villanova (5-0)
7. Kentucky (4-0)
8. Duke (4-0)
9. Washington (4-0)
10. North Carolina (4-1)
11. Butler (3-0)
12. Michigan (2-0)
13. Tennessee (4-0)
14. West Virginia (1-0)
15. Louisville (3-0)
16. Ohio State (3-1)
17. Connecticut (3-0)
18. Clemson (3-0)
19. Minnesota (3-0)
20. Maryland (3-0)
21. Xavier (3-0)
22. Tulsa (4-0)
23. Brigham Young (3-0)
24. Vanderbilt (2-0)
25. Mississippi (4-1)

26. Gonzaga (2-1)
27. Georgetown (3-0)
28. Illinois (3-0)
29. Memphis (2-1)
30. Notre Dame (4-0)
31. Texas A&M (3-0)
32. Oklahoma State (3-0)
33. Kansas State (4-1)
35. Wake Forest (3-0)
36. Florida State (3-0)
37. Louisiana State (3-0)
38. Wisconsin (2-0)
39. Siena (2-1)
40. Oklahoma (2-1)
41. Miami (5-0)
42. New Mexico (5-0)
43. Pittsburgh (3-0)
44. Dayton (2-2)
45. Old Dominion (4-0)

--- Patrick Stevens