Tennessee remains at No. 1 in AP poll, ahead of Duke

Tennessee coach Rick Barnes talks with forward Grant Williams (2) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against Florida on Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019, in Knoxville, Tenn. Tennessee won 73-61. (AP photo/Wade Payne) Tennessee coach Rick Barnes talks with forward Grant Williams (2) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against Florida on Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019, in Knoxville, Tenn. Tennessee won 73-61. (AP photo/Wade Payne)

By Associated Press February 11, 2019 3 min read

The NCAA Division I Basketball Committee slated Duke as the No. 1 overall seed in its initial tournament rankings over the weekend. Voters in the AP Top 25 stuck with Tennessee as their top team.

The Vols received 40 of 64 first-place votes from a media panel in the poll released Monday, remaining ahead of Duke for fourth straight week. The No. 2 Blue Devils had 24 first-place votes.

No. 3 Gonzaga and No. 4 Virginia, the other top seeds in the NCAA’s initial rankings on Saturday, rounded out the top five with Kentucky.

Tennessee (22-1, 10-0 SEC) moved to the No. 1 spot in the AP poll after Duke (21-2, 9-1 ACC) lost to Syracuse on Jan. 14.

The Vols continued winning, stretching their school-record streak to 18 games with wins over Missouri and Florida last week.