Illinois ascends to No. 1 in poll

Illinois took an unusual route to the top of the Associated Press men’s college basketball poll.

The Illini, riding an impressive 91-73 win over then-top-ranked Wake Forest, vaulted from fifth to No. 1 Monday, moving past three unbeaten teams.

It is the third time in school history Illinois reached No. 1

“It’s definitely important because I think it gives you recognition, which fans love, and you hope it helps recruiting,” Illinois coach Bruce Weber said. “It establishes you as one of the better programs in the country. When you watch the top of the polls, the teams that get to the Elite Eight and Final Four are usually the teams that are there. It puts us in an exclusive group and hopefully we can maintain it.”

Illinois, which also won at Arkansas last week, received 25 first-place votes and 1,717 points from the national media panel. Kansas (4-0) held second with 23 first-place votes and 1,700 points after wins over Nevada and Pacific.

Georgia Tech (5-0) and Syracuse (7-0), the other teams Illinois vaulted, switched places from last week. The Yellow Jackets, who beat Michigan and Georgia by an average of almost 35 points last week, moved to No. 3 with 12 first-place votes and 1,632 points, while Syracuse, which beat St. Bonaventure and Colgate last week, was No. 1 on nine ballots and had 1,607 points.

Gonzaga (5-1), which beat Washington last week after losing at Illinois the previous week, moved back into the rankings at No. 25 after a one-week absence. Washington (5-1) dropped two spots to No. 16, one below Arizona (5-2)as the two top-ranked Pac-10 teams.

Wake Forest (6-1) dropped to sixth.