Badgers drop two spots in latest AP poll

Wisconsin claimed a share of the Big Ten title last week but still fell in the latest Associated Press Top 25 following a loss to Nebraska.

The Badgers dropped two spots to No. 12 in the poll released late Monday morning. It came after UW beat Purdue to clinch its 20th conference title on Tuesday and then fell to the last-place Cornhuskers 74-73 on Sunday. Wisconsin closed the regular season at 24-6 overall and 15-5 in the Big Ten.

Coach Greg Gard’s club is one of four schools from the Big Ten in the rankings. The Boilermakers are the highest at No. 9, a one spot drop from last week. Illinois comes in at No. 16, while Iowa is sitting at No. 24.

Those teams will be back in action this week in Indianapolis as the Big Ten tournament gets underway. The Illini are the top seed after grabbing a share of the conference title and owning the tiebreaker on the Badgers, who will be the No. 2 seed. UW will see either seventh-seeded Michigan State or 10th-seeded Maryland in the quarterfinals on Friday night.

Gonzaga remained the No. 1 team in the country, with Arizona, Baylor, Auburn and Kentucky rounding out the top five.