The release of Monday’s AP Top 25 poll had a rather big surprise, one that marked the end of an era for one of college basketball’s bluest of bloods.
Duke was not ranked among the nation’s top 25 basketball teams for the first time since Barack Obama took office. The last time this happened came more than eight years ago — 167 weeks to be exact. The Blue Devils were left off the final 2006-07 rankings, but had been ranked in every poll that came after.
The streak was the fifth longest in the AP poll’s history, dating back to the 1948-49 season. UCLA holds the longest streak at 221 consecutive polls from 1966 to 1980.
It has been a rough season by head coach Mike Krzyzewski’s standards. Duke is 15-6 overall and 4-4 in the ACC. The team has lost four of its past five games, including last week’s 80-69 loss to Miami at Coral Gables.
One prominent ex-Duke player, ESPN analyst Jay Williams, even went so far as to question the Blue Devils’ place in the NCAA tournament.
"I don’t know if Duke is in the tournament right now." – @RealJayWilliams pic.twitter.com/RmsAcbDMOT
— UNSPORTSMANLIKE Radio (@UnSportsESPN) February 2, 2016
When Duke fell out of the Top 25 eight seasons ago, the Blue Devils suffered a first-round tournament loss to VCU.
The Duke women’s basketball team was also bounced from the AP Top 25 earlier this season for the first time since 1999. Both teams are currently unranked, which has not happened in nearly 30 years.
This is the first time Duke men and women have BOTH been unranked at the same time since December 1986
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) February 2, 2016
Being left out of the polls certainly does not happen often, but it’s not a good time to be a Blue Devil right now. Of course, this means the Duke schadenfreude is at an all-time high.
https://twitter.com/BobbyBigWheel/status/694280714263642114
https://twitter.com/SportsonEarth/status/694244185730326528
Kansas now takes over for the longest active streak in the AP Top 25. The No. 7 Jayhawks have been in the poll for the last 136 weeks. No. 23 Arizona has the next-best streak, ranking in the past 72 polls.
Duke will try to begin turning around its season Tuesday night at Georgia Tech. The Yellow Jackets are 12-9 overall and 2-6 in the ACC.
