I write about a college basketball team every morning — usually Purdue, UConn or Houston, it feels like. Those are the sport’s three best teams. And they deserve all of the attention they’re getting considering one of them has been No. 1 in the Associated Press Top 25 poll for 10 straight weeks — and it’ll soon be 11 because, later Monday, one of them will again be No. 1 in the AP poll. 

But which one?

Based on nothing more than AP voters’ habits, it’ll likely be Houston because A) Houston was No. 2 in the AP poll last week, B) No. 1 UConn lost 85-66 last Tuesday at Creighton, and C) AP voters, broadly speaking, tend to just move up who they had at No. 2 any time No. 1 loses provided No. 2 did not fall.

Houston did not fall.

Rather, the Cougars added two Quadrant 1 victories over the past week by beating Iowa State at home and Baylor on the road. So Houston will probably be the new No. 1 in the AP poll later Monday — and that’s fine. The Cougars are already No. 1 in the NET and most other computers. So it’s easy to justify. But, as I’ve noted many times in recent weeks, I firmly believe the No. 1 team in any human ranking this deep in the season should simply be the team with the best body of work. And, from my perspective, that team remains Purdue.

The Boilermakers improved to 25-3 on Sunday with an 84-76 win at Michigan. So they’re now 16-3 in the first two quadrants with nine Q1 wins and zero losses outside of Q1. That represents a better record than UConn has in the first two quadrants by two wins and a better record than Houston has in the first two quadrants by three. Also worth noting: Purdue has seven victories over schools ranked in the top 25 of the NET. UConn and Houston both still only have four.

That’s among the reasons why Purdue remains No. 1 in Monday morning’s updated CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings. UConn is No. 2. Houston is No. 3. From a body of work perspective, those three schools have separated from the rest of the sport, and it’s becoming harder and harder to envision anybody catching any of them between now and Selection Sunday.

Top 25 And 1 rankings