# 1948–49 NCAA men's basketball rankings

The 1948–49 NCAA men's basketball rankings was made up of a single human poll – the AP Poll – with weekly editions released between January 18, 1949, and March 8, 1949.

## Legend

| | Increase in ranking |
| | Decrease in ranking |
| | New to rankings from previous week |
| Italics | Number of first place votes |
| (#–#) | Win–loss record |
| т | Tied with team above or below also with this symbol |

## AP Poll

This was the initial season for the AP college basketball poll. It was modeled after its college football poll, which began in the mid-1930s.
| | Week 1 Jan. 17 | Week 2 Jan. 24 | Week 3 Jan. 31 | Week 4 Feb. 7 | Week 5 Feb. 14 | Week 6 Feb. 21 | Week 7 Feb. 28 | Final Mar. 7 | |
| 1. | Saint Louis (11–0) (69) | Saint Louis (12–1) (39) | Kentucky (13–1) (39) | Kentucky (17–1) | Kentucky (20–1) | Kentucky (22–1) | Kentucky (25–1) | Kentucky (29–1) | 1. |
| 2. | Kentucky (11–1) (16) | Kentucky (12–1) (33) | Saint Louis (13–1) (25) | Saint Louis (15–1) | Saint Louis (16–2) | Saint Louis (18–2) | Oklahoma A&M (19–4) | Oklahoma A&M (20–4) | 2. |
| 3. | Western Kentucky (12–0) (2) | Oklahoma A&M (10–2) (15) | Oklahoma A&M (11–2) (4) | Oklahoma A&M (13–2) | Oklahoma A&M (16–3) | Oklahoma A&M (17–3) | Saint Louis (19–3) | Saint Louis (20–3) | 3. |
| 4. | Minnesota (12–0) (3) | Western Kentucky (15–0) (9) | Illinois (13–1) (1) | Illinois (14–2) | Illinois (16–2) | Illinois (16–2) | Illinois (19–2) | Illinois (19–2) | 4. |
| 5. | Oklahoma A&M (9–2) (3) | Minnesota (13–0) (8) | Minnesota (13–1) | Hamline (15–0) | Tulane (19–2) | Minnesota (16–2) | Minnesota (18–2) | Western Kentucky (25–3) | 5. |
| 6. | San Francisco (13–1) | Illinois (12–1) | Western Kentucky (16–1) (1) | Western Kentucky (17–2) | Minnesota (15–2) | Tulane (20–2) | Western Kentucky (25–3) | Minnesota (18–3) | 6. |
| 7. | Illinois (12–1) | Hamline (13–0) | Villanova (12–1) | Minnesota (14–2) | Western Kentucky (20–3) | Western Kentucky (22–3) | Tulane (21–3) | Bradley (25–6) | 7. |
| 8. | Hamline (11–0) | Villanova (11–0) | Hamline (14–0) | Tulane (18–2) | San Francisco (19–4) | San Francisco (20–5) | San Francisco (21–5) | San Francisco (21–5) | 8. |
| 9. | Villanova (11–0) | San Francisco (15–2) | Stanford (17–2) (1) | San Francisco (18–3) | Hamline (17–1) | Bowling Green (18–6) | Bowling Green (20–6) | Tulane (24–4) | 9. |
| 10. | Utah (10–2) | Utah (13–2) | San Francisco (16–2) | Stanford (17–3) | Bowling Green (16–6) | Bradley (23–4) | Bradley (25–5) | Bowling Green (21–6) | 10. |
| 11. | Tulane (13–2) | Stanford (15–2) | Tulane (15–2) | Loyola-Chicago (16–3) | Butler (15–3) | Butler (17–3) | Butler (18–5) | Yale (21–5) | 11. |
| 12. | Loyola-Chicago (11–2) | Tulane (15–2) | Utah (14–3) | Utah (16–4) | Bradley (22–4) | Loyola-Chicago (18–4) | Wyoming (22–8) | Utah (24–7) | 12. |
| 13. | Cincinnati (8–1) | Loyola-Chicago (13–2) | Loyola-Chicago (14–2) | Villanova (13–3) | Loyola-Chicago (16–4) | Yale (18–4) | Utah (23–6) | NC State (25–8) | 13. |
| 14. | Holy Cross (8–5) | Washington State (18–1) | Bowling Green (10–6) | Bowling Green (12–6) | Utah (18–5) | Wyoming (22–6) | Loyola-Chicago (21–5) | Villanova (20–3) | 14. |
| 15. | Bowling Green (9–6) | NC State (11–7) (1) | NYU (7–3) т | Holy Cross (12–5) | Villanova (15–3) | Hamline (19–3) | NC State (22–8) | UCLA (21–5) | 15. |
| 16. | Bradley (15–3) | DePaul (10–6) | Butler (12–3) т | Butler (13–3) | Oklahoma (11–5) | Utah (20–6) | Hamline (23–3) | Loyola-Chicago (22–5) | 16. |
| 17. | Stanford (11–2) | Butler (11–3) | NC State (14–7) | Washington State (18–2) | DePaul (14–7) т | Duquesne (15–4) | Villanova (18–3) | Wyoming (24–8) | 17. |
| 18. | Washington State (17–1) т | Baylor (10–6) т | Bradley (19–3) | Ohio State (9–4) | NC State (17–8) т | Ohio State (11–6) | Yale (19–5) | Butler (18–5) | 18. |
| 19. | Butler (9–2) т | Bradley (18–3) т | Holy Cross (9–5) | Wyoming (17–6) | Wyoming (20–6) т | USC (12–8) | Ohio State (13–7) | Hamline (23–3) | 19. |
| 20. | NYU (7–3) | Holy Cross (9–5) | Eastern Kentucky (12–3) | Duquesne (13–2) | Duquesne (15–3) т Stanford (17–5) т Yale (15–4) т | Texas (16–5) | Arkansas (12–10) | Ohio State (14–7) | 20. |
| | Week 1 Jan. 17 | Week 2 Jan. 24 | Week 3 Jan. 31 | Week 4 Feb. 7 | Week 5 Feb. 14 | Week 6 Feb. 21 | Week 7 Feb. 28 | Final Mar. 7 | |
| | | Dropped: Cincinnati (8–3)Bowling Green (9–6)NYU (7–3) | Dropped: Washington State (18–2)DePaulBaylor | Dropped: NYUNC StateBradleyEastern Kentucky | Dropped: Holy CrossWashington StateOhio State (9–6) | Dropped: VillanovaOklahomaDePaulNC StateStanford | Dropped: DuquesneUSCTexas | Dropped: Arkansas (14–10) | |