For the first time since 2002, the Barton Community College men's basketball team is now the nation's top ranked team as the Cougars have moved up a spot in the latest and final regular season NJCAA Division I poll.
Victors of 17 straight, Barton is 26-1 on the season in replacing South Plains College as the Texans were knocked from the unbeaten Thursday 76-69 at Howard College in slipping to 26-1.
Most recently the Cougars survived its own threat to derail its win streak by surviving 70-68 as Mozae Downing-Rivers' short jumper with 2.3 seconds provided the final difference maker hosting Garden City Community College.
Barton received ten of the fourteen first place votes in the poll for 346 points with South Plains garnering the other four top spot votes in sliding to second with 340 points. A distant third with 314 points was the one spot move up by Triton College followed by the three spot climb of Salt Lake Community College (307 points) and Vincennes University (295 points). Joining South Plains in taking a hit last week, Daytona State College fell from third to seventh while Mineral Area College also dropped out of the top five to the eighth spot of the poll.
Fellow Region VI members Cowley College, who has the lone victory over Barton this season, moved up one spot to 11th with Saturday's home opponent Hutchinson Community College staying steady at No. 15 while Butler Community College also holds firm at No. 19 in the poll.
Two games up with three to play in the conference standings at 20-1, Barton has one regular season home contest left in between a pair of road contests in the hunt for its first conference title since the 2008-09 season.
The Cougars' quest with the bullseye attached begins on Wednesday in a 7:30 p.m. tip at Dodge City Community College, a contest if victorious would secure at least a share of the title.
Looming next is Saturday's 7:30 p.m. hosting of the Blue Dragons on "Pink Out Night" with sophomore recognition taking place in between the women's and men's contests.
Barton will then close out the regular season Tuesday, March 5th, at Colby Community College before having a week's wait until hosting a second round Region VI playoff contest on March 12.
Beginning the '02-03 season as the nation's top ranked preseason team, the Cougars held the ranking through the first ten games of the year until being knocked off 100-98 in double overtimes by Neosho County Community College on November 30 in the Cougar Booster Club/Walnut Bowl Classic.
Falling to No. 4 the falling week, Barton went on to win the conference title but was knocked off in the region quarterfinals concluding the season 28-4 and a final No. 4 national ranking.