Al Durham and the Friars (13-1) are making moves in the Top 25 (Photo: PC Athletics)

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Winning comes with its rewards.

That’s certainly the case for the red-hot Providence College Friars. They’ve won eight straight games, are off to a 3-0 start in the Big East and can match the best-ever start under Ed Cooley (14-1) with a win at Marquette Tuesday night.

They’re also on the rise in the Associated Press Top 25. PC is up to 16th, actually a tie with Kentucky at 16, this week.

I bumped them up to 15th on my Associated Press ballot. That’s up from No. 19 after wins vs. Seton Hall and at DePaul.

The Friars were No. 21 in last week’s AP poll Seton Hall, despite being under-manned, lost twice and fell back from No. 15 to 24th.

Here is PC’s upcoming schedule:

Tuesday, Jan. 4 at Marquette, 9 pm – Expect a tight, last-minute affair. Just another night in the Big East.

Saturday, Jan. 8 vs. St. John’s, Noon – The Red Storm haven’t played since Dec. 18 due to Covid. They’ll face DePaul this week and try to get back on track before heading up Route 95.

Tuesday, Jan. 11 at Creighton, 9 p.m. – Always a difficult trip and Greg McDermott has another explosive offensive team.

Here is this week’s AP Top 25 poll

1. Baylor 2. Duke 3. Purdue 4. Gonzaga 5. UCLA 6. Kansas 7. USC 8. Arizona 9. Auburn 10. Michigan St.

11. Iowa State 12. Houston 13. Ohio St 14. Texas 15. Alabama 16. (Tie) Providence 16. Kentucky 18. Tennessee

19. Villanova 20. Colorado St. 21. LSU 22. Xavier 23. Wisconsin 24. Seton Hall 25. Texas Tech.

KEVIN McNAMARA AP BALLOT

1. Baylor
2. Duke
3. Purdue
4. Kansas
5. Gonzaga
6. UCLA
7. Auburn
8. Arizona
9. Houston
10. Southern Cal
11. Michigan St
12. Iowa St
13. Texas
14. Ohio St
15. PROVIDENCE
16. LSU
17. Villanova
18. Colorado St
19. Texas Tech
20. Alabama
21. Xavier
22. Kentucky
23. Tennessee
24. Seton Hall
25. Illinois