Gonzaga moves up to No. 9 in Associated Press rankings

Gonzaga climbed up one spot to No. 9 in the latest Associated Press poll, its highest ranking since mid January.

The Zags (26-5), who faced San Francisco late Monday night in the West Coast Conference Tournament semifinals, picked up 1,031 points from the media panel, 11 points behind No. 8 Arizona, which is led by former Gonzaga assistant Tommy Lloyd.

Houston received 58 of 61 first-place votes to remain in the top spot for the third consecutive week. The other three first-place votes went to Pac-12 champion UCLA, which has won 10 straight games.

Kansas is third, followed by Alabama, Purdue, Marquette, Texas, Arizona, GU and Baylor.

WCC co-champion Saint Mary’s gained one spot to No. 16.

The Zags, who routed Chicago State 104-65 in their lone game last week, were No. 6 in the AP rankings before falling to Loyola Marymount 68-67 at home on Jan. 19. GU held off Pacific 99-90 two nights later, but still slid to No. 14 in the ensuing poll.

Gonzaga is 1-3 against Top 10 teams with a victory over Alabama and setbacks vs. Purdue, Texas and Baylor. The Zags are 3-1 against teams in the bottom half of the Top 25 with wins over No. 15 Xavier and No. 23 Kentucky and a split vs. Saint Mary’s.

GU also defeated Michigan State, which received nine points in Monday’s poll, and lost to No. 17 Tennessee in a preseason exhibition game.

Boise State, guided by former Gonzaga assistant Leon Rice, is in the others receiving votes category with seven points.

Houston, led by former Washington State head coach Kelvin Sampson, also is No. 1 in the NET rankings, followed by Alabama, Tennessee, UCLA, Purdue, UConn, Kansas, Saint Mary’s, Gonzaga, Texas, Arizona and Baylor.

San Francisco is No. 109.

The Zags are projected as a three seed in the latest tournament brackets by ESPN and CBS Sports. Saint Mary’s is a five seed. Arizona is a three seed, according to CBS Sports, and a two in ESPN’s projections.