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Gonzaga Basketball

Gonzaga climbs to No. 12 in latest AP college basketball poll

Gonzaga forward Emmanuel Innocenti puts pressure on Arizona State’s Andrija Grbovic (14) during the second half of GU’s 77-65 win in Tempe. (TYLER TJOMSLAND/THE SPOKESMAN-REVIEW)
By Jim Meehan jimm@spokesman.com(509) 459-5585

Gonzaga’s showdown with Alabama on Monday night in Las Vegas fell just short of being a top-10 matchup in the latest Associated Press poll.

Alabama, on the strength of a 90-86 victory over then-No. 8 Illinois in Chicago, moved up three spots to No. 8 while the Zags, 72-point winners over Southern Utah, gained one spot to No. 12.

The Zags received 863 points from the media panel, 16 behind No. 11 Michigan State and 33 more than No. 13 Illinois.

Arizona, following an impressive 71-67 road win over then No. 3 UConn, climbed two spots to reach No. 2. The Wildcats, coached by former Gonzaga assistant Tommy Lloyd, received 11 first-place votes but they’re a distant second to Purdue, which collected 46 first-place votes.

Houston, No. 1 a few weeks ago, settled in at No. 3 with four first-place votes, followed by Duke, UConn, Louisville, Michigan, Alabama, BYU and defending national champion Florida.

Gonzaga’s first post-Players Era contest will be Dec. 5th at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville against Kentucky, which tumbled seven spots to No. 19 after absorbing a 17-point loss to Michigan State.

The Zags also face No. 18 UCLA on Dec. 13 at Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena. Oregon, third in receiving votes with 31 points, takes on GU on Dec. 21 at the Moda Center in Portland. Saint Mary’s, GU’s primary rival in the West Coast Conference, received 27 points, tied for fifth among teams outside the top 25.

The Zags have steadily climbed up the rankings after coming in at No. 21 in the preseason poll. The Wildcats, 13th in the preseason rankings, also hold wins over UCLA and Florida.

Seven SEC teams made the Top 25, followed by the Big Ten (six) and Big 12 (five).

Gonzaga, which soared to No. 1 in KenPom’s rankings after routing Southern Utah, checked in at No. 3 as of Monday morning. Duke and Purdue are 1-2. Houston is fourth, followed by Florida, Arizona, Illinois, BYU, Louisville and Iowa State.

Alabama was No. 17 prior to facing Gonzaga. Maryland, picked 13th in the 18-team Big Ten preseason poll, is No. 67 in KenPom.

Gonzaga moved up to No. 10 in the USA Today coaches’ poll, one spot behind Alabama. Purdue, Houston, Arizona, Duke and Louisville hold down the top five positions.

Gonzaga and Alabama were even tighter in ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi’s latest seedings than they were in the AP poll. Both teams were two seeds with GU at No. 7 overall and the Crimson Tide at No. 8.