Gonzaga climbs couple of notches to No. 6 in AP basketball poll

Gonzaga moved up again in the Associated Press college basketball rankings, reaching a season-high No. 6 on Monday.

The Zags (21-1, 9-0 West Coast Conference) have been in the top 10 in the last seven polls, including two weeks in mid-December at No. 7.

Gonzaga, which routed Pepperdine 84-60 and held off San Francisco 68-66, picked up two spots in the latest media poll, surpassing Purdue and Houston. The Boilermakers plunged eight spots to No. 12 after losses to UCLA and Illinois. Houston slid from sixth to 10th after losing to Texas Tech.

There was no change to the top three. Arizona, coached by former longtime GU assistant Tommy Lloyd, remains the unanimous No. 1, followed by UConn, Michigan, Duke and Nebraska. Michigan State is seventh, Iowa State eighth and Illinois ninth.

The Zags, riding a 14-game winning streak, entertain rival Saint Mary’s (19-3, 8-1) on Saturday. The Gaels received three points, ninth among teams receiving votes.

Gonzaga has four wins over foes that were ranked in the AP poll at the time, but only No. 23 Alabama (13-6) remains in the top 25. Kentucky, winners of five straight, is just outside the top 25 after receiving 51 points.

Arizona, Nebraska and Miami (Ohio) are the only unbeatens remaining. The Wildcats visit No. 13 BYU on Monday night. Nebraska tangles with No. 3 Michigan and No. 9 Illinois. Miami faces UMass and Northern Illinois.

Gonzaga stayed steady at No. 4, behind Arizona, Michigan and Duke, in the NET rankings, used by the selection committee to select and seed March Madness.

Nebraska is fifth, followed by Illinois, Iowa State, UConn, Michigan State and Purdue. Alabama is No. 22. Saint Mary’s is No. 30, which would make Saturday’s showdown a Quad 1 contest for both teams. The Gaels are 0-2 in Quad 1 while the Zags are 3-1.

Gonzaga holds wins over No. 28 Kentucky (94-59 in Nashville), No. 42 UCLA (82-72 at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle) and No. 45 Santa Clara (89-77 at the McCarthey Athletic Center). San Francisco gained seven spots to No. 99 after losing to the Zags.

GU slipped to No. 9 in KenPom’s rankings. The Zags are 19th in adjusted offensive efficiency and eighth defensively. KenPom’s top three are Arizona, Michigan and Duke.

Gonzaga climbed from eighth to sixth in the USA Today coaches’ poll. Arizona, Michigan, UConn, Duke and Nebraska are the top five. Saint Mary’s received nine points.

The Zags are a three seed (ninth overall) and the Gaels a nine seed in ESPN’s Joe Lunardi’s latest bracket projections. Arizona is the top overall seed. Santa Clara is in the first four out.

GU is a three seed and Saint Mary’s is an 11 in the First Four in CBS Sports’ bracket. The bracketmatrix.com lists Gonzaga as a two seed (eighth overall).