Saturday’s monumental clash between Gonzaga and Saint Mary’s had significant stakes in the West Coast Conference standings, though there wasn’t enough room for either team in the ensuing Associated Press Top 25 poll that was released Monday.
Despite boasting the nation’s fourth-longest active win streak, the Gaels (20-3, 10-0 WCC) just missed the cutline after receiving the second-most votes among teams not in the top 25. Saint Mary’s picked up its 10th consecutive victory and tightened its grip on the league’s No. 1 spot with a 62-58 victory over the Zags (16-7, 7-3 WCC), who unsurprisingly were not ranked for a third straight week, in what turned out to be another thrilling matchup between conference rivals from University Credit Union Pavilion in Moraga, California.
Gonzaga bounced back from a 14-point deficit in the first half to pull ahead by four with less than 10 minutes left in regulation behind a strong night from Graham Ike, who had 24 points and eight rebounds. Ryan Nembhard added an 11-point, 12-assist double-double as well, but Saint Mary’s capitalized off a handful of key offensive rebounds down the stretch to hang on for the program’s third win over the Bulldogs since last February. Mikey Lewis stepped up offensively for the Gaels with 16 points, including a crucial 3-pointer that put his team ahead 56-51 with 4:44 remaining in the second half.
Gonzaga had a chance to tie or take the lead with 5.5 seconds on the clock, however, Ike came up short on a 3-point attempt from the corner and Jordan Ross was able to put the game away at the foul line during the ensuing Saint Mary’s possession. The Zags dropped down to No. 3 in the league standings, sitting half a game back of San Francisco (18-6, 8-3 WCC), while the Gaels’ quest for back-to-back regular season titles came one step closer to reality.
A wild slate of college hoops on Saturday reshuffled the majority of the top 25 aside, from the top two spots, still owned by Auburn and Duke in that order. Alabama moved up to No. 3, followed by Tennessee’s four-spot jump to No. 4. Houston moved up one spot to No. 5 despite an overtime loss to now-No. 13 Texas Tech, which snapped the Cougars’ 33-game win streak at home.
Kentucky dropped two spots after falling to its ex-coach John Calipari and Arkansas, 89-79, at Rupp Arena, while UConn climbed six spots to No. 19 thanks to a big win over then-No. 9 Marquette. None of Gonzaga’s other 11 nonconference foes were ranked in the poll.
Here’s a look at the rest of the AP Top 25.
1. Auburn (20-1, 8-0 SEC)
2. Duke (19-2, 11-0 ACC)
3. Alabama (19-3, 8-1 SEC)
4. Tennessee (18-4, 5-4 SEC)
5. Houston (17-4, 9-1 Big 12)
6. Florida (18-3, 5-3 SEC)
7. Purdue (17-5, 9-2 Big Ten)
8. Iowa State (17-4, 7-3 Big 12)
9. Michigan State (18-3, 9-1 Big Ten)
10. Texas A&M (17-5, 6-3 SEC)
11. Marquette (18-4, 9-2 Big East)
12. St. John’s (19-3, 10-1 Big East)
13. Texas Tech (17-4, 8-2 Big 12)
14. Kentucky (15-6, 4-4 SEC)
15. Missouri (17-4, 6-2 SEC)
16. Kansas (15-6, 6-4 Big 12)
17. Memphis (18-4, 8-1 AAC)
18. Maryland (17-5, 7-4 Big Ten)
19. UConn (16-6, 8-3 Big East)
20. Arizona (15-6, 9-1 Big 12)
21. Wisconsin (17-5, 7-4 Big Ten)
22. Mississippi State (16-4, 4-3 SEC)
23. Illinois (15-7, 7-5 Big Ten)
24. Michigan (16-5, 8-2 Big Ten)
25. Ole Miss (16-6, 5-4 SEC)
Clemson 182, Saint Mary’s 136, Louisville 86, Creighton 50, Oregon 39, UCLA 26, New Mexico 23, Drake 18, Gonzaga 11, Utah St. 8, Vanderbilt 4, Baylor 3, George Mason 3, Texas 1, Oklahoma 1.
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