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The Gonzaga Bulldogs rose two spots in the coaches poll to No. 22, but are still just outside the top 25 conversation for AP voters in the latest polls released on Monday, Jan. 4.
Gonzaga impressed enough with its incredibly close games against Santa Clara and San Francisco last week, because apparently coaches like gritty road wins. The AP voters were less impressed, and Gonzaga continues to hold down the team receiving the most votes without actually being ranked.
Other teams to note include SMU, which continues to climb the AP poll because the Mustangs refuse to lose. Also of note, Saint Mary's is creeping its way into national discussions. The Gaels are getting a lot of love, especially by Ken Pomeroy, who has them ranked higher than the Zags.
Saint Mary's had two easy wins over BYU and San Diego at home, but it also highlights the biggest problem with Saint Mary's. Despite being a really good team offensively, the Gael's strength of schedule is one of the absolute worst in the entire country--ranked No. 332 by Pomeroy. So, do the Gael's deserve this praise? Who knows...
AP Poll
| RK | TEAM | RECORD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kansas Jayhawks (44) | 12-1 | 1,598 |
| 2 | Oklahoma Sooners (21) | 12-0 | 1,574 |
| 3 | Maryland Terrapins | 13-1 | 1,459 |
| 4 | Virginia Cavaliers | 12-1 | 1,409 |
| 5 | Michigan State Spartans | 14-1 | 1,400 |
| 6 | North Carolina Tar Heels | 13-2 | 1,275 |
| 7 | Arizona Wildcats | 13-1 | 1,126 |
| 8 | Providence Friars | 14-1 | 1,108 |
| 9 | Kentucky Wildcats | 11-2 | 1,039 |
| 10 | Xavier Musketeers | 13-1 | 1,001 |
| 11 | Villanova Wildcats | 12-2 | 979 |
| 12 | Miami-Florida Hurricanes | 12-1 | 921 |
| 13 | Iowa State Cyclones | 11-2 | 844 |
| 14 | Duke Blue Devils | 12-2 | 830 |
| 15 | SMU Mustangs | 13-0 | 731 |
| 16 | Louisville Cardinals | 12-2 | 568 |
| 17 | West Virginia Mountaineers | 12-1 | 558 |
| 18 | Butler Bulldogs | 11-3 | 516 |
| 19 | Iowa Hawkeyes | 11-3 | 456 |
| 20 | Purdue Boilermakers | 13-2 | 450 |
| 21 | Texas A&M Aggies | 11-2 | 420 |
| 22 | South Carolina Gamecocks | 13-0 | 286 |
| 23 | Connecticut Huskies | 10-3 | 107 |
| 24 | Pittsburgh Panthers | 12-1 | 103 |
| 25 | Dayton Flyers | 11-2 | 100 |
| Others receiving votes: Gonzaga 61, California 54, Texas Tech 40, George Washington 38, Saint Mary's 23, Baylor 22, Oregon State 4, Colorado 4, Seton Hall 4, Saint Joseph's 3, Wichita St 3, Utah 3, Cincinnati 2, Indiana 2, Michigan 2, Akron 1, Oregon 1 | |||
USA Today Coaches Poll
| RANK | TEAM | RECORD | PTS | PREV |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oklahoma (20) | 12-0 | 781 | 2 |
| 2 | Kansas (11) | 12-1 | 769 | 3 |
| 3 | Maryland | 13-1 | 732 | 4 |
| 4 | Virginia | 12-1 | 698 | 5 |
| 5 | Michigan St (1) | 14-1 | 676 | 1 |
| 6 | Arizona | 13-1 | 618 | 7 |
| 7 | North Carolina | 13-2 | 592 | 8 |
| 8 | Kentucky | 11-2 | 526 | 11 |
| 9 | Providence | 14-1 | 509 | 13 |
| 10 | Duke | 12-2 | 487 | 12 |
| 11 | Miami-Florida | 12-1 | 444 | 15 |
| 12 | Xavier | 13-1 | 442 | 6 |
| 13 | Villanova | 12-2 | 434 | 16 |
| 14 | Iowa St. | 11-2 | 402 | 9 |
| 15 | West Virginia | 12-1 | 350 | 17 |
| 16 | Louisville | 12-2 | 282 | 18 |
| 17 | Texas A&M | 11-2 | 265 | 19 |
| 18 | Purdue | 13-2 | 248 | 14 |
| 19 | Butler | 11-3 | 238 | 10 |
| 20 | South Carolina | 13-0 | 232 | 20 |
| 21 | Pittsburgh | 12-1 | 121 | 25 |
| 22 | Gonzaga | 12-3 | 112 | 24 |
| 23 | Iowa | 11-3 | 110 | NR |
| 24 | Connecticut | 10-3 | 81 | 26 |
| 25 | Baylor | 10-3 | 61 | 21 |
| Others Receiving Votes: California 52; Dayton 28; George Washington 23; Cincinnati 19; Saint Mary's 18; Texas Tech 17; Vanderbilt 6; Oregon 6; Utah 5; Indiana 5; Colorado 4; Oregon State 3; Southern California 2; Houston 2. | ||||