Men's college basketball rankings: Gonzaga jumps to No. 15 in AP Top 25 poll (12/12/22)

The Zags moved up three spots following their wins over Kent State and Washington

The Gonzaga Bulldogs rose to No. 15 in the latest Associated Press Top 25 Poll released on Monday following yet another wild week of college hoops across the country.

With then-No. 1 Houston’s loss to Alabama on Saturday, Purdue leapfrogged its way to take the top spot in the rankings for the first time this season. The Boilermakers received 27 first-place votes with victories over Nebraska and Hofstra last week and convincing wins over No. 12 Duke and No. 15 Gonzaga at the Phil Knight Legacy tournament.

No. 2 Virginia and No. 3 UConn follow suit in the poll, while No. 4 Alabama jumped four spots to crack the top five and became the second team since 1990 to defeat two No. 1-ranked teams in the same regular season with its road win over the Cougars.

Gonzaga faces off against the Crimson Tide in Birmingham, Alabama on Saturday to conclude the neutral site series the two programs agreed upon prior to the 2021-22 season. In the first-ever meeting at the Battle in Seattle, Jaden Shackelford’s 28 points powered Nate Oats’ squad to an upset win over the Zags, who trailed by as many as 18 points in the second half.

No. 17 Mississippi State, one of the four unbeaten teams in the poll along with the top three, moved up six spots to mark the biggest rise in the latest poll, while No. 19 Auburn’s loss to Memphis cost the Tigers eight spots.

Out West, Saint Mary’s remained just outside of the top 25 after receiving 15 votes. The Gaels came up short of a statement win over Houston last week, yet home wins over Missouri State and San Diego State weren’t enough to propel them into the rankings.

According to the NET rankings, a measurement used by the NCAA to determine quality of wins, UConn is the top program in the land, followed by Houston, Purdue and Tennessee. Gonzaga, which has played the most combined Quad 1 and Quad 2 opponents in the country, is ranked No. 19 behind No. 16 Saint Mary’s. Only Purdue has played as many Quad 1 teams as the Zags, while boasting a perfect 5-0 record.

Here’s the full AP Top 25 poll for Week 6 of the 2022-23 season:

AP TOP 25 POLL

1. Purdue 1,508 (27)

2. Virginia 1,476 (19)

3. UConn 1,466 (15)

4. Alabama 1,326

5. Houston 1,224

6. Tennessee 1,189 (1)

7. Texas 1,173

8. Kansas 1,165

9. Arizona 1,096

10. Arkansas 1,029

11. Baylor 881

12. Duke 840

13. Kentucky 688

14. Indiana 622

15. Gonzaga 621

16. UCLA 606

17. Mississippi State 501

18. Illinois 487

19. Auburn 453

20. Maryland 414

21. TCU 270

22. Wisconsin 255

23. Ohio State 209

24. Virginia Tech 109

25. Miami (FL) 100

Others receiving votes: Memphis 74, Charleston 64, Arizona State 39, Marquette 39, Iowa State 39, UNLV 27, Xavier 26, Iowa 25, West Virginia 20, Saint Mary's 15, Texas Tech 14, San Diego State 14, New Mexico 12, Utah 12, Creighton 11, Michigan State 5, Utah State 4, Kansas State 2