Gonzaga and UCLA stay 1-2 in AP poll, Duke climbs to No. 5 ahead of Friday’s showdown

LAS VEGAS – It’s officially No. 1 Gonzaga vs. No. 2 UCLA leading into Tuesday’s marquee matchup at T-Mobile Arena. And more history awaits the Zags on Friday.

The Zags and Bruins remain solidly entrenched in the top two spots in the AP poll released Monday. Gonzaga received 55 first-place votes, UCLA five and No. 3 Purdue one.

Gonzaga faces Central Michigan on Monday night before turning its attention to the Bruins. It’ll be the first time the Zags have played in an AP 1-vs.-2 contest. UCLA has a 5-4 record in those contests, the last time coming in 1976, according to AP poll archives.

The Zags will remain in Las Vegas to face Duke, which climbed two spots to No. 5, on Friday. Gonzaga will become the first AP No. 1 to play a pair of top-five, non-conference opponents in the same week of the regular season since Kentucky in 1954, according to ESPN Stats and Information.

Gonzaga, which handled No. 5 Texas 86-74 on Nov. 13, has yet another top-10 showdown looming when it faces Alabama on Dec. 4 at the Battle in Seattle. Alabama shares 10th with SEC rival Kentucky. Texas is currently No. 8.

BYU, picked second behind Gonzaga in the WCC preseason poll, moved into the rankings at No. 18 after crushing No. 12 Oregon 81-49 last week in Portland. The Ducks dropped out of the top 25.

San Francisco received one vote.

GU also faces Texas Tech, which received 26 points, 10th among teams receiving votes, on Dec. 18 in Phoenix.

Arizona, led by former Gonzaga assistant coach Tommy Lloyd, cracked the rankings at No. 17 after pounding No. 4 Michigan 80-62 on Monday at T-Mobile Arena.

Lloyd is the first coach in Division I history to win his first five games by an average of 30 points and knock off an AP top-five opponent.

“Arizona basketball earns everything it gets and that’s the way we want it,” Lloyd said after Monday’s win. “We don’t want anything given to us. The ranking, you know what, (the players) might find out Monday and Tuesday that coach isn’t as nice as they think because I’ve been ranked before a lot.

“I know the journey is about getting better week by week. We have a bunch of things to get better at and get ready for Saturday’s game (vs. Sacramento State).”

In the first regular-season USA Today coaches poll, No. 1 Gonzaga received 30 of 32 first-place votes. UCLA was second with two first-place votes. Duke is No. 6 and Alabama No. 9. 

BYU debuted at No. 18. Arizona entered the rankings at No. 19. Texas Tech had 68 points and San Francisco received two.