Indiana Remains No. 1 In Associated Press Top 25 Poll, Gonzaga Reaches No. 2

The Indiana Hoosiers are again No. 1 on The Associated Press Top 25 poll, the team’s fourth straight week in the top slot.

The poll was announced Monday, with the Hoosiers remaining on top after beating Purdue and No. 4 Michigan State.

The consistency for Indiana came after a period of volatility for No. 1 teams early on. In four consecutive weeks, teams ranked top on the poll suffered upsets.

Aside from Indiana staying at No. 1, the poll had another significant accomplishment. Gonzaga earned the No. 2 ranking, the first time a team outside the major six conferences to be ranked in the top two since Memphis was No. 2 in the final poll of the 2007-2008 season, The Associated Press noted.

“The polls mean a lot more this time of year than they do in November, December, even January,” Gonzaga coach Mark Few said. “All of us are being judged on the true body of work. It’s definitely rewarding.”

For Few, the No. 2 ranking was validation of the work Gonzaga has done this season and over the course of the past decade.

“It establishes us as a national program, which I believe we have been for the last 10 years,” Few said. “This group has done a great job of competing at that level, winning games at the highest level.”

In taking the No. 1 spot, Indiana received all but one first-place vote from the 65 voting members. The Hoosiers have now been No. 1 for a total of 10 weeks this season.

In the AP poll, Duke moved up three spots to No. 3, followed by Michigan. Miami ranked No. 5 after suffering a loss to Wake Forest.

Indiana also ranked No. 1 in ESPN‘s power rankings poll.