Zigging and Zagging: Gonzaga Becomes 9th Mid-Major Entering Tourney #1
A weekly ritual began on January 18, 1949, when the Associated Press announced the results of the first weekly basketball poll. Cliff Clavin might be the only individual who knows that St. Louis was ranked atop the initial poll. The Billikens, who have never been a member of a power league, placed third in the final rankings.
We've traversed from one mid-level school all the way to another (Gonzaga). After the Zags won the WCC Tournament, they became the 9th mid-major school entering the NCAA playoffs ranked #1.
The term "mid-major" annoys some loyalists. But following is a chronological list assessing what happened to nationally top-ranked teams that haven't been members of one of the generally-accepted power conferences since AP national rankings were introduced in the late 1940s:
| Season | Date(s) | Mid-Major Ranked #1 | Score | Team(s) Upsetting #1 | Final AP Ranking (Record) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1948-49 | 1-20-49 | St. Louis | 29-27 in OT | at Oklahoma A&M | 3rd (22-4) |
| 1949-50 | 3-4-50 | Holy Cross | 61-54 | at Columbia | 4th (27-4) |
| 1949-50 | 3-28-50 | Bradley | 71-68 | CCNY at New York in NCAA Tournament final | 1st (32-5) |
| 1950-51 | 12-9-50 | CCNY | 54-37 | Missouri | unranked |
| 1950-51 | 1-11-51 | Bradley | 68-59 | at St. John's | 6th (32-6) |
| 1952-53 | 1-17-53 | La Salle | 68-62 | at DePaul | 6th (25-3) |
| 1953-54 | 2-26/27-54 | Duquesne | 66-52 & 64-54 | at Cincinnati and Dayton | 5th (26-3) |
| 1954-55 | 12-18-54 | La Salle | 79-69 | Utah | 3rd (26-5) |
| 1955-56 | San Francisco (29-0) was ranked #1 entire season. | ||||
| 1963-64 | 12-27-63 | Loyola (Ill.) | 69-58 | Georgetown at Philadelphia in Quaker City Tournament | 8th (22-6) |
| 1964-65 | 12-14-64 | Wichita State | 87-85 | Michigan at Detroit | unranked (21-9) |
| 1967-68 | 3-22/23-68 | Houston | 101-69 & 89-85 | UCLA and Ohio State at Final Four in Los Angeles | 1st (31-2) |
| 1978-79 | 3-26-79 | Indiana State | 75-64 | Michigan State at Salt Lake City in NCAA Tournament final | 1st (33-1) |
| 1982-83 | 1-10-83 | Memphis State | 69-56 | at Virginia Tech | 17th (23-8) |
| 1982-83 | 2-24/27-83 | UNLV | 86-78 & 87-78 | at Cal State Fullerton and West Virginia | 6th (28-3) |
| 1982-83 | 4-4-83 | Houston | 54-52 | North Carolina State at Albuquerque in NCAA Tournament final | 1st (31-3) |
| 1986-87 | 1-17-87 | UNLV | 89-88 | at Oklahoma | 1st (37-2) |
| 1986-87 | 3-28-87 | UNLV | 97-93 | Indiana at New Orleans in NCAA Tournament national semifinals | 1st (37-2) |
| 1987-88 | 3-26-88 | Temple | 63-53 | Duke at East Rutherford, NJ, in NCAA Tournament East Regional final | 1st (32-2) |
| 1990-91 | 3-30-91 | UNLV | 79-77 | Duke at Indianapolis in NCAA Tournament national semifinals | 1st (34-1) |
| 1994-95 | 12-3-94 | Massachusetts | 81-75 | Kansas at Anaheim | 7th (29-5) |
| 1994-95 | 2-4-95 | Massachusetts | 78-75 | at George Washington | 7th (29-5) |
| 1995-96 | 2-24-96 | Massachusetts | 86-76 | George Washington | 1st (35-2) |
| 1995-96 | 3-30-96 | Massachusetts | 81-74 | Kentucky at East Rutherford, NJ, in NCAA Tournament national semifinals | 1st (35-2) |
| 2003-04 | 3-11-04 | St. Joseph's | 87-67 | Xavier at Dayton in Atlantic 10 Tournament quarterfinals | 5th (30-2) |
| 2007-08 | 2-23-08 | Memphis | 66-62 | Tennessee | 2nd (38-2) |