Alabama basketball rises in polls after back-to-back wins over ranked teams

A second straight victory over a ranked team saw Alabama basketball continue to climb in both national polls released Monday. The Crimson Tide moved up three spots to No. 6 in The Associated Press Top 25 and improved one spot to No. 8 while also earning a first-place vote in the Ferris Mowers Coaches Poll. This is the first time since January of 2003 that Alabama received a first-place vote from a major college basketball poll.

Alabama (8-1) entered Monday at No. 11 in the NET rankings used by the NCAA tournament selection committee. The Tide is 2-0 in Quad 1 games, beating Gonzaga in Seattle last week before taking down Houston in Tuscaloosa, Ala., over the weekend.

Baylor took over the top spot in both polls, earning all 61 first-place votes in the AP top 25 and 30 of 32 of the first-place votes in the coaches poll. Duke joined Alabama as the other team to earn a first-place vote in the coaches poll.

Alabama will host Baylor on Jan. 29 as part of the SEC/Big 12 Challenge. The Tide will also play No. 23 Colorado State in Birmingham, Ala., on Dec. 21.

Alabama is the highest-ranked SEC team in both polls. The AP top 25 also includes No. 13 Auburn, No. 18 Tennessee, No. 19 LSU, No. 21 Kentucky and No. 24 Arkansas. The coaches poll includes No. 14 Auburn, No. 18 Tennessee, No. 19 Arkansas, No. 20 LSU and No. 21 Kentucky.

Alabama’s next game comes Tuesday night as it travels to Memphis (5-4) for an 8 p.m. CT tipoff. The game will be televised on ESPN.