Tuesday, December 8, 2015

Gold Rush climb to 17th, improve poll streak to 52


NEW ORLEANS — Eight victories in the first 11 games, including a 4-0 record against NCAA Division II opponents, helped Xavier University of Louisiana climb into a tie for 17th Tuesday in the NAIA Division I Men's Basketball Coaches' Top 25 Poll.
     
The Gold Rush, 19th in the preseason, share the position with Martin Methodist. Xavier is in the top 25 for the 52nd consecutive time — the longest active streak in the division — and the 65th time in the last 66 polls.
     
Xavier defeated NCAA D2 opponents Spring Hill, Miles, LeMoyne-Owen and Clark Atlanta by an average of 11 1/2 points. All the victories were at home, where the Gold Rush are 8-0 this season.
     
Xavier is one of two Gulf Coast Athletic Conference teams in the top 25. The other is Talladega, which dropped from third to 11th. For the first time since Dec. 10, 2013, four GCAC teams received votes. Dillard and Tougaloo were among the "others receiving votes."
     
Unbeaten Pikeville received 9-of-10 first-place votes and replaced defending champion Dalton State at No. 1. There are nine top-25 teams which weren't ranked in the preseason, including No. 6 William Penn, which competed in NAIA Division II last season.
     
The rankings are the first of the regular season. The next rankings will be announced Jan. 5.
     
The XU men are taking fall-semester final exams this week. They'll resume their schedule at 7 p.m. Saturday against William Carey in Hattiesburg, Miss. The next home game will start at 5 p.m. Dec. 29 against LSU-Shreveport in the Gold Rush Holiday Classic at the Convocation Center.

NAIA Division I Men's Basketball Coaches' Top 25 Poll
(first-place votes in parentheses — records through Dec. 6)

RankTeamRecordPointsLast
1Pikeville (9)10-02502
2Georgetown (Ky.) (1)11-02376
3Freed-Hardeman9-12339
4Arizona Christian10-12274
5Columbia (Mo.)10-021916
6William Penn11-1210RV
7Lewis-Clark State10-119613
8LSU-Alexandria8-21855
9Dalton State6-21841
10Hope International7-11807
11Talladega12-31783
12Wayland Baptist8-117512
13MidAmerica Nazarene8-214521
14Westmont6-212617
15Southwestern Assemblies of God8-211824
16Carroll (Mont.)6-2117RV
17-tieXavier8-311319
17-tieMartin Methodist7-311311
19Lindsey Wilson9-2109NR
20Texas Wesleyan7-2102RV
21Vanguard7-090RV
22Wiley6-282NR
23Langston6-380RV
24Avila8-361NR
25Montana State-Northern8-254NR

Dropped from rankings:  No. 8 Evangel, No. 10 Mid-America Christian, No. 14 (tie) William Carey, No. 14 (tie) LSU-Shreveport, No. 18 Campbellsville, No. 20 Philander Smith, No. 22 Benedictine (Kan.), No. 23 Montana Western, No. 25 Our Lady of the Lake

Others receiving votes:  Auburn Montgomery 41, Campbellsville 32, Mid-America Christian 26, Dillard 21, Biola 17, Mobile 15, Park 9, Tougaloo 8, William Woods 3


Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAgold.com
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
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