PHILADELPHIA (02/10/03) - Finally! After being on the cusp of the Top 25 polls for the better part of the season, the Saint Joseph's University men's basketball team finally cracked through, earning the #25 spot in this week's Associated Press poll. It marked the first time in program history that Saint Joseph's has been nationally-ranked by the Associated Press in three consecutive seasons. "This is an indication that people are recognizing how well this team has played to date," stated SJU head coach Phil Martelli, who has guided the Hawks to four Top 25 appearances over the last seven years. "I am delighted for our players and our fans, but it really will not change anything. It will not stop us from working as hard as we can to improve every day." In 2000-01, SJU cracked the Top 25 in February, moving as high as #18 nationally before finishing at #22 in the final Associated Press poll. The following year, with four starters back from its NCAA Tournament team, the Hawks earned their first preseason ranking (#10) by the Associated Press since the 1965-66 campaign. Martelli's second season on Hawk Hill, 1996-97, marked the first time SJU had been ranked by the Associated Press since March 6, 1973 when that Hawk squad, coached by Jack McKinney, was ranked 18th nationally. The 1996-97 Hawks were ranked as high as 18th by the Associated Press before climbing to its highest ranking, 12th, in the final AP poll. In all, SJU has been ranked eight times in the 54-year history of the Associated Press poll. The Hawks were ranked three times during the coaching career of the legendary Dr. Jack Ramsay. SJU had a five-week run during the 1958-59 campaign, ranking as high as 14th in its first stint in the poll. Arguably the best two-year run in SJU history, the Hawks finished the 1964-65 season ranked third in the nation, the highest ranking ever for a SJU team by the Associated Press, and fifth in the nation the following year, 1965-66. Worth noting is that the Associated Press only ranked a Top 10 from 1960-61 through 1967-68 which is a main reason why some of Ramsay's strong Hawk teams, including the 1961 Final Four squad, never cracked the polls.