Bears, Gaels earn national recognition By Jeff Faraudo STAFF WRITER   An excellent season of college basketball in the Bay Area got some recognition Monday when the men's teams from Cal and Saint Mary's College moved into the top 25 rankings for the first time this season. The Golden Bears, 15-2 and off to their best start in 49 seasons, were voted No. 22 in the Associated Press media poll. Cal is No. 23 in the USA Today/ESPN coaches poll. The Gaels, whose 15-1 mark is their best since a school-record 16-1 start during the 1988-89 season, checked in at No. 25 in the coaches poll but didn't make the cut in the AP poll. The Bears made their first appearance in the AP poll since March 2003, when they were No. 24 before losing in the Pac-10 tournament. Cal climbed as high as No. 18 that season. "It just means we're going in the right direction," said junior guard Patrick Christopher, who was honored Monday with his second straight Pac-10 Player of the Week award after totaling 49 points in wins at Washington State and Washington. "We're more concerned with long-term goals. "Somebody on the staff mentioned to me you can't win the championship in January. That's kind of been the motto. But it's our first time being in the top 25, and it's a good feeling." Cal plays Saturday at Stanford in coach Mike Montgomery's return to the school where he formerly coached. Saint Mary's spent eight weeks in the coaches poll last season and six ranked by the AP. Coach Randy Bennett said that experience will help his players keep things in perspective. "Because they've been there, they'll be able to handle it and roll with it better," he said. "Last year we were so excited. I don't think we're too big (now) to be excited about being ranked, but I think we'll be more level-headed." Bennett said what he learned from last season's ranking was the exposure reaches out to everyone from the NCAA Tournament selection committee to potential recruits. "It shines a light on your program that can help in a lot of ways," he said. "I didn't realize that until last year. More people are paying attention to what you're doing."   The Gaels play host to Loyola Marymount on Thursday at 6 p.m.   Contact Jeff Faraudo at jeffscribe@aol.com.