The AP Top 25 preseason men’s college basketball rankings were released Monday with Kansas leading all teams headed into the 2023-24 season.
Here is the AP Top 25, along with some initial reactions and takeaways from the rankings:
|
RANK |
SCHOOL |
POINTS |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kansas(46) | 1548 |
| 2 | Duke (11) | 1466 |
| 3 | Purdue (3) | 1436 |
| 4 | Michigan State (1) | 1346 |
| 5 | Marquette | 1283 |
| 6 | Connecticut (2) | 1243 |
| 7 | Houston | 1117 |
| 8 | Creighton | 1099 |
| 9 | Tennessee | 1032 |
| 10 | Florida Atlantic | 1011 |
| 11 | Gonzaga | 830 |
| 12 | Arizona | 776 |
| 13 | Miami (FL) | 750 |
| 14 | Arkansas | 685 |
| 15 | Texas A&M | 597 |
| 16 | Kentucky | 530 |
| 17 | San Diego State | 529 |
| 18 | Texas | 493 |
| 19 | North Carolina | 474 |
| 20 | Baylor | 431 |
| 21 | Southern Cal | 427 |
| 22 | Villanova | 395 |
| 23 | Saint Mary’s | 335 |
| 24 | Alabama | 163 |
| 25 | Illinois | 104 |
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Kansas is No. 1
Kansas takes the top spot in the preseason poll after a disappointing second-round exit last year. The Jayhawks are the preseason No. 1 for the fourth time, tying Kentucky for the fourth-most appearances atop the preseason poll all-time.
Kansas picked up one of the biggest transfers this offseason in former Michigan center Hunter Dickson. He’ll fellow newcomer in freshman Johnny Furphy. Those two, plus returning talent like Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year Dajuan Harris have expectations high in Lawrence.
National Player of the Year candidates lead the top of the poll
Zach Edey is the reigning National Player of the Year, and he’s a large part of the reason No. 3 Purdue opens the season near the top of the poll. Edey is the second straight award winner to return to school in as many years, following Kentucky’s Oscar Tshiebwe last year.
Elsewhere, No. 2 Duke has a player of the year candidate of its own in Kyle Filipowski, one of the best power forwards in the country. With Filipowski in the frontcourt and Tyrese Proctor and Jeremy Roach in the backcourt, the Blue Devils look poised for a classic tournament run.
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Final Four teams scattered throughout the poll
No team seeded higher than No. 4 made the Final Four last year, but last year’s teams are showing high in the preseason AP poll. Defending national champion UConn is the highest-ranked Final Four team at No. 6, with center Donovan Clingan expected to replace the impact of Final Four Most Outstanding Player Adama Sanogo.
No. 10 Florida Atlantic still has NCAA tournament star Johnell Davis on the roster and has its highest ranking ever, while fellow South Florida Final Four team No. 13 Miami returns Nijel Pack. The lowest-ranked Final Four team from last year is No. 17 San Diego State as it only returns two starters in Lamont Butler and Darrion Trammell.
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Conference breakdown
The SEC leads all conferences with five teams ranked in the preseason AP Poll. Here’s a breakdown of the preseason AP poll by conference:
| No. of Teams Ranked | Conference |
|---|---|
| 5 | SEC |
| 4 | Big East, Big Ten |
| 3 | ACC, Big 12, Big Ten |
| 2 | Pac-12, West Coast |
| 1 | America, Mountain West |
Stan Becton joined NCAA.com in 2021 and has since served as an FCS, track and field, cross country and HBCU beat reporter. He has covered numerous NCAA championship events, including the FCS Championship, DI Track & Field Championships and Men’s Frozen Four. Additionally, he has covered the 2022 College Football Playoff’s Peach Bowl and HBCU sporting events like the Celebration Bowl and Legacy Classic. Stan graduated from Carnegie Mellon University, earning a degree in Professional Writing and playing football as a five-year letterman. You can follow him on Twitter @stan_becton.
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