The college basketball season begins in just a few weeks. In anticipation, we bring you the USA TODAY Sports Preseason Coaches Poll, presented in partnership with the National Association of Basketball Coaches.
While preseason rankings often prove to be an imperfect measure of future success, they do provide a glimpse into the programs viewed as the most talented. Therefore, one could assume that many well-known schools are mentioned in the top 25. That’s true, but there are also some relatively up-and-coming programs that made a big splash in March Madness a few months ago.
Kansas, one of those perennial powers, will open the year at No. 1. The Jayhawks were voted first by 23 of the 32 panelists. It will be the first preseason No. 1 ranking for Kansas since 2018 and the fifth since USA TODAY began conducting the coaches’ poll in the 1991-92 season.
Purdue starts at No. 2, its highest preseason ranking ever in the coaches’ poll. The Boilermakers received five first-place votes, with three additional first-place nominations going to Duke. The Blue Devils start at No. 3, followed by Michigan State at No. 4.
TOP 25: Complete the USA TODAY Sports preseason men’s basketball poll
OUTLOOK: Detailed previews for every team in the preseason top 25
The final first-place vote went to defending champion Connecticut, who will start at No. 5 overall. All of last season’s Final Four teams are participating in the preseason poll, led by the Huskies. That group includes Florida Atlantic, which was surprisingly seeded No. 9 in the region on the final weekend of the season. The Owls were ranked No. 9 in their first-ever preseason rankings. The other Final Four participants, Miami (Florida) and runner-up San Diego State, open at No. 13 and No. 15, respectively.
Kansas tops a list of four representatives from the expanded Big 12 in the preseason rankings. The list also includes league newcomer Houston at No. 6, as well as No. 17 Baylor and No. 18 Texas. The Big East also holds four spots, with No. 7 Marquette and No. 8 Creighton along with UConn in the top 10. The SEC has the most teams in the top 25 with five, led by No. 10 Tennessee.