With the college basketball season around the corner, AP released its annual preseason top 25 poll on Monday.
Perennial powerhouse, Duke tops the list at no. 1., after receiving 58 of 64 first-place votes from the national media panel.
“it is always an honor to be ranked No. 1,” Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “We understand that no teams have played a regular-season game at this point, so many things can and often do change throughout the course of a college basketball season. Certainly, we’re excited that people think highly of our team and the ACC as a whole.”
The Blue Devils finished its 2015 campaign 25-11.They’ll return three starters from from a team that fell in the NCAA tournament regional semifinals to Oregon last season.
Kentucky, who received two first place votes, and Kansas are ranked no. 2 and no. 3 respectively. The Wildcats finished 27-9, before losing in the regional semifinals. The Jayhawks were 33-5, falling to the eventual tournament winners, Villanova.
The defending national champions received four first place votes, making the list at no. 4.
The Atlantic Coast Conference and Big Ten are tied with five ranked teams each. The Big 12 has four.
AP Top 25 Poll:
(###) Number of first place votes
Record: 25-11
19
Record: 27-9
10
1
Record: 33-7
3
1,3147
Record: 28-6
17
54017
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