Kansas tops preseason AP hoops poll

Kansas is the runaway choice for No. 1 in The Associated Press' preseason college basketball poll.

The Jayhawks return all five starters and welcome one of the country's top recruiting classes. They are coming off a 27-8 season that ended in the third round of the NCAA tournament.

Kansas received 55 first-place votes Thursday from the 65-member national media panel to easily outdistance Michigan State, which was No. 1 on five ballots. The Spartans return seven of their top nine scorers from last season's national runner-up squad.

Texas, Kentucky and Villanova round out the top five. North Carolina, a unanimous preseason No. 1 last season that won the national title, was sixth. Purdue, West Virginia, Duke and Tennessee complete the top 10.


-- The top 25 teams in The Associated Press' preseason 2009-10 college basketball poll, with first-place votes in parentheses, final 2008-09 records, total points based on 25 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 25th-place vote and last year's final ranking:

Record Pts Fin
1. Kansas (55) 27-8 1,612 14
2. Michigan St. (5) 31-7 1,515 8
3. Texas (1) 23-12 1,397 __
4. Kentucky (3) 22-14 1,372 __
5. Villanova 30-8 1,347 11
6. North Carolina (1) 34-4 1,320 2
7. Purdue 27-10 1,284 17
8. West Virginia 23-12 1,115 __
9. Duke 30-7 1,064 6
10. Tennessee 21-13 897 __
11. Butler 26-6 864 22
12. Connecticut 31-5 844 5
13. California 22-11 800 __
14. Washington 26-9 776 15
15. Michigan 21-14 578 __
16. Ohio St. 22-11 465 __
17. Oklahoma 30-6 410 7
18. Mississippi St. 23-13 393 __
19. Louisville 31-6 335 1
20. Georgetown 16-15 326 __
21. Dayton 27-8 318 __
22. Georgia Tech 12-19 301 __
23. Illinois 24-10 282 __
24. Clemson 23-9 217 24
25. Minnesota 22-11 172 __
Others receiving votes: Maryland 171, Siena 112, Notre Dame 107, Florida St. 92, Vanderbilt 90, Syracuse 83, Oklahoma St. 65, UCLA 63, Florida 53, Wake Forest 50, Xavier 42, Gonzaga 37, South Carolina 28, Kansas St. 24, BYU 21, N. Iowa 16, Tulsa 16, Mississippi 15, Texas A&M 10, Missouri 8, Boston College 6, Pittsburgh 4, Utah St. 2, Va. Commonwealth 2, W. Kentucky 2, Holy Cross 1, Old Dominion 1.