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College basketball rankings: Duke tops preseason polls, to the surprise of no one

Duke’s mix of proven veterans and top freshmen have the program atop of the first poll of the college basketball season.

By Ricky O'Donnell
NCAA Basketball: NCAA Tournament-Yale vs Duke Mark L. Baer-USA TODAY Sports

Duke is the consensus No. 1 team in America at the start of the new college basketball season. The Blue Devils are on top of both the AP Poll and the Coaches Poll. Mike Krzyzewski’s team received 58-of-65 votes for No. 1 in the AP Poll and 27-of-32 votes in the USA Today Coaches Poll, which debuted last Monday.

There is some disparity in the top five between the two polls after Duke even though the teams — Kansas, Kentucky, Villanova and Oregon -- are the same. Kentucky is No. 2 in the AP Poll but only No. 4 in the Coaches poll. Kansas is No. 2 in the Coaches Poll but No. 3 in the AP Poll. Kentucky is the only team in the top five who failed to reach the second weekend of the NCAA tournament last season.

The ACC and Big Ten each have five schools in the top 25 of the Coaches Poll. The ACC also had six other teams receive votes that failed to make the top 25. Duke has been considered the favorite for preseason No. 1 since last season ended because an enticing mix of veterans (led by guard Grayson Allen) and the top-ranked recruiting class in the country.

For in-depth previews of college basketball’s best teams, check out the SB Nation top 25 countdown for the 2016-17 season.

Here’s the AP Poll:

RK TEAM RECORD PTS
1 Duke (58) 0-0 1,612
2 Kentucky (2) 0-0 1,479
3 Kansas 0-0 1,476
4 Villanova (4) 0-0 1,465
5 Oregon (1) 0-0 1,343
6 North Carolina 0-0 1,314
7 Xavier 0-0 1,167
8 Virginia 0-0 1,149
9 Wisconsin 0-0 1,135
10 Arizona 0-0 1,004
11 Indiana 0-0 917
12 Michigan State 0-0 903
13 Louisville 0-0 755
14 Gonzaga 0-0 699
15 Purdue 0-0 672
16 UCLA 0-0 540
17 Saint Mary's 0-0 512
18 Connecticut 0-0 504
19 Syracuse 0-0 464
20 West Virginia 0-0 360
21 Texas 0-0 250
22 Creighton 0-0 231
23 Rhode Island 0-0 199
24 Iowa State 0-0 168
25 Maryland 0-0 144
Others receiving votes: Cincinnati 110, Dayton 98, Florida State 88, California 74, San Diego State 48, Miami 35, NC State 29, Butler 21, Wichita St 21, Ohio State 18, Virginia Tech 18, Florida 18, Texas A&M 14, Mississippi State 14, Oklahoma 11, Colorado 10, Michigan 8, Monmouth 7, Notre Dame 6, Washington 5, Seton Hall 5, Princeton 2, Ohio 1, Vanderbilt 1, Harvard 1

Here’s a look at the first Coaches Poll of the year:

  1. Duke
  2. Kansas
  3. Villanova
  4. Kentucky
  5. Oregon
  6. North Carolina
  7. Virginia
  8. Xavier
  9. Michigan State
  10. Wisconsin
  11. Arizona
  12. Indiana
  13. Gonzaga
  14. Louisville
  15. Purdue
  16. UConn
  17. Syracuse
  18. West Virginia
  19. St. Mary’s
  20. UCLA
  21. Maryland
  22. Texas
  23. Creighton
  24. Rhode Island
  25. Cincinnati

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