On the heels of a victory in Chicago over then-No. 7 Kentucky, the Kansas men’s basketball team moved up one spot to No. 3 in this week’s Associated Press poll.
The top two spots remained the same, with Duke (4-0) and Arizona (3-0) staying put, and Kansas leapfrogged Michigan State (2-1), which fell from No. 3 to No. 4 following its loss to Duke in Game 1 of the Champions Classic last week in the Windy City.
Kentucky (3-1), meanwhile, fell for the second consecutive week, dropping to No. 8 after its loss to KU and an uninspired home victory over East Tennessee State last Friday night.
Kansas (3-0) returns to action this week for a pair of games, starting with Tuesday’s home matchup with Texas Southern and a Friday night clash with Oakland at Allen Fieldhouse.
In all, the latest AP poll features three teams from the Big 12 Conference ranked in the Top 25 and four others who are receiving votes.
As has been the norm, Kansas is far and away the torch bearer for the Big 12, with the Jayhawks holding down a spot in the Top 5 and Baylor and West Virginia coming at No. 22 and No. 23.
Complete AP Preseason Poll:
1 – Duke (54)
2 – Arizona (11)
3 – Kansas
4 – Michigan State
5 – Villanova
6 – Wichita State
7 – Florida
8 – Kentucky
9 – North Carolina
10 – USC
11 – Miami, Fla.
12 – Cincinnati
13 – Notre Dame
14 – Minnesota
15 – Xavier
16 – Texas A&M
17 – Gonzaga
18 – Purdue
19 – Louisville
20 – Seton Hall
21 – Saint Mary’s
22 – Baylor
23 – West Virginia
24 – UCLA
25 – Alabama
Others receiving votes: Virginia 93, Texas Tech 81, TCU 36, Northwestern 20, Nevada 19, Providence 11, Maryland 9, Michigan 9, Texas 7, Creighton 6, Oklahoma 5, Temple 4, Arkansas 3, UT-Arlington 2, Rhode Island 1, Belmont 1, Stephen F. Austin 1.
