Leading them will be no-nonsense coach Bo Ryan and Frank Kaminsky, the 6-foot-10 senior who skipped a shot at the NBA for another chance at an NCAA title.
“I don’t see our guys talking any differently or acting any differently on the practice floor simply because other people are mentioning that we might be pretty good,” Ryan said.
The same thing is being said about the Kentucky Wildcats — just like last season.
Preseason Top 25
The top 25 teams in The Associated Press’ preseason 2014-15 college basketball poll, with first-place votes in parentheses, 2013-14 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 Prv
1, Kentucky (52) 29-11 1,604 —
2, Arizona (5) 33-5 1,518 4
3, Wisconsin (8) 30-8 1,483 12
4, Duke 26-9 1,415 8
5, Kansas 25-10 1,346 10
6, North Carolina 24-10 1,274 19
7, Florida 36-3 1,153 1
8, Louisville 31-6 1,114 5
9, Virginia 30-7 1,090 3
10, Texas 24-11 1,061 —
11, Wichita St. 35-1 1,027 2
12, Villanova 29-5 885 6
13, Gonzaga 29-7 840 —
14, Iowa St. 28-8 781 9
15, VCU 26-9 574 24
16, San Diego St. 31-5 560 13
17, UConn 32-8 552 18
18, Michigan St. 29-9 521 11
19, Oklahoma 23-10 426 21
20, Ohio St. 25-10 340 22
21, Nebraska 19-13 309 —
22, SMU 27-10 285 —
23, Syracuse 28-6 178 14
24, Michigan 28-9 167 7
25, Harvard 27-5 98 —
25, Utah 21-12 98 —
Others receiving votes: Stanford 71, Iowa 58, Colorado 57, UCLA 35, Minnesota 34, Kansas St. 27, Arkansas 21, Pittsburgh 20, Memphis 15, NC State 14, Louisiana Tech 9, Cincinnati 8, LSU 8, George Washington 7, Dayton 6, Notre Dame 6, Oklahoma St. 6, Florida St. 5, Georgetown 5, Illinois 3, Maryland 3, BYU 2, UNLV 2, Baylor 1, Stephen F. Austin 1, UTEP 1, West Virginia 1.
Ballots Online: http://collegebasketball.ap.org/