Mon Oct 14 22:00:00 UTC 2024: ## Kansas Starts Season as Top-Ranked Team in Men’s College Basketball
**Lawrence, Kansas** – The Kansas Jayhawks are back on top, claiming the No. 1 spot in the Associated Press preseason men’s basketball poll for the fifth time in program history. The Jayhawks received 30 first-place votes from the national media panel, edging out Alabama and two-time defending champion UConn.
Kansas, despite a disappointing 2022-23 season, enters the new campaign with a retooled roster featuring a strong transfer class that includes AJ Storr, Zeke Mayo, and Rylan Griffen. The team will be led by returning stars Hunter Dickinson, Dajuan Harris Jr., and KJ Adams Jr., all key members of the 2022 national title squad.
“We welcome being No. 1, especially with our returning players like Hunter, Dajuan and KJ, and then you add the players we brought in,” said head coach Bill Self. “The goal is to be No. 1 at the end of the season, and though we welcome this, it is not the end goal.”
The Big 12 conference is expected to be incredibly competitive this season, with three teams (Kansas, Baylor, and Iowa State) ranking among the top five in the preseason poll. The conference boasts five teams in the top 10, a testament to its strength and depth.
“To have three Big 12 teams in the top five and five in the top 10 just shows how competitive this league will be,” said Self. “Every year we talk about the Big 12 being the toughest conference in the nation, and with the four additions it became even stronger.”
Other notable teams in the preseason rankings include Alabama, UConn, Houston, Duke, and Purdue. Auburn, Tennessee, and Texas A&M are the first three teams to make the second 10, followed by Purdue and Creighton.
The first regular-season AP poll is due out on November 11th.
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