Wisconsin has reached the Final Four just three times in its history, and one of those three just so happened to be last season. Coming off that high, it appears the national media is buying in to the Badgers as more than a fluke.
The Associated Press released its preseason poll on Friday, and Wisconsin was ranked No. 3 in the country. It also is getting enough respect to earn the second-most first place votes entering the season, as they received eight votes as the best team in the country entering this season.
That’s not hard to figure out considering the Badgers return all but one starter and seven of the top eight scorers from that Final Four team. Additionally, there are two or three potential first round NBA prospects likely to start for this team in 2014-15 — a rare feat for the Badgers to say the least.
Kentucky was the overwhelming favorite in the AP poll, entering the season as the No. 1 team and receiving 52 first place votes.
Rounding out the Top 5 were Arizona (5 first place votes), Wisconsin, Duke and Kansas.
The Big Ten wasn’t as present as it has been in recent years, with Michigan State being the next highest ranked team in the preseason polls at No. 18. Overall, the Big Ten also saw Ohio State (No. 20), Nebraska (No. 21) and Michigan (No. 24) be ranked in the initial Top 25.
Here is the full preseason AP Top 25 poll:
| RANK | TEAM (FIRST-PLACE VOTES) |
|---|---|
| 1 | Kentucky (52) |
| 2 | Arizona (5) |
| 3 | Wisconsin (8) |
| 4 | Duke |
| 5 | Kansas |
| 6 | North Carolina |
| 7 | Florida |
| 8 | Louisville |
| 9 | Virginia |
| 10 | Texas |
| 11 | Wichita St. |
| 12 | Villanova |
| 13 | Gonzaga |
| 14 | Iowa St. |
| 15 | VCU |
| 16 | San Diego St. |
| 17 | UConn |
| 18 | Michigan St. |
| 19 | Oklahoma |
| 20 | Ohio St. |
| 21 | Nebraska |
| 22 | SMU |
| 23 | Syracuse |
| 24 | Michigan |
| 25 | Harvard |
| 25 | Utah |
| 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 | |
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