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Defending national champions Kentucky are in a good spot to defend their title, but they will have two teams to pass if the preseason AP Top 25 tells us anything. That is because the Wildcats are No. 3, trailing top-ranked Indiana and No. 2 Louisville.
The Hoosiers are preseason No. 1 for the first time since the 1979-80 season, in large part due to Cody Zeller. The center surprised many by returning to Bloomington despite being a projected lottery pick in the NBA Draft and is now hoping to improve on last season when he averaged 15.6 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. If he does, and the rest of the Hoosiers' talented squad comes along, then it is tough to imagine them not improving upon last year's trip to the Sweet 16.
Ohio State and Michigan round out the top 10, giving the Big Ten an excellent top of the conference. They do only have two more teams in the top 25, raising questions about the league's depth, but the Big Ten certainly appears to be stacked at the top.
Texas just missed out on the Top 25, tying with St. Louis as the third teams left out of the top 25.
Kansas is the top ranked Big XII team in the poll, checking in at No. 7, and Baylor is the only other team in the league ranked, down at No. 19.
Here is the complete top 25:
| Team (First-place votes) | 2011-12 Record | Pts |
| 1. Indiana (43) | 27-9 | 1,592 |
| 2. Louisville (20) | 30-10 | 1,568 |
| 3. Kentucky (2) | 38-2 | 1,453 |
| 4. Ohio St. | 31-8 | 1,292 |
| 5. Michigan | 24-10 | 1,290 |
| 6. NC State | 24-13 | 1,270 |
| 7. Kansas | 32-7 | 1,210 |
| 8. Duke | 27-7 | 1,094 |
| 9. Syracuse | 34-3 | 1,062 |
| 10. Florida | 26-11 | 936 |
| 11. North Carolina | 32-6 | 904 |
| 12. Arizona | 23-12 | 902 |
| 13. UCLA | 19-14 | 840 |
| 14. Michigan St. | 29-8 | 789 |
| 15. Missouri | 30-5 | 664 |
| 16. Creighton | 29-6 | 622 |
| 17. Memphis | 26-9 | 539 |
| 18. UNLV | 26-9 | 488 |
| 19. Baylor | 30-8 | 486 |
| 20. San Diego St. | 26-8 | 463 |
| 21. Gonzaga | 26-7 | 384 |
| 22. Notre Dame | 22-12 | 297 |
| 23. Wisconsin | 26-10 | 285 |
| 24. Cincinnati | 26-11 | 120 |
| 25. Florida St. | 25-10 | 101 |
Others receiving votes: Murray St. 59, VCU 58, Saint Louis 46, Texas 46, Minnesota 40, Butler 33, Pittsburgh 32, Saint Joseph’s 25, Marquette 23, Tennessee 15, Oklahoma St. 14, Kansas St. 12, Georgetown 9, New Mexico 9, Ohio 9, Miami 8, Saint Mary’s (Cal) 6, West Virginia 6, Davidson 5, Drexel 5, N. Iowa 5, Valparaiso 3, Lehigh 2, Stanford 2, Colorado St. 1, Oral Roberts 1.