KenPom's preseason college basketball rankings just dropped, a signal that college basketball is just about to start.
The godfather of college basketball analytics, KenPom, has widely been the most used analytical site in college basketball. There have been some other great ones pop up, but KenPom's rankings hold plenty of weight in evaluating teams, including being used as one component of the selection process for March Madness.
As Ken Pomeroy, founder of KenPom, wrote in his most recent article, preseason rankings are more difficult than ever with so many questions for eligibility. Pomeroy wrote that for this version of the rankings, if a team site has a player lsited on the official team roster, then their potential contributions would be counted for the rankings.
Best of the best according to KenPom
The Duke Blue Devils take the top spot in the preseason rankings, with Florida not far behind in second. Houston comes in at a slightly distant third, forming a clear top tier in the rankings. Most preseason predictions will have Duke and Florida number one and two in some order, but Houston being third will end up being a bit against consensus.
Below is the complete top ten.
- Duke Blue Devils
- Florida Gators
- Houston Cougars
- Illinois Fighting Illini
- Arizona Wildcats
- Iowa State Cyclones
- Michigan State Spartans
- Kansas Jayhawks
- Alabama Crimson Tide
- Texas Longhorns
Most of the teams listed in the top 10 would be agreeable with the general consensus. Iowa State at sixth overall is the biggest surprise of the group as not many people or sites believe the offense will be as good as KenPom lists them as.
Texas slots in at 10 in the rankings, and they'll be one of the more polarizing preseason teams. On paper, there's plenty of talent for the Sean Miller-led team. However, there's also going to be a big reliance on talented freshman prospects in the era of college basketball getting as old as ever.
Teams ranked surprisingly high by KenPom
As is going to be the case with any preseason predictions, there are teams that KenPom seems to be higher on than what the general consensus will have them.
Nebraska is ranked 16th in KenPom, the same exact rating that they ended last season at. Last year was a magical run for the Cornhuskers, but there's varying sentiments on whether it's reproducable this season. KenPom sure thinks so.
Sticking in the Big Ten, the Minnesota Golden Gophers come in at 42. Head coach Niko Medved had an under-the-radar season with the Gophers last year, and Minnesota has potential to surprise teams once again this season.
Vanderbilt was another surprising team last season, finishing 11th in KenPom. They're 13th in the preseason rankings this year, the highest preseason KenPom ranking for the Commodores since 2012, when they were eighth.
Grand Canyon ranks 44th overall, and as the top team in the reformed Mountain West Conference. The Antelopes haven't been ranked higher than 80th in KenPom's preseason rankings in their 13-year history. KenPom has them as the best mid-major team, ahead of some notable high-major rosters.
Teams ranked surprisingly low by KenPom
If there are teams that were ranked higher than consensus, then that means that there'll be teams ranked lower than consensus too.
UConn is 11th in KenPom, a respectable preseason ranking. However, this team is going to generally be considered closer to a top-5 team rather than a top-15 team heading into the season.
Virginia slots in at 15th in KenPom, and they're an interesting team this season. They have plenty of talent in the second year under head coach Ryan Odom, and some believe Virginia could be a top-5 team in the country this season.
The reigning National Champions, Michigan, come in at 28th. No one is anticipating Michigan to have a repeat of last season, but there's still enough talent on this roster for many to believe they could be closer to the 15th or 20th best team in the country.
The Indiana Hoosiers may end up being among the most polarizing preseason teams. Depending on who is asked, Indiana could be seen as a top-20 team in the country. KenPom, however, has them 47th in the country and closer to a bubble team instead of competing towards the top of the Big Ten.
Louisville is another team that will most likely end up as a top-10 preseason team in most people's minds, but KenPom has the Cardinals at 17th. If Louisville ends up in that spot at the end of the season, it'd be the highest ranking for the team since 2020.
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