Somehow the Associated Press trusted me to be one of the 65 voters in the AP men’s college basketball poll this season. After the poll is released each week, I’ll post how I voted, highlight a few teams and explain why I slotted them where I did. Here is the first edition.
How I voted:
1. Duke
It feels like the typical choice is between a roster full of one-and-done players OR one with veteran college players. In Duke’s case this season, they have both. As evidenced by the 58 first-place votes, Duke is an easy No. 1 selection for this first-time voter.
2. Kentucky
3. Villanova
4. Oregon
I saw Oregon play in the Elite 8 in Anaheim last year and I’m a believer. With virtually all of those players back this season, they’ve got all the components a well-rounded college basketball team needs: shooting, length inside, leadership. I think he has all the tools, but I’m not 100 percent sold on Dillon Brooks being one of the best players in college basketball – yet.
5. Virginia
6. Indiana
7. North Carolina
8. Kansas
9. Wisconsin
10. Arizona
11. Gonzaga
12. Michigan State
13. Louisville
14. Xavier
15. Purdue
16. St. Mary’s
As an overarching philosophy, I favor teams who have played together for multiple seasons and can actually develop some chemistry over those with talent yet to produce. St. Mary’s returned basically its entire roster from the team that swept Gonzaga last season.
17. UCLA
The Bruins are up two spots on my ballot after nearly burning down Pauley Pavilion with a 119 points and a school-record 18 3-pointers on 60 percent shooting from beyond the arc in their season-opener. Sunday’s 102-87 win wasn’t the same type of spectacle, but I was impressed the Bruins showed some versatility on offense and the discipline to attack the basket when the 3s weren’t falling.
18. Syracuse
19. Dayton
I seem to be an outlier here seeing as Dayton is not ranked, but I like this team with four seniors who have won 25 games each of their three seasons. UCLA will probably run into the Flyers in the second round of the Wooden Legacy the Friday after Thanksgiving. That would be both teams’ biggest game of the season to that point.
20. West Virginia
21. Iowa State
22. Cal
23. Rhode Island
24. Miami
25. Creighton
Here is the actual Week 2 AP poll:
1. Duke (58)
2. Kentucky (1)
3. Villanova (5)
4. Oregon
5. North Carolina
6. Indiana (1)
7. Kansas
8. Virginia
9. Wisconsin
10. Arizona
11. Xavier
12. Louisville
13. Michigan St.
14. Gonzaga
15. Purdue
16. UCLA
17. Saint Mary’s (Cal)
18. Syracuse
19. West Virginia
20. Iowa St.
21. Rhode Island
22. Creighton
23. Texas
24. Cincinnati
25. California
Others receiving votes: Dayton 102, Maryland 100, Florida St. 95, San Diego St. 54, Florida 38, Miami 38, Wichita St. 37, Butler 26, NC State 23, Virginia Tech 21, Texas A&M 16, Notre Dame 14, Oklahoma 11, Ohio St. 9, UConn 9, Marquette 7, Monmouth (NJ) 7, Clemson 6, Seton Hall 6, Colorado 5, Mississippi St. 4, Ohio 2, Wagner 2, Yale 1, SMU 1, Princeton 1.
For comparison purposes, here is my preseason poll:
1. Duke
2. Kentucky
3. Villanova
4. Oregon
5. Kansas
6. Virginia
7. Xavier
8. North Carolina
9. Wisconsin
10. Arizona
11. Indiana
12. Gonzaga
13. Michigan St.
14. Louisville
15. UConn
16. Purdue
17. Saint Mary’s (Cal)
18. Syracuse
19. UCLA
20. Dayton
21. Texas
22. West Virginia
23. Creighton
24. Iowa St.
25. California