What is Wisconsin Basketball Ranked in the Preseason AP Poll?

Madison, WI - The Wisconsin basketball program is in a familiar place this preseason: under the radar. In the preseason Big Ten media poll conducted jointly by The Columbus Dispatch and Indianapolis Star, the Badgers were picked to finish 12th in the conference.

"We don't pay attention to rankings," Badgers guard Kamari McGee said when asked about the preseason conference poll. "It's people just doing their job and it's what they're getting paid to do. We are here to play basketball and they are here to do their job."

Wisconsin Basketball Unranked; Receiving Votes in Preseason AP Top 25

The Associated Press released its preseason ranking of the top teams in college basketball on Monday. Although Wisconsin was not among the top 25, it received five voting points - the 20th-most among unranked teams.

UW's absence from the AP Top 25 marks the third year it will enter the season unranked. Head coach Greg Gard has not had a team begin the season in the top 25 since 2020-21. That year, Gard returned four of five starters from a team that won a share of the Big Ten title before having its season cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic the season prior.

College Basketball Preseason AP Top 25

Numbers in parentheses represent the number of first-place votes a team received.

1. Kansas Jayhawks (30)

2. Alabama Crimson Tide (14)

3. UConn Huskies (11)

4. Houston Cougars. (4)

5. Iowa State Cyclones

6. Gonzaga Bulldogs (1)

7. Duke Blue Devils

8. Baylor Bears

9. North Carolina Tar Heels

10. Arizona Wildcats

11. Auburn Tigers

11. Tennessee Volunteers

13. Texas A&M Aggies

14. Purdue Boilermakers

15. Creighton Bluejays

16. Arkansas Razorbacks

17. Indiana Hoosiers

18. Marquette Golden Eagles

19. Texas Longhorns

20. Cincinnati Bearcats

21. Florida Gators

22. UCLA Bruins

23. Kentucky Wildcats

24. Ole Miss Rebels

25. Rutgers Scarlet Knights

Others receiving votes: Illinois 92, St. John's 91, Xavier 73, Texas Tech 58, Wake Forest 37, Kansas St 30, Michigan St. 29, Ohio St. 29, Michigan 19, BYU 14, Oregon 12, McNeese St. 11, Miami 11, Boise St. 9, Saint Louis 9, Clemson 9, Providence 9, Mississippi St. 6, VCU 6, Wisconsin 5, Saint Mary's 5, Louisville 4, UAB 4, Ark Little Rock 3, Grand Canyon 3, Arizona St 2, San Diego St. 2, Princeton 2, High Point 1, Maryland 1.

Related: Wisconsin Basketball Will Look Different This Year; Media Day Takeaways

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