Freshman-laden UK tops preseason coaches poll

Kentucky, which failed to make the NCAA Tournament last season, opens the new college basketball season ranked No. 1 in the USA Today Sports coaches poll.

The Wildcats finished 21-12 last season and was unranked in the final poll. No team previously jumped from being non-ranked at the end of a season to topping the poll at the start of the next season.

Kentucky received half of the 32 first-place votes. No. 2 Michigan State got three first-place votes. No. 3 Louisville, the reigning national champion, got 10 first-place votes, and No. 4 Duke topped three ballots.

Rounding out the top 10 are Arizona, Kansas, Syracuse, Florida, Michigan and Ohio State.

Then the defending NCAA champion, Kentucky settled for a National Invitation Tournament berth in March, and the Wildcats lost to Robert Morris in the first round.

However, Wildcats coach John Calipari brought in a recruiting class considered one of the best in history, featuring six high school All-Americans: Julius Randle, Aaron Harrison, Andrew Harrison, Dakari Johnson, Marcus Lee and James Young.

Earlier this week, Calipari said, "We'll be the most inexperienced team in the country, but we are really talented. We have got great size and speed and skill. Will we be a great defensive team and rebounding team, and will we share the ball? If we do that, we have a chance to be one of the best teams in the country."

The poll voters are 32 Division I head coaches.

The college basketball season tips off in early November, with most teams playing their season opener the weekend of Nov. 8-10.