University of Tennessee Athletics
Vols Ranked 10th in Preseason AP Poll
October 29, 2009 | Men's Basketball
Oct. 29, 2009
Tennessee is ranked 10th in the Associated Press preseason 2009-10 college basketball poll, which was released Thursday. This is the fifth time in school history--and the second time during the Bruce Pearl era (2005-06 to present)--that the Volunteers garnered a top-10 spot in the AP's preseason poll.
The ESPN/USA Today coaches' poll also was released Thursday, with the Vols landing at No. 11. This makes four consecutive years that Pearl's Vols have appeared in both the AP and the coaches' preseason top-25 polls.
Kansas took the top spot in both polls. The Jayhawks visit Knoxville on Jan. 10.
Tennessee is one of three Southeastern Conference teams in the preseason rankings. Kentucky is listed fourth in the AP poll and fifth in the coaches' rankings. Mississippi State was tabbed 18th by the AP and 19th by the coaches.
Purdue, which joins UT in the eight-team field at the Paradise Jam next month, is ranked seventh in both polls.
The Vols' highest-ever preseason AP ranking was seventh in 2007-08--and UT eventually rose to No. 1 later that season. Tennessee earned a No. 9 preseason ranking in 1975-76, 1998-99 and 2000-01.
Tennessee opens the exhibition portion of its schedule Friday at 7:30 p.m. when it hosts North Alabama. The Vols then host Lincoln Memorial on Nov. 4 (7:30 p.m.) before opening the regular season Nov. 13 against Austin Peay (9 p.m., SportSouth).
| The top 25 teams in The Associated Press' preseason 2009-10 college basketball poll, with first-place votes in parentheses, final 2008-09 records, total points based on 25 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 25th-place vote and last year's final ranking: | |||
| Team | Record | Pts | Finish |
| 1. Kansas (55) | 27-8 | 1,612 | 14 |
| 2. Michigan St. (5) | 31-7 | 1,515 | 8 |
| 3. Texas (1) | 23-12 | 1,397 | - |
| 4. Kentucky (3) | 22-14 | 1,372 | - |
| 5. Villanova | 30-8 | 1,347 | 11 |
| 6. North Carolina (1) | 34-4 | 1,320 | 2 |
| 7. Purdue | 27-10 | 1,284 | 17 |
| 8. West Virginia | 23-12 | 1,115 | - |
| 9. Duke | 30-7 | 1,064 | 6 |
| 10. Tennessee | 21-13 | 897 | - |
| 11. Butler | 26-6 | 864 | 22 |
| 12. Connecticut | 31-5 | 844 | 5 |
| 13. California | 22-11 | 800 | - |
| 14. Washington | 26-9 | 776 | 15 |
| 15. Michigan | 21-14 | 578 | - |
| 16. Ohio St. | 22-11 | 465 | - |
| 17. Oklahoma | 30-6 | 410 | 7 |
| 18. Mississippi St. | 23-13 | 393 | - |
| 19. Louisville | 31-6 | 335 | 1 |
| 20. Georgetown | 16-15 | 326 | - |
| 21. Dayton | 27-8 | 318 | - |
| 22. Georgia Tech | 12-19 | 301 | - |
| 23. Illinois | 24-10 | 282 | - |
| 24. Clemson | 23-9 | 217 | 24 |
| 25. Minnesota | 22-11 | 172 | - |
| Others receiving votes: Maryland 171, Siena 112, Notre Dame 107, Florida St. 92, Vanderbilt 90, Syracuse 83, Oklahoma St. 65, UCLA 63, Florida 53, Wake Forest 50, Xavier 42, Gonzaga 37, South Carolina 28, Kansas St. 24, BYU 21, N. Iowa 16, Tulsa 16, Mississippi 15, Texas A&M 10, Missouri 8, Boston College 6, Pittsburgh 4, Utah St. 2, Va. Commonwealth 2, W. Kentucky 2, Holy Cross 1, Old Dominion 1. | |||
