Indiana is No. 1 in The Associated Press' preseason Top 25 for the third time and the first since the 1979-80 season.
The Hoosiers return all five starters, including 7-foot sophomore Cody Zeller.
They received 43 first-place votes from the 65-member national media panel Friday. Louisville and Kentucky, the teams ranked second and third, received the rest of the first-place votes with Louisville getting 20 and the defending national champion the other two.
Ohio State and Michigan join Indiana as Big Ten teams in the top five.
Re: Indiana Hoosiers are preseason No. 1 in AP poll
Indiana looked amazing when they played us, and mediocre almost every other time I watched them play. Watford would be the number one pick if you only judged him on performances vs Kentucky.
They basically didn't lose anyone though, so they definitely deserve the top spot. But I think this year is very wide open, not at all like last year where there was a clear group of 4 or 5 superior teams.
Re: Indiana Hoosiers are preseason No. 1 in AP poll
I'm not even that sold on Kentucky. I know Calipari got his usual bevy of 5* blue-chip recruits, but I'm just not "feeling" this class the same way I was last year's or the Wall/Cousins/Bledsoe class. Don't get me wrong, I think Kentucky will be very good and, like you said, due to there not being a clear cut group of elite teams they'll be in the mix, but I'm just a lot more cautious about them than I normally would be. Part of that is also due to them not having any proven holdovers from last year. I know Wiltjer played some last year, but his role was very minor.
We're definitely back to 2010 and 2011 levels of talent. Neither Indiana or Louisville are on the same level (not even close in my opinion) as Kentucky and a healthy North Carolina from last year. I'm not sure there's even a team that I'd call a "sleeper" elite team.
Re: Indiana Hoosiers are preseason No. 1 in AP poll
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Originally Posted by KG215
I'm not even that sold on Kentucky. I know Calipari got his usual bevy of 5* blue-chip recruits, but I'm just not "feeling" this class the same way I was last year's or the Wall/Cousins/Bledsoe class. Don't get me wrong, I think Kentucky will be very good and, like you said, due to there not being a clear cut group of elite teams they'll be in the mix, but I'm just a lot more cautious about them than I normally would be. Part of that is also due to them not having any proven holdovers from last year. I know Wiltjer played some last year, but his role was very minor.
We're definitely back to 2010 and 2011 levels of talent. Neither Indiana or Louisville are on the same level (not even close in my opinion) as Kentucky and a healthy North Carolina from last year. I'm not sure there's even a team that I'd call a "sleeper" elite team.
Well even if it's just Knight/Lamb/Jones level that worked out pretty well.
Re: Indiana Hoosiers are preseason No. 1 in AP poll
Does Kentucky have any returning contributors besides Wiltjer? Oh, and Duke is in the perfect spot for them. Hopefully with Mason Plumlee getting the lion's share of the touches and living up to his potential and with Seth Curry moving to his natural postion, SG, the offense won't just be three gaurds jacking up 3s all game long.
Re: Indiana Hoosiers are preseason No. 1 in AP poll
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Originally Posted by iDunkOreo
Does Kentucky have any returning contributors besides Wiltjer?
No, he's the only guy who got significant minutes last year who will be returning - I'm actually interested to see how much bigger his role will be this season.
Re: Indiana Hoosiers are preseason No. 1 in AP poll
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Originally Posted by west_tip
No, he's the only guy who got significant minutes last year who will be returning - I'm actually interested to see how much bigger his role will be this season.
He will almost certainly start. He looks to still be a defensive liability, but he is very skilled and could be one of the best shooters in the country. They will run offense through him and try to hide him a little on defense, I suspect. He's a very unique player, I haven't seen anyone like him in a while.
Re: Indiana Hoosiers are preseason No. 1 in AP poll
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Originally Posted by ukfan22
He will almost certainly start. He looks to still be a defensive liability, but he is very skilled and could be one of the best shooters in the country. They will run offense through him and try to hide him a little on defense, I suspect. He's a very unique player, I haven't seen anyone like him in a while.
Going off the Kentucky All Access thing, it looks like Calipari wants to start both Wilie Cauley and Nerlens at the same time.
Re: Indiana Hoosiers are preseason No. 1 in AP poll
Quote:
Originally Posted by ukfan22
He will almost certainly start. He looks to still be a defensive liability, but he is very skilled and could be one of the best shooters in the country. They will run offense through him and try to hide him a little on defense, I suspect. He's a very unique player, I haven't seen anyone like him in a while.
I like Wiltjer's game. He can shoot, but he's certainly not just a shooter. He's got advanced passing skills out of the post and some unorthodox moves in the paint, he just needs to put on strength. He'll fit well next to Noel because I believe NN has a lot of work to do on his offensive game.
I can't wait to watch Indiana this year. We all know Cody Zeller and Christian Watford are studs but I think the x-factor will be Victor Oladipo. He's rangy, explosive and versatile. I think he'll be one of the best wing players in the Big 10 this year. Yogi Ferrell looks like a nice point guard prospect with a lot of speed and Hanner Perea is a freak athlete in the Jeremy Evans mold.
Indiana Hoosiers are preseason No. 1 in AP poll
Good to see the Hoosiers back among the elite programs in hoop nation.
