AP's college hoops poll is out

There are lots of places to find the Associated Press' preseason men's basketball poll. Here's one: http://sports-ak.espn.go.com/ncb/rankings

This is my ninth season voting in the poll, which is merely for amusement purposes only. NCAA seeds aren't influenced by the polls, but I think it does a decent job of letting the public know who's who. I try to do a good job of recognizing "mid-majors" that are getting the job done.

Here's my preseason ballot and All-American team:

1. North Carolina
2. Connecticut
3. Louisville
4. UCLA
5. Oklahoma
6. Pittsburgh
7. Texas
8. Duke
9. Notre Dame
10. Tennessee
11. Purdue
12. Memphis
13. Arizona State
14. Marquette
15. Villanova
16. Baylor
17. USC
18. Wisconsin
19. Wake Forest
20. Michigan State
21. Syracuse
22. Miami
23. Gonzaga
24. Kansas
25. Saint Mary’s

Stephen Curry, Davidson
Blake Griffin, Oklahoma
Tyler Hansbrough, North Carolina
Luke Harangody, Notre Dame
Lester Hudson, Tennessee-Martin

It looks like the other 71 voters like Michigan State much more than I do. Tom Izzo should thank me for picking his Spartans low. They tend to do the reverse of people's expectations, both good and bad.

And how lowly regarded is the Big Ten? Three teams are in the polls and Ohio State received some votes. Nobody else got squat. Considering 58 schools received at least one vote, that's a sad commentary on the league's national reputation.

LW