Published: November 1, 2008
Modified: October 31, 2008 at 11:49 pm
NORMAN — Big 12 coaches pegged Oklahoma as the preseason favorite in the conference.
University of Oklahoma's Blake Griffin talks to the press during the Big 12 Men's Basketball Media Day at the Cox Convention Center on Thursday, Oct. 23, 2008, in Oklahoma City, Okla. BY CHRIS LANDSBERGER, THE OKLAHOMAN
Advertisement
Nationally, feelings aren’t running quite so high, yet still higher than they’ve been in three seasons, with the Sooners opening at No. 12 in the Associated Press poll released Friday.
OU, which was No. 14 in the ESPN/USA Today coaches poll released Thursday, sits five slots behind league rival Texas, which is No. 7 in the AP rankings.
The Sooners haven’t appeared in one of the major polls since the end of the 2005-06 season, when they came in at No. 24 in the final AP poll.
This is OU’s highest ranking since hitting No. 12 in the Jan. 2 AP rankings of ’05-06.
The Sooners are holding a scrimmage at McCasland Field House at 3:30 p.m. today. The scrimmage is free and open to the public. Doors will open at 2:30 p.m.
With Blake Griffin leading a group of four returning starters and McDonald’s All-American Willie Warren among six newcomers, expectations are clearly up for the Sooners.
"We don’t deal with other people’s expectations,” OU coach Jeff Capel said earlier this preseason. "We have our own expectations. And we’ve always had expectations since I’ve been here.
"We want to be good. We want to be the best team we can be. We want to try to win the Big 12 and try to make run in the NCAA Tournament.”
The Sooners finished 23-12 and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament a year ago.
North Carolina was the unanimous choice for No. 1, receiving all 72 first-place votes. Connecticut, Louisville, UCLA and Pittsburgh round out the top five.
Kansas, at No. 24, is the only other Big 12 team in the Top 25.
Baylor and Texas A&M also received votes.
Thank you for joining our conversations on newsok. We encourage your discussions but ask that you stay within the bounds of our terms and conditions. Please help us by reporting comments that violate these guidelines. To review our rules of engagement, go to Commenting and posting policy.
Fitness and Nutrition
Visit NewsOK's latest Know it and find out why proper diet and exercise are key.
Multimedia
More Info
The AP Top 25
The top 25 teams in The Associated Press’ preseason college basketball poll, with first-place votes in parentheses, 2007-08 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:
Record
Pts
Pvs
1. North Carolina (72)
36-3
1,800
1
2. Connecticut
24-9
1,661
16
3. Louisville
27-9
1,638
13
4. UCLA
35-4
1,487
3
5. Pittsburgh
27-10
1,319
17
6. Michigan St.
27-9
1,311
18
7. Texas
31-7
1,259
7
8. Duke
28-6
1,250
9
9. Notre Dame
25-8
1,243
15
10. Gonzaga
25-8
1,162
24
11. Purdue
25-9
1,099
20
12. Oklahoma
23-12
987
—
13. Memphis
38-2
977
2
14. Tennessee
31-5
920
5
15. Arizona St.
21-13
645
—
16. Marquette
25-10
592
25
17. Miami
23-11
570
—
18. Southern Cal
21-12
414
—
19. Florida
24-12
403
—
20. Davidson
29-7
347
23
21. Wake Forest
17-13
312
—
22. Georgetown
28-6
311
8
23. Villanova
22-13
256
—
24. Kansas
37-3
233
4
25. Wisconsin
31-5
196
6
Others receiving votes: Xavier 154, UNLV 143, Baylor 128, Saint Mary’s, Calif. 112, Syracuse 83, Kentucky 75, Ohio St. 64, LSU 31, Texas A&M 30, Washington 19, West Virginia 17, Alabama 16, BYU 16, Virginia Tech 16, Siena 13, Arizona 11, Clemson 11, Vanderbilt 11, Washington St. 11, Temple 10, Va. Commonwealth 8, Butler 7, Creighton 7, New Mexico 3, Cleveland St. 2, Stanford 2, UAB 2, American U. 1, CS Northridge 1, Drake 1, Miami (Ohio) 1, Saint Joseph’s 1, San Diego 1.
0
Prev
Something to say about this topic? Submit a Letter to the Editor online
Thank you for joining our conversations on newsok. We encourage your discussions but ask that you stay within the bounds of our terms and conditions. Please help us by reporting comments that violate these guidelines. To review our rules of engagement, go to Commenting and posting policy.
Log in below or sign up (it's free).