The Kentucky Wildcats missed the 2013 NCAA Tournament and ended the year unranked, but the new-look squad will enter the 2013-14 College Basketball Season as the No.1 team based on USA Today Sports coaches' poll.
The Wildcats, which will be the first team to be named as No.1 heading into a season after ending the previous season out of the rankings, got 16 out of the 32 possible first-place votes.
After failing to defend the national title they won in 2011, Kentucky made sure that they will be a force to be reckoned with in the upcoming basketball season with their impressive recruiting class, which is touted as the best in recent years.
John Calipari, who is known for maximizing the talents of his freshmen players, will parade a freshmen-heavy lineup composed of Julius Randle, Dakari Johnson, Marcus Lee, James Young, Dominique Hawkins, Derek Willis, and the highly-touted twins Andrew and Aaron Harrison.
The eight talented freshmen players will join two sophomore standouts in 7-foot-center Willie Cauley-Stein and forward Alex Poythress, who both decided to bypass the 2013 NBA Draft to play another year with the Wildcats.
When asked about the chances of his team in the upcoming collegiate season, Calipari admitted that they are the most inexperienced team heading into the season, but they can achieve big things if they maximize the overall talent of the team.
"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," Calipari said in an interview with USA Today.
Meanwhile, the Michigan State Spartans, who will have another promising rookie in Gary Harris, ended up as the second-ranked team followed by the 2013 NCAA national champions Louisville Cardinals, who lost heady point guard Peyton Siva to the NBA but will still be led by high-scoring senior guard Russ Smith.
Duke, which lost to the Cardinals in the 2013 NCAA Tournament Elite Eight, was ranked fourth followed by the fifth-ranked Arizona Wildcats and sixth-ranked Kansas Jayhawks, who will be led by Andrew Wiggins, touted as the best high school prospect since LeBron James.
2013-14 College Basketball Preseason Top 25 Rankings
USA Today Sports Coaches Poll
1. Kentucky Wildcats
2. Michigan State Spartans
3. Louisville Cardinals
4. Duke Blue Devils
5. Arizona Wildcats
6. Kansas Jayhawks
7. Syracuse Orange
8. Florida Gators
9. Michigan Wolverines
10. Ohio State Buckeyes
11. North Carolina Tar Heels
12. Oklahoma State Cowboys
13. Memphis Tigers
14. Gonzaga Bulldogs
15. Virginia Commonwealth Rams
16. Wichita State Shockers
17. Marquette Golden Eagles
18. Oregon Ducks
19. Connecticut Huskies
20. New Mexico Lobos
21. Wisconsin Badgers
22. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
23. UCLA Bruins
24. Indiana Hoosiers
25. Virginia Cavaliers
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