Busting Brackets
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Indiana Tops Preseason Coaches Poll

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The college basketball coaching fraternity, for the most part, is on the same page with fans and media alike: Indiana is a modest favorite to cut down the nets in March.

The coaches cobbled together their guesswork for the upcoming college basketball season on Wednesday, unveiling the preseason USA Today Coaches Poll for the rest of us to quibble about.

There are no surprises at the top, with Indiana, Louisville and Kentucky heading the poll. At the bottom,  Saint Louis, VCU, Cincinnati and Murray State all narrowly missed the cut, while Florida State and Texas [somewhat surprisingly] snuck in.

Last year’s No. 1 team in the preseason coaches poll, North Carolina, ultimately fell short of expectations, losing to Kansas in the Elite Eight. The ’08-’09 Tar Heels were the last national championship team to begin the year ranked at the top of the preseason coaches poll. Connecticut (’03-’04) and Florida (’06-’07) were the only other teams in the last decade to headline the preseason coaches poll and win the national championship.

Connecticut (’10-’11) and Florida (’05-’06) are the only two teams since the inception of the coaches poll to win a national title after starting the season unranked in the poll.

The complete coaches poll is as follows:

USA Today Coaches Poll
RKTEAMRECORDPTS
1Indiana (21)0-0761
2Louisville (5)0-0738
3Kentucky (5)0-0718
4Ohio State0-0617
5Michigan0-0605
6North Carolina State0-0581
7Kansas0-0563
8Duke0-0516
9Syracuse0-0502
10Florida0-0422
11Arizona0-0411
12North Carolina0-0401
13UCLA0-0396
14Michigan State0-0391
15Creighton0-0325
16Memphis0-0307
17Missouri0-0289
18Baylor0-0266
19UNLV0-0203
20San Diego State0-0196
21Wisconsin0-0191
22Gonzaga0-0166
23Notre Dame0-0122
24Florida State0-061
24Texas0-061