The preseason AP basketball poll is out, and here's where Louisville, Kentucky are ranked

Lucas Aulbach
Courier Journal

College basketball pollsters expect big things out of Kentucky and Louisville this season.

The Cardinals were ranked No. 5 in the preseason Associated Press poll, released early Monday afternoon, while the Wildcats were a little higher at No. 2.

Louisville has been consistently rated toward the top of the preseason Atlantic Coast Conference standings, as voters like the Cardinals' depth as well as star power, with the league's preseason player of the year Jordan Nwora leading the charge at the KFC Yum Center. The team was picked to finish third by ACC media members in a vote earlier this month.

The Wildcats, as you can tell, are getting plenty of hype as well, with a high-rated freshman class expected to make waves immediately. And college basketball fans should mark their calendars – No. 2 UK opens the season on Nov. 5 against No. 1 Michigan State at Madison Square Garden.

Read more:Jordan Nwora's challenge: Living up to player of the year expectations

Louisville was unranked in last season's preseason poll but came into the year ranked No. 16 in 2017. The Cardinals missed the NCAA Tournament that season as they dealt with the fallout of coach Rick Pitino's departure, but they bounced back in 2018-19 and reached the postseason with Mack calling the shots.

Louisville also opens the season on Nov. 5 in a road showdown against unranked Miami.

The Cardinals and Wildcats will each face plenty of competition this season. Four ACC teams are ranked toward the top of the poll – No. 4 Duke, No. 5 Louisville, No. 9 North Carolina and No. 11 Virginia, the defending national champion – while No. 2 UK is joined in the poll by fellow SEC squads No. 6 Florida, No. 22 LSU and No. 24 Auburn.

Lucas Aulbach can be reached at laulbach@courier-journal.com, 502-582-4649 or on Twitter @LucasAulbach. Support strong local journalism and subscribe: courier-journal.com/lucasa.

Preseason AP top 25

First-place votes in parentheses

1. Michigan State (60)

2. Kentucky (2)

3. Kansas (3) 

4. Duke 

5. Louisville

6. Florida

7. Maryland

8. Gonzaga

9. North Carolina

10. Villanova

11. Virginia

12. Seton Hall

13. Texas Tech

14. Memphis

15. Oregon

16. Baylor

17. Utah State

18. Ohio State

19. Xavier 

20, Saint Mary’s

21. Arizona 

22. LSU 

23. Purdue

24. Auburn

25. VCU