Alabama basketball checked in at No. 2 in the preseason US LBM Coaches poll released Monday. The Crimson Tide was also ranked No. 2 in the first addition of the Associated Press Poll, marking the highest preseason ranking in program history.
Alabama ended the 2023-24 season at No. 3 after its historic Final Four run. The Tide then had one of the best offseasons by any team in the country. Alabama retained key pieces in Mark Sears, Grant Nelson, Latrell Wrightsell Jr., Jarin Stevenson and Mouhamed Dioubate from last year's side.
The Tide then added a transfer portal haul that includes center Clifford Omoruyi, guards Aden Holloway, Chris Youngblood and Houston Mallette and a freshman class headlined by former five-stars Derrion Reid and Aiden Sherrell along with four-stars Labaron Philon and Naas Cunningham.
Kansas took the No. 1 spot in both the AP and coaches polls. The Jayhawks also returned key veterans in Dajuan Harris Jr., Hunter Dickinson and KJ Adams and added quality transfers including former Alabama guard Rylan Griffen.
Defending national champions UConn was ranked at No. 3 in the preseason coaches poll. The Huskies beat Alabama in the national semifinal en route to their second straight national title. Houston checked in at No. 4 and Duke rounded out the top five.
The Tide was joined by eight other SEC teams in the coaches poll. Auburn was the next highest-ranked team at No. 11. The conference is also represented by No. 12 Tennessee, No. 15 Texas A&M, No. 16 Arkansas, No. 19 Texas, No. 21 Florida, No. 23 Kentucky and No. 25 Ole Miss.
No. 2 Alabama will tip off the season against UNC Asheville at 8 p.m. CT on Nov. 4. The game can be seen on ESPNU.
Here’s the full preseason coaches poll.
1. Kansas
2. Alabama
3. UConn
4. Houston
5. Duke
6. Iowa State
7. Gonzaga
8. Baylor
9. Arizona
10. North Carolina
11. Auburn
12. Tennessee
13. Purdue
14. Creighton
15. Texas A&M
16. Arkansas
17. Marquette
18. Indiana
19. Texas
20. Cincinnati
21. Florida
22. UCLA
23. Kentucky
24. Illinois
25. Ole Miss
