The Louisville Cardinals will begin the 2011-2012 college basketball season with a top ten ranking. The Cards landed at No. 8 in the first installment of the USA Today/ESPN top 25.
The 514 points they earned placed them in between No. 7 Vanderbilt and No. 9 Memphis. Both the Commodores and Tigers will be paying visits to the KFC Yum Center in December.
Here's the full poll:
| Team (first-place votes) |
2010 Record
|
Points
|
2010-11 Final Ranking
|
|
|
1.
|
North Carolina (30) |
29-8
|
774
|
8
|
|
2.
|
Kentucky (1) |
29-9
|
721
|
3
|
|
3.
|
Ohio State |
34-3
|
702
|
5
|
|
4.
|
Connecticut |
32-9
|
655
|
1
|
|
5.
|
Syracuse |
27-8
|
649
|
18
|
|
6.
|
Duke |
32-5
|
635
|
7
|
|
7.
|
Vanderbilt |
23-11
|
567
|
NR
|
|
8.
|
Louisville |
25-10
|
514
|
22
|
|
9.
|
Memphis |
25-10
|
482
|
NR
|
|
10.
|
Florida |
29-8
|
474
|
10
|
|
11.
|
Pittsburgh |
28-6
|
471
|
12
|
|
12.
|
Baylor |
18-13
|
358
|
NR
|
|
13.
|
Kansas |
35-3
|
331
|
4
|
|
14.
|
Wisconsin |
25-9
|
313
|
15
|
|
15.
|
Xavier |
24-8
|
277
|
NR
|
|
16.
|
Arizona |
30-8
|
269
|
9
|
|
17.
|
Alabama |
24-11
|
194
|
NR
|
|
18.
|
Michigan |
21-14
|
187
|
NR
|
|
19.
|
Texas A&M |
24-9
|
161
|
NR
|
|
20.
|
UCLA |
23-11
|
147
|
NR
|
|
21.
|
Marquette |
22-15
|
145
|
20
|
|
22.
|
Cincinnati |
26-9
|
141
|
NR
|
|
23.
|
Gonzaga |
25-10
|
125
|
NR
|
|
24.
|
California |
18-15
|
111
|
NR
|
|
25.
|
Missouri |
23-11
|
110
|
NR
|
The AP is expected to be released shortly.