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I thought they'd be at least No. 2, but the defending national champion Louisville Cardinals will begin the season as the No. 3 team in the USA Today coaches' poll.
The Cards received 10 first-place votes from the coaches and a total of 741 points, eight less than No. 2 Michigan State and 26 less than first-place Kentucky.
AAC members Memphis (13) and Connecticut (19) also received top 20 rankings from the coaches.
Here's the complete poll:
| 1 | Kentucky | 21-12 | 767 | 16 | NR |
| 2 | Michigan St. | 27-9 | 749 | 3 | 13 |
| 3 | Louisville | 35-5 | 741 | 10 | 1 |
| 4 | Duke | 30-6 | 710 | 3 | 5 |
| 5 | Arizona | 27-8 | 637 | 0 | 14 |
| 6 | Kansas | 31-6 | 623 | 0 | 8 |
| 7 | Syracuse | 30-10 | 551 | 0 | 3 |
| 8 | Florida | 29-8 | 550 | 0 | 9 |
| 9 | Michigan | 31-8 | 548 | 0 | 2 |
| 10 | Ohio St. | 29-8 | 533 | 0 | 6 |
| 11 | North Carolina | 25-11 | 494 | 0 | NR |
| 12 | Oklahoma St. | 24-9 | 462 | 0 | NR |
| 13 | Memphis | 31-5 | 334 | 0 | 18 |
| 14 | Gonzaga | 32-3 | 270 | 0 | 12 |
| 15 | Va. Commonwealth | 27-9 | 258 | 0 | 23 |
| 16 | Wichita St. | 30-9 | 233 | 0 | 4 |
| 17 | Marquette | 26-9 | 230 | 0 | 11 |
| 18 | Oregon | 28-9 | 175 | 0 | 15 |
| 19 | Connecticut | 20-10 | 167 | 0 | NR |
| 20 | New Mexico | 29-6 | 153 | 0 | 19 |
| 21 | Wisconsin | 23-12 | 148 | 0 | 22 |
| 22 | Notre Dame | 25-10 | 128 | 0 | NR |
| 23 | UCLA | 25-10 | 121 | 0 | NR |
| 24 | Indiana | 29-7 | 118 | 0 | 7 |
| 25 | Virginia | 23-12 | 103 | 0 | NR |
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