Sean Miller hopes to be No. 1 at the end of the season. Photo by Chris Morrison-USA TODAY Sports
The Arizona Wildcats will begin the season at No. 6 in the AP men’s basketball poll, the team’s highest preseason ranking in a decade.
Arizona was No. 4 in the 2003-04 preseason poll. That team finished 20-10, losing in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to Seton Hall.
The Wildcats trail No. 1 Kentucky, Michigan State, Louisville, Duke and Kansas. Kentucky received 27 of the 65 first-place votes and received 1,546 points, barely edging the Spartans (22 first-place votes, 1,543 points).
Arizona is one of three Pac-12 teams in the AP poll. No. 19 Oregon and No. 22 UCLA are the others.
Arizona State was next among Pac-12 teams in the “others receiving votes” category, with 11 points. Washington and Stanford also received votes.
Sean Miller’s Wildcats open the season Nov. 8 vs. Cal Poly. The game will tip-off at 8 p.m. at McKale Center.