AP Ranks Illinois No. 11 in Preseason Top 25 Poll

The Fighting Illini are one of five Big Ten teams ranked in the first AP Top 25 poll of 2021-22.

by
ontapcontributors
October 18, 2021

Photo: IlliniMBB/Twitter

The Associated Press has released its college basketball preseason top 25 rankings, naming Illinois No. 11 heading into the 2021-22 season.

1⃣1⃣ to start the season

🔶 2nd straight season ranked in the preseason poll
🔷 21 straight weeks in the AP Top 25#Illini | #EveryDayGuys pic.twitter.com/iTUBFjrH6m
— Illinois Basketball (@IlliniMBB) October 18, 2021

This marks the second consecutive season Illinois has been ranked in the Preseason Top 25. Last season, the AP ranked the Illini No. 8. Big Ten teams ahead of Illinois are No. 6 Michigan and No. 7 Purdue, while No. 17 Ohio State and No. 21 Maryland slot in below the Illini among conference foes. The Big Ten had more teams than any conference qualify for the NCAA Tournament in 2020-21 and the conference looks primed for another strong year.

Illinois will open the season ranked for the 21st consecutive week. Here’s a look at the complete field.

Preseason AP Top 25, per release:

1. Gonzaga
2. UCLA
3. KU
4. Nova
5. Texas
6. Michigan
7. Purdue
8. Baylor
9. Duke
10. UK
11. Illinois
12. Memphis
13. Oregon
14. Bama
15. UH
16. Arkansas
17. OSU
18. Tenn.
19. UNC
20. FSU
21. MD
22. Auburn
23. St. Bonaventure
24. UConn
25. UVA
— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) October 18, 2021

To put things into perspective, Ken Pom had Illinois ranked No. 18 in last season’s preseason poll. This year the popular ranking system has Illinois at No. 5. Another fun season is ahead for Illinois basketball.

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