Arizona, Michigan State top Blue Ribbon Preseason Top 25, ACC Places Six Teams in Top 25 | Zagsblog
Recent Posts
About ZagsBlog
Adam Zagoria covers basketball at all levels. He is the author of two books and an award-winning journalist whose articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Sports Illustrated, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide.
Follow Zags on Twitter
Couldn't connect with Twitter
Contact Zags
Connect with Zags:
Thursday / March 28.
  • Arizona, Michigan State top Blue Ribbon Preseason Top 25, ACC Places Six Teams in Top 25

    Share Zagsblog Share Zagsblog
    Arizona and Michigan State rank 1-2 and the ACC leads all leagues with six teams listed among Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook’s preseason Top 25 rankings, including three among the top 10.

    Arizona returns Allonzo Trier, Rawle Alkins and Parker Jackson-Cartwright, while bringing in a recruiting class highlighted by 7-footer DeAndre Ayton.

    Michigan State returns sophomores Miles Bridges, Josh Langford, Nick Ward and Cassius Winston and adds highly touted forward Jaren Jackson Jr.

    Defending conference champion Duke, which features potential No. 1 pick Marvin Bagley III, leads ACC teams in the rankings at No. 3, followed by Louisville at No. 6 and defending NCAA champion North Carolina at No. 10. Miami is ranked No. 16, while Notre Dame is No. 19 and Virginia Tech is No. 25.

    All six preseason ranked teams were among the league-record nine from the ACC that received NCAA Tournament bids last March.

    In addition, the publication has tabbed Notre Dame senior forward Bonzie Colson as the preseason national player of the year. Colson finished strong at the end of the 2016-17 season, scoring at least 20 points in eight of his final 12 games. He finished the season averaging a double-double with 17.8 points and 10.1 rebounds per game.

    Colson is joined on the Blue Ribbon preseason All-America first team by Duke senior Grayson Allen. The second team includes North Carolina senior guard Joel Berry II and Bagley III.

    The complete Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook Preseason Top 25:

    1. Arizona
    2. Michigan State
    3. Duke
    4. Kansas
    5. Kentucky
    6. Louisville
    7. Wichita State
    8. Florida
    9. West Virginia
    10. North Carolina
    11. USC
    12. Villanova
    13. Cincinnati
    14. Purdue
    15. Seton Hall
    16. Miami
    17. Saint Mary’s
    18. Minnesota
    19. Notre Dame
    20. Gonzaga
    21. Xavier
    22. UCLA
    23. Northwestern
    24. Alabama
    25. Virginia Tech

    And Like ZAGS on Facebook

    Written by

    [email protected]

    Adam Zagoria is a Basketball Insider who covers basketball at all levels. A contributor to The New York Times and SportsNet New York (SNY), he is also the author of two books and is an award-winning journalist and filmmaker. His articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide. He also won an Emmy award for his work on the SNY mini-documentary on Syracuse guard Tyus Battle. A veteran Ultimate Frisbee player, he has competed in numerous National and World Championships and, perhaps more importantly, his teams won the Westchester Summer League (WSL) championships in 2011 and 2013. He lives in Manhattan with his wife and children.

  • } });
    X