Iowa State basketball coach T.J. Otzelberger on higher expectations
Iowa State men’s basketball coach T.J. Otzelberger discussed the higher expectations surrounding his basketball team for the 2024-25 season.
After plenty of offseason speculation surrounding where Iowa State would rank among the top men’s college basketball teams in the country entering the 2024-25 season, the picture is a bit clearer now.
On Monday, the Associated Press released its preseason top 25 rankings.
Iowa State AP rankings update
Iowa State men’s basketball opens the season as the No. 5-ranked team, according to the AP poll. It is the Cyclones’ first appearance on the AP preseason top 25 since the 2016-17 campaign, when they started that year ranked No. 24.
The Cyclones climbed the ladder and finished last season as the eighth-ranked team in the AP poll, following their 29-8 season that culminated with a Big 12 Tournament title and an appearance in the Sweet 16. Their 29 wins last year were the second-most in a single season in program history.
Men’s college basketball rankings, preseason
AP Poll
Here is a look at the 2024-25 Associated Press preseason top 25 men’s college basketball poll
- Kansas
- Alabama
- UConn
- Houston
- Iowa State
- Gonzaga
- Duke
- Baylor
- North Carolina
- Arizona
- Auburn
- Tennessee
- Texas A&M
- Purdue
- Creighton
- Arkansas
- Indiana
- Marquette
- Texas
- Cincinnati
- Florida
- UCLA
- Kentucky
- Ole Miss
- Rutgers
Others receiving votes
Illinois 92, St. John’s 91, Xavier 73, Texas Tech 58, Wake Forest 37, Kansas St 30, Michigan St. 29, Ohio St. 29, Michigan 19, BYU 14, Oregon 12, McNeese St. 11, Miami 11, Boise St. 9, Saint Louis 9, Clemson 9, Providence 9, Mississippi St. 6, VCU 6, Wisconsin 5, Saint Mary’s 5, Louisville 4, UAB 4, Ark Little Rock 3, Grand Canyon 3, Arizona St 2, San Diego St. 2, Princeton 2, High Point 1, Maryland 1.
Reach Eugene Rapay at erapay@gannett.com and follow him on X/Twitter @erapay5.
