The coaches and media that vote for the nation’s Top 25 college basketball teams agree on one thing: Maryland is No. 3 in the country going into the 2015-16 season.
Following the USA Today Sports coaches’ poll released last month, the Associated Press media preseason poll released Monday has the Terps behind North Carolina and Kentucky.
Maryland plays the Tar Heels in Chapel Hill on Dec. 1 as part of the ACC-Big Ten Challenge.
After sharing the top spot with Kentucky in the USA Today poll despite having more first-place votes, North Carolina came in ahead of the Wildcats in the AP poll, followed by Maryland, Kansas and Duke.
It is the second-highest preseason ranking ever for the Terps. Maryland was No. 2 by the AP going into 2001-2002 after reaching the Final Four for the first time the previous season. The Terps were also No. 3 in the coaches’ poll going into that season, which ended with Maryland’s lone national championship.
The Terps play their first preseason game Friday against the University of Southern New Hampshire – the alma mater of assistant coach Bino Ranson and Division II finalists last season – before opening the regular season Nov. 13 against Mount St. Mary’s at Xfinity Center.
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