Mountaineers 14th in preseason hoops poll

MORGANTOWN (AP) - For the first time in 43 years, the West Virginia men's basketball team is ranked heading into the regular season.

West Virginia was 14th in The Associated Press preseason basketball poll on Monday.

The last time West Virginia was ranked in the preseason came in 1962 when it was No. 5.

The Big East leads all conferences with five ranked teams - Connecticut, Villanova, Louisville, West Virginia and Syracuse.

The Mountaineers are coming off their best NCAA tournament run in a half-century after advancing to the regional finals before falling to Louisville. West Virginia went 24-11 and returns four of five starters.

Top 25 Preseason Poll

The top 25 teams in The Associated Press' preseason men's college basketball poll, with first-place votes in parentheses, 2004-05 records, total points based on 25 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 25th-place vote and 2004-05 final ranking:

Record Pts Pvs

1. Duke (61) 27-6 1,785 3

2. Texas (6) 20-11 1,652 -

3. Connecticut 23-8 1,578 13

4. Michigan St. (4) 26-7 1,572 15

5. Villanova (1) 24-8 1,413 19

6. Oklahoma 25-8 1,378 17

7. Louisville 33-5 1,319 4

8. Gonzaga 26-5 1,275 10

9. Kentucky 28-6 1,255 7

10. Arizona 30-7 1,212 9

11. Boston College 25-5 1,093 14

12. Memphis 22-16 920 -

13. Stanford 18-13 842 -

14. West Virginia 24-11 652 -

15. Alabama 24-8 621 21

16. Syracuse 27-7 586 11

17. Illinois 37-2 563 1

18. Wake Forest 27-6 524 5

19. UCLA 18-11 499 -

20. Iowa 21-12 395 -

21. George Washington 22-8 304 -

22. Nevada 25-7 291 -

23. Indiana 15-14 273 -

24. Maryland 19-13 258 -

25. Iowa St. 19-12 251 -

Others receiving votes: Washington 144, Texas Tech 142, Kansas 96, N.C. State 74, Ohio St. 74, Wisconsin 56, LSU 54, Georgetown 46, Charlotte 44, North Carolina 38, Michigan 24, N. Iowa 21, Miami 16, Oklahoma St. 16, Old Dominion 13, Florida 6, Bucknell 5, Ohio 4, Arkansas 3, S. Illinois 3, Cincinnati 2, Utah St. 2, Wis.-Milwaukee 2, California 1, Hawaii 1, Houston 1, Notre Dame 1.