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College basketball rankings: Syracuse basketball ranked No. 9 in AP Poll

For the third straight season, the Syracuse Orange will begin the men's hoops season ranked in the top 10 in the AP Poll.

Michael Ivins-US PRESSWIRE

A little over a week ago the USA Today/ESPN Coaches' Poll ranked the Syracuse Orange men's basketball team No. 9 in the country. On Friday, the preseason AP Poll was released and agreed with the assessment also ranking the Orange ninth.

This marks the third time in as many seasons SU will start the year as a top 10 program. Last season, the Orange were ranked 5th in the preseason while in 2010-11 they entered as No. 10.

The ranking is a vote of confidence from voters that SU will be able to replace four key players, including three starters and the Big East Sixth Man of the Year.

Overall, four teams from the Big East Conference cracked the top 25. The Louisville Cardinals had the highest ranking at No. 2, a slot behind the top-ranked Indiana Hoosiers. The Notre Dame Fighting Irish were ranked No. 22 while the Cincinnati Bearcats were ranked 24th.

Here's the complete top 25 poll:

Team (First-place votes) 2011-12 Record Pts
1. Indiana (43) 27-9 1,592
2. Louisville (20) 30-10 1,568
3. Kentucky (2) 38-2 1,453
4. Ohio St. 31-8 1,292
5. Michigan 24-10 1,290
6. NC State 24-13 1,270
7. Kansas 32-7 1,210
8. Duke 27-7 1,094
9. Syracuse 34-3 1,062
10. Florida 26-11 936
11. North Carolina 32-6 904
12. Arizona 23-12 902
13. UCLA 19-14 840
14. Michigan St. 29-8 789
15. Missouri 30-5 664
16. Creighton 29-6 622
17. Memphis 26-9 539
18. UNLV 26-9 488
19. Baylor 30-8 486
20. San Diego St. 26-8 463
21. Gonzaga 26-7 384
22. Notre Dame 22-12 297
23. Wisconsin 26-10 285
24. Cincinnati 26-11 120
25. Florida St. 25-10 101