The Final Regular Season AP Men's Top 25 Poll for College Basketball's 1997-98 Season
Updated August 28, 2020 |
Infoplease Staff
Taken before start of NCAA tournament.
The sportswriters & broadcasters poll: first place votes in parentheses; records through Monday, March 9, 1998; total points (based on 25 for 1st, 24 for 2nd, etc.); record in NCAA tourney and team lost to; head coach (career years and record including 1998 postseason), and preseason ranking. Teams in bold type went on to reach NCAA Final Four.
| Mar. 9 Record |
Points | NCAA Recap | Head Coach | Preseason Rank |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | North Carolina (55) | 30-3 | 1734 | 4-1 (Utah) | Bill Guthridge (1 yr: 34-4) | 4 |
| 2 | Kansas (13) | 34-3 | 1652 | 1-1 (Rhode Island) | Roy Williams (10 yrs: 282-62) | 2 |
| 3 | Duke | 29-3 | 1601 | 3-1 (Kentucky) | Mike Krzyzewski (23 yrs: 505-212) | 3 |
| 4 | Arizona (2) | 27-4 | 1580 | 3-1 (Utah) | Lute Olson (25 yrs: 565-205) | 1 |
| 5 | Kentucky | 29-4 | 1439 | 6-0 | Tubby Smith (7 yrs: 159-66) | 8 |
| 6 | Connecticut | 29-4 | 1429 | 3-1 (North Carolina) | Jim Calhoun (26 yrs: 520-256) | 12 |
| 7 | Utah | 25-3 | 1216 | 5-1 (Kentucky) | Rick Majerus (14 yrs: 309-111) | 16 |
| 8 | Princeton | 26-1 | 1194 | 1-1 (Michigan St.) | Bill Carmody (2 yrs: 51-6) | 58 |
| 9 | Cincinnati | 26-5 | 1129 | 1-1 (West Virginia) | Bob Huggins (17 yrs: 387-149) | 28 |
| 10 | Stanford | 26-4 | 1114 | 4-1 (Kentucky) | Mike Montgomery (20 yrs: 389-209) | 14 |
| 11 | Purdue | 26-7 | 1005 | 2-1 (Stanford) | Gene Keady (20 yrs: 432-187) | 9 |
| 12 | Michigan | 24-8 | 961 | 1-1 (UCLA) | Brian Ellerbee (1 yr: 25-9) | 25 |
| 13 | Mississippi | 22-6 | 880 | 0-1 (Valparaiso) | Rob Evans (6 yrs: 86-81) | 23 |
| 14 | South Carolina | 23-7 | 859 | 0-1 (Richmond) | Eddie Fogler (11 yrs: 227-144) | 7 |
| 15 | Texas Christian | 27-5 | 784 | 0-1 (Florida St.) | Billy Tubbs (24 yrs: 519-247) | 41t |
| 16 | Michigan St. | 20-7 | 717 | 2-1 (North Carolina) | Tom Izzo (3 yrs: 55-36) | NR |
| 17 | Arkansas | 23-8 | 487 | 1-1 (Utah) | Nolan Richardson (18 yrs: 433-155) | 30 |
| 18 | New Mexico | 23-7 | 474 | 1-1 (Syracuse) | Dave Bliss (23 yrs: 440-262) | 11 |
| 19 | UCLA | 22-8 | 464 | 2-1 (Kentucky) | Steve Lavin (2 yrs: 48-17) | 6 |
| 20 | Maryland | 19-10 | 417 | 2-1 (Arizona) | Gary Williams (20 yrs: 371-240) | 27 |
| 21 | Syracuse | 24-8 | 377 | 2-1 (Duke) | Jim Boeheim (22 yrs: 528-181) | 35 |
| 22 | Illinois | 22-9 | 366 | 1-1 (Maryland) | Lon Kruger (16 yrs: 282-205) | 40 |
| 23 | Xavier-OH | 22-7 | 275 | 0-1 (Washington) | Skip Prosser (5 yrs: 98-47) | 10 |
| 24 | Temple | 21-8 | 124 | 0-1 (West Virginia) | John Chaney (26 yrs: 581-208) | NR |
| 25 | Murray St. | 29-3 | 71 | 0-1 (Rhode Island) | Mark Gottfried (3 yrs: 68-24) | NR |
Others receiving votes: 26. Clemson (18-13) 60 pts; 27. West Virginia (22-8) 58; 28. Oklahoma St. (21-6) 46; 29. St. John's (22-9) 45; 30. Massachusetts (21-10) 37; 31. George Washington (24-8) 32; 32. UNLV (20-12) 30; 33. Rhode Island (22-8) 24; 34. Hawaii (19-8) 16; 35. UNC-Charlotte (19-10) 15; 36. Illinois St. (24-5) and Tennessee (20-8) 10; 38. Oklahoma (22-10) 5; 39. Indiana (19-11) 4; 40. Iona (27-5) 3; 41. Eastern Michigan (20-9), Northern Arizona (21-7) and Utah St. (25-7) 2.
| Orlando Magic | 1997-98 Season | NCAA Men's Division I Tournament Seeds |
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