Hardaway’s Tigers ranked in preseason AP Top 25 poll
The Tigers are back.
In the preseason Associated Press Top 25 men's basketball poll, that is.
Memphis is ranked No. 14 in the annual poll that was released Monday morning. It's the first time the Tigers have landed a spot on the preseason poll since 2013, when they were 11th.
Memphis, which was ranked eighth in The Sporting News' preseason poll and 12th in March Madness' Power 36, will find out where it falls on the preseason USA TODAY Coaches' Poll when it is released Thursday.
Michigan State sits atop the preseason AP poll, followed by Kentucky, Kansas, Duke and Louisville. Florida, Maryland, Gonzaga, North Carolina and Villanova make up the rest of the top 10. Virginia, Seton Hall and Texas Tech are Nos. 11-13, while Oregon is No. 15.
The Tigers will travel to Portland, Oregon, for a Nov. 12 matchup with the Ducks at the Moda Center. Oregon is the only opponent on Memphis' schedule in the preseason Top 25. Tennessee (78), Houston (11), Cincinnati (8) and N.C. State (2) received votes in the poll. The Tigers face Tennessee on Dec. 14 in Knoxville and N.C. State on Nov. 28 in Brooklyn, New York.
Penny Hardaway signed the No. 1 recruiting class in the country this offseason, significantly raising expectations for the program in his second year as coach. It helped the Tigers earn a share of the top spot on the preseason American Athletic Conference poll, which is voted on by the league's coaches.
"It's pressure, but it's pressure that we want," Hardaway said last week at AAC media day in Philadelphia. "Because that's the competitive nature that we have. You know, you want to be the hunted and not the hunter . ... It means you're in a great position right now. And you just have to sustain.
"We want that type of pressure on us every game to go out and win every game."
This year's ranking snaps the program's longest string of absences from the preseason poll since 1996-2001. Memphis has not been ranked by the AP since March 10, 2014, making the most recent drought the longest for the program in the past 45 years.
This year's spot in the rankings is the 22nd time since 1972 the Tigers have been a preseason Top 25 team.
Memphis was 22-14 last season (11-7 AAC) and lost to Creighton in the second round of the National Invitation Tournament.
Reach sports writer Jason Munz at jason.munz@commercialappeal.com or on Twitter @munzly.