Jayhawks popular pick as 2018-19's preseason No. 1

If the experts' projections are correct, Kansas’ basketball team will return to the Sprint Center for NCAA Tournament Midwest Regional games March 29-31, 2019, and ultimately wind up in a second-straight Final Four on April 6-8 in Minneapolis.

The Jayhawks (31-8) — who this past season won a 14th-straight Big 12 regular-season title and the league’s postseason tourney crown en route to claiming a third Final Four bid in the 15-year Bill Self era — are a popular No. 1 pick in various preseason polls for 2018-19.

If that No. 1 distinction stands, one could envision another No. 1 seed in the Midwest Regional. That would mean first- and second-round games in either Des Moines, Iowa, or Tulsa, Okla., with the regional set for the Sprint Center (where KU went 1-1 in the 2017 NCAA Tourney). The 2019 Final Four will be held at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.

“Bill Self's squad should defend its Big 12 title streak and make another run in the NCAA Tournament,” writes Myron Medcalf of ESPN.com in ranking Kansas No. 1 and Kansas State No. 19 in his first 2018-19 preseason poll.

“He (Self) will have more talent. Yeah, it sounds crazy, but Malik Newman — if he returns — will enter next season as a preseason All-American after his dominance in the NCAA Tournament. Lagerald Vick and Udoka Azubuike should also return, joining a Top 10 recruiting class that features a pair of five-star guards: Devon Dotson and Quentin Grimes. Wait, there's more. Self will also add Memphis transfers K.J. Lawson (12.3 ppg, 8.1 rpg in 2016-17) and Dedric Lawson (19.2 ppg, 9.9 rpg) and Cal transfer Charlie Moore (12.2 ppg), who are all eligible to play. Oh, and Romeo Langford, a top-five recruit who is unsigned, could still pick the Jayhawks, too. That's a (heckuva) talent pool for Self,” Medcalf added.

Of course, many believe Newman and Vick will enter the upcoming June NBA Draft with Azubuike also a possible early entrant. Langford has a final three of KU, Indiana and Vanderbilt.

Here’s a look at some other early polls. …

NBCsports.com ranks KU No. 1 and K-State 10th: “Losing (Devonté) Graham is a major, major blow for this program, but they had as much talent sitting out this season as any program in college basketball,” analyst Rob Dauster writes. “Charlie Moore should be able to step in and handle the point guard duties while Dedric Lawson and K.J. Lawson will give Bill Self actual power forwards, something he has been yearning for the last two years. There is still going to be some turbulence with this roster. Do they hold onto Malik Newman and Udoka Azubuike? Will they land Romeo Langford? Will anyone get run out of town? But the bottom line is that they are talented, they are old, they are well coached and they actually have a functional point guard on their roster.”

Yahoo!Sports ranks Kansas No. 1 and K-State No. 13: “Pencil Kansas in as the class of the Big 12 next season despite the departure of All-American Graham and potentially two other members of the Jayhawks’ starting backcourt,” writes Jeff Eisenberg. “Bill Self will reload thanks largely to a strong crop of newcomers highlighted by a trio of incoming transfers. Dedric Lawson performed like a potential All-American on the Kansas scout team this year. The opportunity to pair him and either Azubuike or (Silvio) De Sousa together could force Self to abandon his four-guard look and go back to Kansas’ traditional high-low system.”

CBSsports.com ranks KU No. 1 and K-State 12: “Self will once again have a roster loaded with talent and experience. … Dedric Lawson should be a double-double nightmare for opponents right from the jump. And the arrival of five-star guards Quentin Grimes and Devon Dotson makes the expected loss of Newman less of a big deal,” writes Gary Parrish.

Sporting News ranks KU No. 1. K-State is unranked: “For next year’s Jayhawks, it’s all about the newbies. They’re adding two five-star guards, Quentin Grimes and Devon Dodson, and four-star big man David McCormack. The thing KU fans probably are most excited for, though, are the transfers. The Jayhawks have three established college players ready to hit the ground running after a year of pushing the starters on the scout team,” writes Ryan Fagan.

USA Today has ranked KU No. 1 and K-State No. 12; SportsIllustrated.com has KU No. 1 and K-State 17; FanRagsports.com has KU No. 1 and KSU No. 13; and analyst Ken Pomeroy of Kenpom.com has KU No. 1 in his early Top 11.

Just two polls have KU as low as No. 2. Bleacher Report has Villanova No. 1 and KU 2; The Athletic has Duke No. 1 and KU No. 2.

As far as the oddsmakers, Vegas’ Westgate SuperBook has Duke the favorite to win it all at 5-to-1 odds (as reported by ESPN.com), followed by KU, Villanova and Kentucky all at 8-1.

Villanova, which will be pursuing a third NCAA crown in four seasons, will meet KU on Dec. 15 at Allen Fieldhouse.

Dooley to return to ECU?

Former KU assistant coach Joe Dooley, who has been head coach at Florida Gulf Coast the last five seasons, is slated to become head coach at East Carolina, according to radio station 94.3 in Greenville, N.C., as well as the Naples (Fla.) Daily News and others.

"It's a verbal agreement for Dooley to become East Carolina's next coach. He is expected to sign the contract later today (Tuesday) and the BOT (Board of Trustees at ECU) will approve it tomorrow afternoon,” wrote Josh Graham of 94.3 radio.

Florida Gulf Coast athletic director Ken Kavanagh texted to the Naples Daily News: "Nothing to report and can't comment.”

Dooley, 52, went 57-52 at East Carolina during 1995-99. His .523 winning percentage is the best in school history.

He has compiled a 114-57 record at Florida Gulf Coast and led the Eagles to three Atlantic Sun regular-season titles and two NCAA Tournament berths. The Eagles (23-12) fell to Oklahoma State in the first round of the 2018 NIT.

Dooley, according to the Naples Daily News watched KU’s 85-81 Elite Eight victory over Duke at home with his wife, Tanya, and son, Max. All three were in San Antonio for the Final Four.

"Max loves watching the Jayhawks," Dooley told the Naples Daily News. “Tanya loves watching the games. We're very excited and happy for coach (Self) and the program.

"Oh, my gosh, they've broken every KU record by far — for made threes, attempted threes," Dooley added. ”This team has gotten better and better as the season went along. They’re very good.”

KU 15 back of Kentucky

Kansas (31-8) picked up five games on Kentucky (26-11) this past season in all-time victories. Kentucky is No. 1 all-time at 2,263 wins, followed by KU (2,248), North Carolina (2,232) and Duke (2,144).

This story was originally published April 3, 2018 at 7:18 PM with the headline "Jayhawks popular pick as 2018-19's preseason No. 1."