KU’s loss continues Jayhawks’ odd and ugly streak when ranked No. 1 in the preseason
There will be quite a bit of hoopla this fall when the first college men’s basketball poll is released. That’s always the case.
But recent history suggests being ranked No. 1 before the games are played is more of a curse. Here’s how the last three teams to be ranked first in the preseason poll have fared.
2024: Kansas, lost in the first round of the NCAA Tournament as a No. 7 seed
2023: Kansas, lost in the second round of the NCAA Tournament as a No. 4 seed
2022: North Carolina, missed the NCAA Tournament
The Jayhawks’ history as the preseason No. 1 team in the country is ugly. KU’s loss to 10th-seeded Arkansas on Thursday night marked just the second time a preseason No. 1 team has lost in the first round.
The other time it happened: KU in 2005, as ESPN noted. That’s a select group in college basketball history and not one the Jayhawks wanted all to themselves.
CBS Sports’ Matt Norlander noted there have been five instances in which the Jayhawks have opened the season as a No. 1 ranked team.
They’ve never made the Sweet 16 in any of those seasons.
That’s a weird and ugly streak for the Jayhawks, whose fans probably won’t be unhappy if KU is not ranked first ahead of the 2025-26 season.
