Iowa State picked 8th in Big 12 preseason men's basketball poll
Iowa State's shocking Sweet 16 appearance last season has raised the program in the estimation of the Big 12's coaches.
But not by much.
A year after being the unanimous pick to finish last in the league and ultimately landing in the NCAA Tournament's secondweekend, the Cyclones have been picked eighth in the Big 12 by the conference's coaches in their annual preseason poll.
Picking the Cyclones to finish near the bottom of the conference isn't much of a surprise, even after they blew last year's expectations away. First-team all-Big 12 and leading scorer Izaiah Brockington has left for the professional ranks while starting point guard Tyrese Hunter transferred to Texas. Iowa State just has four returning players from last year's team, and the Cyclones have bolstered the roster with another big transfer group and a solid 2022 recruiting class.
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Baylor, the 2020-21 national champion, is picked to win the league after receiving five first-place votes. Kansas, the defending national champion, came in second with four votes. Texas received one first-place vote and registered third.
The Big 12 released its preseason all-conference team Wednesday and Iowa State had no players selected.
The Cyclones open the season Monday, Nov. 7, at 7 p.m. inside Hilton Coliseum against IUPUI. The game will be broadcasted by ESPN+.
2022-23 Big 12 Preseason Poll
Note: Coaches are not permitted to vote for their own team.
Baylor (5 first-place votes) 77 points; 2. Kansas (4) 73; 3. Texas (1) 64; 4. TCU 58; T5. Oklahoma State 42; T5. Texas Tech 42; 7. Oklahoma 32; 8. Iowa State 30; 9. West Virginia 20; 10. Kansas State 12
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Big 12 coaches have low expectations for Iowa State basketball
