Baylor Basketball Ranked No. 8 in AP Poll; No. 4 on KenPom

Defending national champion, Baylor, opens the season No. 8 in the AP Poll.

On KenPom, Baylor is No. 4. Ken Pomeroy’s rankings are considered the best by most folks that follow analytics or adjusted points per possession analysis. He is far lower on the Longhorns than the consensus, ranking Texas No. 14.

My take is that No. 8 is a fair start for the Bears. Other than Texas, every team above Baylor returns significant pieces from teams that were at least good last season.

St. Bonaventure and Texas are overrated. The Bonnies might improve, but like a few years back, I’m going to need to see them beat someone real or be better analytically before I consider them real. Teams like Davidson and Wichita State—at least pre-AAC—at least rated highly on KenPom and other sites when the schedule lacked marquee wins. The Bonnies haven’t had either. Texas has 12 guys that expect to play major minutes, and some issues with efficiency. I need to see it before I buy that a new squad is up there with Gonzaga and UCLA.

Here’s the full poll: