ACC Preseason Poll Voters View Cal Basketball the Same as a Year Ago

The Cal men’s basketball team still has something to prove to media covering the Atlantic Coast Conference.

The Bears, beginning their second season in the ACC with potentially an entirely new starting lineup, have been picked to finish 16th in the 18-team conference in a poll of 49 media members who cover the league.

That’s just where the Bears were projected a year ago, when they wound up 15th in the final ACC standings at 6-14 in conference play, 14-19 overall.

Duke, ranked No. 6 in the preseason AP Top-25, was voted as the ACC favorite for the 10th time in 13 seasons. The Blue Devils secured 34 of 49 first-place votes to outdistance Louisville, which is No. 11 in the AP poll and second in the ACC projections after collecting the remaining 15 first-place ballots.

Preseason Predicted Order of Finish for the 25-26 season 📊 pic.twitter.com/tomny8ScPK
— ACC Men's Basketball (@accmbb) October 14, 2025

NC State senior forward Darrion Williams was chosen as the ACC preseason Player of the Year. Williams received 23 first-place votes to edge Duke freshman Cameron Boozer, who was first on 19 ballots.

Williams, who played his freshman season at Nevada and the past two years at Texas Tech, averaged 15.1 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.9 assists last season to earn All-Big 12 honors. He averaged 20.1 points in four NCAA tournament games with the Red Raiders.

Both Williams and Boozer landed spots on the five-player preseason All-ACC team, with Boozer also being chosen as the ACC preseason Rookie of the Year.

Boozer, whose twin brother Cayden is also on the Duke roster, was a five-star prospect ranked among the top three prospects nationally. He is the son of former NBA standout Carlos Boozer, who had 12 points and 12 rebounds in the Blue Devils’ victory over Arizona on the 2001 NCAA championship game.

Rounding out the first team are Notre Dame’s Markus Burton and the Louisville tandem of Ryan Conwell and freshman Mikel Brown Jr.

Cal had no player chosen to either the first or second preseason All-ACC team.

Introducing the 25-26 Preseason All-ACC Teams.

🔗 https://t.co/MHdYR7CYrZ pic.twitter.com/zc3wlVFObD
— ACC Men's Basketball (@accmbb) October 14, 2025

Coach Mark Madsen, beginning his third season, has 11 newcomers, including nine transfers, along with returnees DJ Campbell, Rytis Petraitis and Lee Dort.

2025 ACC PRESEASON POLL

School, Points

1. Duke (34), 866

2. Louisville (15), 842

3. North Carolina, 741

4. NC State, 710

5. Virginia, 623

6. SMU, 616

7. Clemson, 510

8. Miami, 500

9. Syracuse, 489

10. Notre Dame, 477

11. Wake Forest, 412

12. Virginia Tech, 355

13. Georgia Tech, 315

14. Pitt, 301

15. Florida State, 221

16. California, 156

17. Stanford, 138

18. Boston College, 107

NOTE: First-place votes in parentheses; 49 total voters

2025-26 PRESEASON ALL-ACC TEAM

First Team

Name, School, Votes

Cameron Boozer, Duke, 46

Markus Burton, Notre Dame, 46

Darrion Williams, NC State, 45

Mikel Brown Jr., Louisville, 36

Ryan Conwell, Louisville, 36

Second Team

Isaiah Evans, Duke, 24

Boopie Miller, SMU, 27

J.J. Starling, Syracuse, 27

Baye Ndongo, Georgia Tech, 24

Caleb Wilson, North Carolina, 24

ACC Preseason Player of the Year

Darrion Williams, NC State, 23 votes

Cameron Boozer, Duke, 19

Markus Burton, Notre Dame, 2

J.J. Starling, Syracuse, 2

Donald Hand Jr., Boston College, 1

Baye Ndongo, Georgia Tech, 1

Caleb Wilson, North Carolina, 1

ACC Preseason Rookie of the Year

Cameron Boozer, Duke, 43 votes

Mikel Brown Jr., Louisville, 3

Caleb Wilson, North Carolina, 2

Neoklis Avdalas, Virginia Tech, 1

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