Houston Cougars Basketball Nears Top Of Preseason AP Top 25 Rankings

The Cougars were gifted their highest preseason ranking in nearly 60 years.

Apr 7, 2025; San Antonio, TX, USA; Houston Cougars head coach Kelvin Sampson reacts after a play against the Florida Gators during the first half of the national championship game of the Final Four of the 2025 NCAA Tournament at the Alamodome. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

After falling just three points shy of their first national championship against the Florida Gators, Kelvin Sampson and the Houston Cougars men's basketball team are out for redemption in the 2025-26 hoops season, looking to repeat their success from the previous season, only this time have more points shown on the board when the buzzer sounds in the national championship.

Though the team will be without players such as forward J'Wan Roberts and guard LJ Cryer after their eligibility expired, the team still retained personnel such as Milos Uzan, Emanuel Sharp, and the reigning Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year Joseph Tugler, all of whom played a vital role in putting the Coogs into the national championship.

And now, as they prepare to return to the national title picture, the Associated Press seems to believe that they are more than capable of doing so, at least that's what their preseason Top 25 rankings show.

Houston Ranked No. 2 in Preseason Top 25 Poll

With the college basketball season just a couple of weeks away, the AP released their preseason Top 25 rankings Monday morning, with the Cougars being spotted at No. 2 in the ranks, their highest preseason ranking since the 1967-68 team, behind only the Purdue Boilermakers, whom they defeated in the Sweet 16 during their title hunt.

Apr 5, 2025; San Antonio, TX, USA; Duke Blue Devils center Khaman Maluach (9) and Houston Cougars guard Milos Uzan (7) battle for the ball in the semifinals of the men's Final Four of the 2025 NCAA Tournament at the Alamodome. Mandatory Credit: Robert Deutsch-Imagn Images | Robert Deutsch-Imagn Images

The Cougars finished the 2024-25 regular season with a 27-4 record, which began with the team ranked No. 4 before going 4-3 in their first seven contests and dropping down to No. 17 before embarking on a 13-game winning streak, which culminated in their lone conference loss last season, an 82-81 overtime defeat at the hands of the Texas Tech Red Raiders.

After defeating the Colorado Buffaloes, BYU Cougars, and Arizona Wildcats to capture the Big 12 Championship, the Coogs would then defeat SIU Edwardsville and Gonzaga in the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament, which then led to the team eliminating Purdue in the Sweet 16, Tennessee in the Elite Eight, and Duke in the Final Four, before finally falling to Florida 65-63 in the national championship game, leaving head coach Kelvin Sampson still scrounging for his first championship in his 12th season as the leader of the team.

Here is the full preseason Top 25, via the AP:

1) Purdue Boilermakers

2) Houston Cougars

3) Florida Gators

4) UConn Huskies

5) St. John's Red Storm

6) Duke Blue Devils

7) Michigan Wolverines

8) BYU Cougars

9) Kentucky Wildcats

10) Texas Tech Red Raiders

11) Louisville Cardinals

12) UCLA Bruins

13) Arizona Wildcats

14) Arkansas Razorbacks

15) Alabama Crimson Tide

16) Iowa State Cyclones

17) Illinois Fighting Illini

18) Tennessee Volunteers

19) Kansas Jayhawks

20) Auburn Tigers

21) Gonzaga Bulldogs

22) Michigan State Spartans

23) Creighton Bluejays

24) Wisconsin Badgers

25) North Carolina Tar Heels

Houston will begin their season on October 26 in an exhibition matchup against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at 6:30 PM on ESPN.