As Iowa gets set to play host to the Omaha Mavericks tonight, the Hawkeyes are officially making their season debut in the USA TODAY Sports Men’s Basketball Coaches Poll.
Iowa (3-0) is ranked No. 24, climbing into the poll for the first time this season after receiving votes in each of the first two editions. The Hawkeyes received 22 points in the Oct. 25 preseason poll and 52 points in last week’s Nov. 14 USA TODAY Sports Men’s Basketball Coaches Poll. Iowa is also ranked No. 25 in this week’s AP Top 25 College Basketball Poll.
Iowa has impressed thus far, dispatching of Bethune-Cookman, 89-58, North Carolina A&T, 112-71, and at Seton Hall, 83-67. Kris Murray just tied his career high with 29 points against the Pirates and he’s currently averaging 21.7 points, 8.3 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game.
In fact, all of Iowa’s starters are currently averaging double-figure scoring throughout the Hawkeyes’ opening three games. Patrick McCaffery averages 14.7, Tony Perkins averages 13.3, Filip Rebraca averages 11.0 and Payton Sandfort averages 10.7 points per game.
The top 10 of the latest USA TODAY Sports Men’s Basketball Coaches Poll looks like this: No. 1 North Carolina, No. 2 Houston, No. 3 Kansas, No. 4 Texas, No. 5 Gonzaga, No. 6 Virginia, No. 7 Baylor, No. 8 Creighton, No. 9 Arkansas and No. 10 Duke.
While there aren’t any other league programs inside the top 10, five other Big Ten programs find themselves inside the latest top 25 rankings. Indiana is ranked No. 11, Illinois is No. 14, Michigan State is No. 15, Purdue is No. 23 and Maryland is No. 25.
Here’s a look at the full USA TODAY Sports Men’s Basketball Coaches Poll.
| Rank | Team | Record | Points | Trend |
| 1 | North Carolina | 4-0 | 759 (23) | – |
| 2 | Houston | 5-0 | 729 (7) | +1 |
| 3 | Kansas | 4-0 | 696 | +2 |
| 4 | Texas | 3-0 | 646 (1) | +7 |
| 5 | Gonzaga | 3-1 | 635 | -3 |
| 6 | Virginia | 4-0 | 589 | +8 |
| 7 | Baylor | 4-1 | 543 | -1 |
| 8 | Creighton | 4-0 | 506 | +1 |
| 9 | Arkansas | 3-0 | 502 | +1 |
| 10 | Duke | 3-1 | 480 | -2 |
| 11 | Indiana | 4-0 | 428 | +1 |
| 12 | Arizona | 3-0 | 397 | +1 |
| 13 | Kentucky | 3-2 | 360 | +1 |
| 14 | Illinois | 4-1 | 312 | +4 |
| 15 | Michigan State | 3-1 | 307 | – |
| 16 | Auburn | 4-0 | 301 | +3 |
| 17 | UCLA | 3-2 | 296 | -6 |
| 18 | Alabama | 4-0 | 268 | -2 |
| 19 | San Diego St. | 3-0 | 267 | +1 |
| 20 | Texas Tech | 3-0 | 161 | +3 |
| 21 | Tennessee | 2-1 | 157 | +1 |
| 22 | Connecticut | 5-0 | 126 | +2 |
| 23 | Purdue | 3-0 | 125 | +2 |
| 24 | Iowa | 3-0 | 115 | +2 |
| 25 | Maryland | 5-0 | 76 | +5 |
Schools Dropped Out
Others Receiving Votes
Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes, and opinions.
Follow Josh on Twitter: @JoshOnREF
Let us know your thoughts, comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.