Cowboys And Jayhawks Tie Atop Preseason Poll, Sooners Fifth

For just the third time in conference history, there is a tie at the top of the Big 12 preseason poll as Kansas and Oklahoma State have been picked to win the league regular season crown. It marks the 12th time in Big 12 history that KU has been the preseason favorite, while the Cowboys are chosen for the third time.

With 77 points, both the Cowboys and Jayhawks received five first-place votes and four second-place votes. Coaches were not permitted to vote for their own team. Baylor was third with 63 points, followed by Iowa State (56 points), and Kansas State and Oklahoma (tied for fifth with 43 points each). West Virginia was seventh with 35 points, then Texas (30), Texas Tech (14) and TCU rounded out the league with 12.

Oklahoma State returns its top three scorers, including last season's Big 12 Player of the Year Marcus Smart. OSU has four starters back in 2013-14 and returns 95.4 percent of its points overall from a year ago. It is the first time since sharing the preseason top spot with Kansas in in 2004-05 that the Cowboys have been selected to win the league. OSU was also the preseason Big 12 favorite in 1998-99.

The top returnees for KU will be sophomore Perry Ellis (5.8 ppg) and junior Naadir Tharpe (113 assists), who will be joined by a highly-touted group of newcomers. Leading the incoming players will be freshman Andrew Wiggins, who was rated as the consensus No. 1 player in the nation coming out of high school. The Jayhawks have won nine straight outright or shared Big 12 regular season crowns.

The Sooners lost their top three scorers from last year's tied-for-fourth finish. Senior Cameron Clark will lead OU this season and be supported by a trio of sophomore guards: Je'lon Hornbeak, Buddy Hield and Isaiah Cousins.

2013-14 BIG 12 PRESEASON POLL

Team (First-place Votes) Points

1. Kansas (5) 77

   Oklahoma State (5) 77

3. Baylor 63

4. Iowa State 56

5. Kansas State 43

   Oklahoma 43

7. West Virginia 35

8. Texas 30

9. Texas Tech 14

10. TCU 12