A season ago, the focus was on one team and one team only: Kentucky. This season, well, the Wildcats are still in our sights, but so many other teams have entered the conversation in what could be a wide-open season in college basketball. It's time to start the march to March. You ready?

Voters: Eamonn Brennan, C.L. Brown, Sean Farnham, John Gasaway, Jeff Goodman, Seth Greenberg, Andy Katz, Joe Lunardi, Dana O'Neil, Myron Medcalf

No. 1: Maryland

The Maryland Terrapins are going from having their coach on the hot seat to preseason No. 1. Talk about a turnaround.

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No. 2: North Carolina

North Carolina has a roster loaded with talent and experience. It also has an NCAA investigation hanging over it. Can the Tar Heels put it all behind them and go the distance?

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No. 3: Kentucky

Kentucky lost so much of last season's near-perfect roster. Think it's a rebuilding year? Clearly, you haven't been paying attention.

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No. 4: Kansas

Kansas will be searching for a 12th consecutive Big 12 title. For folks around the Jayhawks, though, another league crown isn't enough.

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No. 5: Virginia

Virginia will defend. But everyone expected that. Now can the Cavaliers score? That is the important question.

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No. 6: Duke

Duke doesn't want to look at this season as one in which it's defending a title. The key cogs in the group are gone. Mike Krzyzewski has a new crop of players ready to chase a title, not defend one.

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No. 7: Iowa State

The Mayor has left office, leaving Steve Prohm to settle into the chair previously occupied by local hero Fred Hoiberg. And Hoiberg did not leave a bare cupboard.

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No. 8: Oklahoma

Nothing about Oklahoma jumps out at you. Not coach Lon Kruger. Not star Buddy Hield. But don't let that calm exterior fool you.

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No. 9: Villanova

Villanova's overall record the past two seasons is impressive. It's those early exits from the NCAA tournament that haunt the Wildcats and follow them into another season.

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No. 10: Wichita State

The band is back at Wichita State. Senior guards Fred VanVleet and Ron Baker and coach Gregg Marshall are looking for one more inspired run.

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No. 11: Gonzaga

The conversation always starts with the same question: Is this the year Gonzaga reaches the Final Four? With the sons of former NBAers at the ready, maybe, just maybe, it is.

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No. 12: California

California and its new coach (hello, Cuonzo Martin) and high-end recruiting class (that's you, Ivan Rabb and Jaylen Brown) are ready to take on the usual Pac-12 powers.

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No. 13: Arizona

Arizona usually enters a season with Final Four expectations. Not this season, though. So without that burden, could the Wildcats make a big run?

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No. 14: Indiana

The pressure is on at Indiana. After a tumultuous offseason, the focus on whether Tom Crean can get the Hoosiers back among the elite will only increase.

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No. 15: Michigan State

The Spartans' season outlook changed considerably the moment Caleb Swanigan changed his mind and decided to go to Purdue instead of Michigan State.

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No. 16: Vanderbilt

Conversations about the SEC's best don't usually involve Vanderbilt. That is going to change this season.

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No. 17: Wisconsin

A season of uncertainty begins at Wisconsin, where it's fair to wonder: Will this be coach Bo Ryan's last year?

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No. 18: Utah

Sure, Delon Wright is gone. But Jakob Poeltl put off the millions of the NBA to make another run with the Utes.

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No. 19: LSU

The arrival of Ben Simmons has changed everything at LSU, where basketball is suddenly worth talking about again.

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No. 20: SMU

SMU won't play in the postseason and will be without its coach, Larry Brown, for part of the year while he sits out a suspension. It could be a hard year for the Mustangs.

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No. 21: UConn

UConn and coach Kevin Ollie are ready for 2015-16 to begin and completely put behind last season's disappointments.

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No. 22: Michigan

Health will be the key for Michigan. The Wolverines have the talent on the floor. But will they remain there?

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No. 23: Georgetown

D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera said he was going to the NBA. Then he decided against it, and Georgetown is better because of it.

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No. 24: Purdue

Michigan State's loss was Purdue's gain. Actually, it was the Boilermakers' big, big gain, when Caleb Swanigan decided to decommit from MSU.

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No. 25 (tie): Baylor

Baylor made an early exit from last season's NCAA tournament, but the Bears are back and ready to try again.

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No. 25 (tie): Butler

Butler has settled into some normalcy as Chris Holtmann enters his second season as coach.

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