KenPom ranks Kentucky higher than most preseason polls

Kentucky has hovered around 10 or so in most preseason polls, but the good folks over at KenPom must have watched Pro Day and Big Blue Madness this week and gotten the same exciting vibes as the fans. They ranked Kentucky 4th overall behind Houston, Florida, and Purdue.

KenPom gave Kentucky an offensive rating of 120.1, good for the 8th best in the country, but the Pomeroy analytics system really likes the ‘Cats defensively. They gave Kentucky a defensive rating of 91.2, good for 4th in the country behind only Houston, Iowa State, and Tennessee.

This is a stark contrast from last year’s team. While Mark Pope’s offense finished the season ranked 10th in KemPom’s offensive rating, the 2025 ‘Cats were all the way down at 51st in defensive rating, which dragged their overall ranking down to 16th. But with newcomers Mo Diabate, Jayden Quaintenace, and Denzel Aberdeen, this team could be elite on the defensive side of the ball.

Meanwhile, Louisville came in at number 14 on the 2026 preseason list. Good job, good effort, lil bro.

Another thing that sticks out in this ranking is how many top teams are on Kentucky’s schedule. Kentucky plays nine out of the other 24 ranked teams, and 10 if you include the preseason game against Purdue, a game that is just 12 short days away.

KenPom’s top 25 preseason ranking

1. Houston
2. Florida
3. Purdue
4. Kentucky
5. UConn
6. Illinois
7. Duke
8. Gonzaga
9. Tennessee
10. UCLA
11. Michigan
12. Texas Tech
13. Iowa State
14. Louisville
15. Arizona
16. St. John’s
17. Baylor
18. BYU
19. Vanderbilt
20. Wisconsin
21. Kanasas
22. USC
23. Alabama
24. Ole Miss
25. Mississippi State