Nov. 11, 2002

Columbia, Mo. - The University of Missouri men's basketball team was ranked 19th in the nation according to the Associated Press Preseason Poll, which was released this evening. The Tigers were selected as the No. 18 team in the land earlier this month in the ESPN/ USA Today Coaches Poll.

The poll has Mizzou, which went 24-12 last year and reached the Elite Eight for the first time since 1994, as the country's 19th best squad, with the University of Arizona Wildcats once again edging out Big 12 foe Kansas for the No. 1 spot. The Big 12 continued to make a powerful case for being one of the premier conferences in the country as Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas ranked second, third and fourth in the poll, respectively. Six other Tiger opponents (Syracuse, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech, Illinois, Memphis and USC) received votes in the poll.

Mizzou went 2-0 in preseason action over the past two weeks. Its latest win came last Saturday in a 102-79 win over the Midwest All-Stars. The Tigers their 2002-03 regular season in Columbia on Nov. 22 when they welcome 2002 Patriot League Champions American to the Hearnes. Mizzou begins the season with six of their first eight contests at home. For season ticket information, log on to www.mutigers.com or call 1-800-CAT-PAWS or 884-PAWS in Columbia.