Maryland men’s basketball ranked at the No. 21 spot in the AP Top 25 Preseason Poll

Maryland men’s basketball was given the No. 21 spot in the AP Top 25 Preseason Poll for the 2021-22 season, the program announced earlier on Monday.

The Terps received a grand total of 294 votes and they are behind just four other Big Ten teams that were also placed in the poll. No. 6 Michigan, No. 7 Purdue, No. 11 Illinois and No. 17 Ohio State are all ahead of Maryland in the rankings. This is the fifth time in the last seven seasons that the Terps have been ranked in the AP poll and it is the 22nd time ever that Maryland has earned a preseason ranking from AP.

Maryland will boast a strong starting lineup heading into the 2021-22 campaign as the program is returning a few of its top scorers from a season ago and it is bringing in a few highly-regarded transfers onto the roster as well. Senior guard Eric Ayala, junior forward Donta Scott and junior guard Hakim Hart will lead Maryland on the court, with transfers Fatts Russell and Qudus Wahab stepping into large roles right out of the gates to fill out the starting five.

Looking at the rest of the Big Ten outside of the top 25, Michigan State, Indiana, Rutgers all received votes heading into the season. The conference will once again be jam-packed with talented teams, and Maryland starts with the fifth-highest ranking out of the pack.