SAN FRANCISCO – Stanford was picked to finish tied for second in the Pac-12 when the conference announced the results of the preseason coaches poll on Wednesday morning at the league's annual Media Day in San Francisco.
The Cardinal totaled 108 points and garnered two first-place votes. Oregon also collected 108 points, including three first-place votes. UCLA was the leading vote getter for the second consecutive year, receiving seven first-place votes and 115 points. Oregon State was fourth (85 points) and California fifth (83 points) while Arizona State (74 points) rounded out the top half of the poll in sixth.
It's the third consecutive season Stanford has come in second in the preseason poll. The Cardinal had topped the rankings for 15 consecutive years beginning in 2000-01.
Stanford is coming off a 32-6 campaign that included the program's 13th Final Four appearance and its 12th Pac-12 Tournament championship.
Washington State (61 points), USC (47 points), Utah (40 points), Colorado (38 points), Arizona (20 points) and Washington (13 points) rounded out the rest of the poll.
The Cardinal opens the season in Columbus, Ohio on Friday, Nov. 10 for a game against Ohio State that will be carried on the Big Ten Network at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT. Two days later, Stanford will face UConn for the first time since 2014 at Nationwide Arena in downtown Columbus on ESPN at 1:30 p.m. ET/10:30 a.m. PT.
In the nonconference Stanford will also play at Baylor on Sunday, Dec. 3 at 1 p.m. CT/11 a.m. PT on FS1 and its storied rivalry with Tennessee adds another chapter in Maples Pavilion on Thursday, Dec. 21 at 6 p.m. PT on Pac-12 Networks.
Seventeen of the Cardinal's 18 conference games will be carried on television, including its conference home opener against the Bruins on Friday, Dec. 29 at 5:30 p.m. PT on Pac-12 Networks.
Season tickets, three-game and six-game mini plans and group tickets (15 or more) for all dates on the 2017-18 calendar are on sale now by visiting gostanford.com/tickets or calling 800-STANFORD. Single-game tickets are also available for all nonconference games excluding Tennessee. The Tennessee game and all conference single-game seats will go on sale to the public beginning Friday, Nov. 24.
2017-18 Pac-12 Preseason Coaches Poll
| Rank | School | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | UCLA | 115 (7) |
| T2 | Oregon | 108 (3) |
| T2 | Stanford | 108 (2) |
| 4 | Oregon State | 85 |
| 5 | California | 83 |
| 6 | Arizona State | 74 |
| 7 | Washington State | 61 |
| 8 | USC | 47 |
| 9 | Utah | 40 |
| 10 | Colorado | 38 |
| 11 | Arizona | 20 |
| 12 | Washington | 13 |