IRVING, Texas – After sweeping the Big 12 regular season and tournament championships and advancing to the Final Four a season ago, Arizona was picked by the league’s coaches to repeat as Conference champion in the Big 12 Men’s Basketball preseason poll.
The Wildcats received 12 first-place votes and 220 points in the poll and were closely followed by Houston with four first-place votes and 214 points. Kansas, Iowa State and Texas Tech rounded out the top five, all within six points of each other.
Arizona’s Motiejus Krivas was also selected as the Conference’s Preseason Player of the Year. As a junior during the Wildcats’ championship season and run to the Final Four, Krivas was a First Team All-Big 12 performer and landed a spot on the league’s All-Defensive Team. Krivas was a defensive force for Arizona as the Wildcats held opponents to 36.7% shooting while he was on the floor, the lowest opponent field goal percentage in the country. The Lithuanian also blocked 73 shots on the season, ranking 17th nationally.
Staying in the Grand Canyon State, Arizona State’s Paulius Murauskas was tabbed as the Big 12 Preseason Newcomer of the Year. Murauskas transferred to ASU from Saint Mary’s, joining first-year head coach Randy Bennett. Murauskas, also Lithuanian, was a consensus top-10 transfer portal pickup for the Sun Devils after finishing his time with the Gaels as a two-time All-West Coast Conference First Team performer. He was also named the WCC’s Newcomer of the Year in 2025. Murauskas averaged 18.4 points and 7.6 rebounds at SMC a season ago.
For the second-consecutive season, Kansas will sport the Big 12 Preseason Freshman of the Year as Tyran Stokes was voted to the honor this season after Darryn Peterson was recognized in 2025. Stokes enters the 2026-27 campaign as the No. 1 high school prospect in the country according to ESPN, 247Sports and On3. Stokes played his senior year of high school at Rainier Beach in Seattle where he averaged 31 points, 13 rebounds, six assists and four steals while leading his team to a 29-1 record and the Washington 3A state title. Stokes was a McDonald’s All-American, Naismith All-American and MaxPreps All-American and was named MVP of the Jordan Brand Classic in addition to winning three gold medals playing for USA Basketball.
All three preseason award winners were also named to the All-Big 12 Preseason Team along with unanimous selections JT Toppin (Texas Tech) and Robert Wright III (BYU). Rounding out the All-Big 12 Preseason Team are Ivan Kharchenkov (Arizona), Dedan Thomas Jr. (Houston), Joseph Tugler (Houston), Tamin Lipsey (Iowa State) and Xavier Edmonds (TCU).
2026-27 Monster Energy Big 12 Men’s Basketball Preseason Coaches’ Poll
1. Arizona (12) – 220 points
2. Houston (4) – 214 points
3. Kansas – 186 points
4. Iowa State – 181 points
5. Texas Tech – 180 points
6. BYU – 148 points
7. TCU – 137 points
T8. Cincinnati – 116 points
T8. West Virginia – 116 points
10. Baylor – 102 points
11. Oklahoma State – 98 points
12. Arizona State – 75 points
13. UCF – 55 points
T14. Colorado – 34 points
T14. Kansas State – 34 points
16. Utah – 24 points
2026-27 Monster Energy Big 12 Men’s Basketball Preseason Honors
Preseason Player of the Year: Motiejus Krivas, Arizona
Preseason Newcomer of the Year: Paulius Murauskas, Arizona State
Preseason Freshman of the Year: Tyran Stokes, Kansas
2026-27 Monster Energy All-Big 12 Preseason Team
Ivan Kharchenkov, Arizona
Motiejus Krivas, Arizona
Paulius Murauskas, Arizona State
Robert Wright III, BYU*
Dedan Thomas Jr., Houston
Joseph Tugler, Houston
Tamin Lipsey, Iowa State
Tyran Stokes, Kansas
Xavier Edmonds, TCU
JT Toppin, Texas Tech*
Players are sorted alphabetically by school
*Indicates unanimous selection