Florida State men’s basketball will enter Luke Loucks’ second season with increased expectations around the conference.
The Seminoles were picked to finish seventh in the 2026-27 ACC preseason poll, released Monday following a vote of 48 media members. Florida State received 519 points, placing it behind Duke, Virginia, Louisville, Miami, North Carolina and Clemson in the 18-team league.
Duke was the overwhelming choice to win the conference, receiving 45 of 48 first-place votes and 861 total points. Virginia, Louisville and Miami each received one first-place vote and occupied the next three spots, while North Carolina and Clemson rounded out the six teams ahead of FSU.
The No. 7 projection represents a notable amount of respect for a Florida
State program entering just its second season under Loucks. Florida State closed the year by winning 10 of its final 12 games before falling 80-79 to No. 1 Duke in the ACC Tournament quarterfinals.
Loucks recently said at ACC Tipoff that he expected the Seminoles to be projected “somewhere in the middle to lower half of the ACC,” while emphasizing that the goal is to continue pushing the program toward the league’s upper tier. The media ultimately placed FSU comfortably inside the top half.
Florida State will attempt to meet those expectations with a significantly retooled roster. The Seminoles added 12 newcomers this offseason, six freshmen and six transfers, with the transfer class ranked seventh nationally and second in the ACC per On3.
Virginia forward Thijs De Ridder was selected as the ACC Preseason Player of the Year, while Duke freshman Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje earned Preseason Rookie of the Year honors. No Florida State player was selected to either preseason All-ACC team.
The Seminoles open the regular season Nov. 2 against Florida A&M in Tampa.
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This article originally appeared on FSU Wire: Florida State lands in top half of ACC preseason poll
