Michigan State hits the 2023-24 basketball season with a deep and veteran squad, a team that appears to have the perfect mix as the epitome of a Tom Izzo-led team.

The Preseason AP Poll dropped Monday with Michigan State checking in at No. 4 in the country. The Spartans were ranked right behind Purdue on the poll and even generated a first-place vote.

Kansas led the way as the No. 1 team in the country with 46 first-place votes while Duke was No. 2 with 11 first-place votes. Purdue was ranked No. 3 and received 3 first-place votes. UConn — the defending national champs — was ranked No. 6 and received 2 first-place votes.

Overall, 3 B1G programs were included in the top 25 and another 3 were included in the others receiving votes section. Illinois was the other program to land in the top 25 at No. 25.

Michigan State heads into the season after landing the No. 5 recruiting class in the 2023 cycle per the 247 Sports Composite. That group includes 5-star big man Xavier Booker and another pair of top-50 players in Jeremy Fears and Coen Carr, but that is not the only reason for optimism in East Lansing.

The Spartans return a deep and versatile backcourt that includes the likes of AJ Hoggard, Tyson Walker and Jaden Akins. We’ll see if MSU can live up to that top-5 ranking, but the Spartans have the potential mixture for a deep March run.