Kansas forward Carlton Bragg Jr. (15) comes in to celebrate with guard Devonte' Graham after Graham finished off a lob jam during the first half, Friday, March 11, 2016 at Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo.

Each team has a game or two to navigate before they meet, but if the Kansas men’s basketball team and Duke Blue Devils both can win the early games on their schedules, the Champions Classic showdown at Madison Square Garden in New York City will feature the nation’s No. 1 and No. 2 ranked teams.

After weeks of seeing where several preseason publications ranked the Jayhawks and Blue Devils, the coaches revealed their poll on Thursday, with Duke sitting at No. 1 and Kansas right behind at No. 2.

The No. 2 ranking is the highest the Jayhawks have been ranked in the preseason coaches poll since debuting at No. 1 before the 2009-10 season.

Duke picked up 27 of the 32 available first-place votes and Kansas received one. Third-ranked Villanova, the defending national champions, also received a first-place vote, as did fifth-ranked Oregon. No. 4 Kentucky was the only other team to earn first-place consideration, picking up the remaining two first-place votes.

While Duke and Kansas both have games before meeting in this year’s Champions Classic, Bill Self’s Jayhawks appear to have the much tougher tune-up. Indiana, Kansas’ season-opening opponent in the Armed Forces Classic Nov. 11 in Honolulu is ranked No. 12 in the first coaches poll of the season.

Duke opens the 2016-17 season with home games against Marist on Nov. 11 and Grand Canyon on Nov. 12.

Kansas’ inclusion in this year’s preseason coaches poll marks the 25th time in the 28-year history of the poll that KU was ranked in the initial version.

It also marks the sixth time that KU has been preseason No. 2 or higher and the 11th time in the Self era that KU was ranked No. 7 or higher in the preseason poll, including each of the last five seasons.

Last season, KU’s match-up with 16 ranked opponents tied a school record. KU’s 12 victories against ranked teams was an all-time best.

USA TODAY PRESEASON COACHES POLL

No. 1 – Duke

No. 2 – Kansas

No. 3 – Villanova

No. 4 – Kentucky

No. 5 – Oregon

No. 6 – North Carolina

No. 7 – Virginia

No. 8 – Xavier

No. 9 – Michigan State

No. 10 – Wisconsin

No. 11 – Arizona

No. 12 – Indiana

No. 13 – Gonzaga

No. 14 – Louisville

No. 15 – Purdue

No. 16 – Connecticut

No. 17 – Syracuse

No. 18 – West Virginia

No. 19 – St. Mary’s

No. 20 – UCLA

No. 21 – Maryland

No. 22 – Texas

No. 23 – Creighton

No. 24 – Rhode Island

No. 25 – Cincinnati