ST. BONAVENTURE — Since winning the Atlantic 10 regular season and tournament championships last March and securing the return of their five senior starters from that squad, St. Bonaventure basketball fans have discussed the potential of cracking preseason Top 25 rankings.

Monday, the first AP Top 25 poll of the year was released and indeed, the Bonnies are officially nationally ranked for the first time in four decades.

St. Bonaventure slotted No. 23 in Monday’s rankings, the only Atlantic 10 team placed in the preseason Top 25.

For the Bonnies, it marks their first national Top 25 ranking since slotting No. 10 in the Jan. 19, 1971 poll. Prior to that point, national rankings had been common place for St. Bonaventure, which has previously earned national AP rankings in 82 weeks, ranking as high as No. 2 multiple weeks during the 1960-61 season.

In years since, the Bonnies have received Top 25 votes numerous times, including coming oh-so-close in 2018 when a 12-game winning streak and a 24-6 record pushed the Bonnies to the “first team out” of the rankings with 72 voter’s points at the conclusion of the regular season that year. Bona again received votes in multiple Top 25 polls last season.

The Bonnies return all five starters from last year’s championship squad and join UCLA as the only NCAA Tournament teams from a year ago to return their primary starting five from the entire season. As a group, seniors Kyle Lofton, Dominick Welch, Jaren Holmes, Osun Osunniyi and Jalen Adaway have recorded a combined 283 starts with the program to make the Bonnies one of the nation’s most experienced teams. Lofton, Holmes and Osunniyi all earned all-conference honors following last season.

An influx of nine newcomers to the program over the summer give the Bonnies added depth from a year ago, headlined by ACC transfers Abdoul Karim Coulibaly (Pitt) and Quadry Adams (Wake Forest) along with junior college All-American Linton Brown.

St. Bonaventure debuts at the Reilly Center in exhibition action Nov. 4 vs. Alfred and the regular season tips off on home court vs. Siena Nov. 9.

Tickets for St. Bonaventure men’s basketball games are on sale. To order, call the SBU Ticket Office at (716) 375-2500 or visit GoBonnies.com/Tickets.

For the latest news on St. Bonaventure athletics, stay connected on social media. Follow the Bonnies on Twitter @GoBonnies and get men’s basketball updates @BonniesMBB. Keep up with the Bonnies on Facebook /GoBonnies and on Instagram @GoBonnies