Updated Men’s College Basketball Rankings: Kansas is Back After Big Week (Nov. 28, 2025)

Updated Men’s College Basketball Rankings: Kansas is Back After Big Week (Nov. 28, 2025)Story byKirby Lee-Imagn ImagesJason BurgosFri, November 28, 2025 at 3:26 PM UTC·12 min read

The 2025-26 college basketball season is underway, and the top programs around the country are starting to separate themselves from the pack. So who are the best of the best in the sport right now? We look to answer that question with our updated men’s college basketball rankings, showcasing the top 25 teams heading into the weekend.

25. Arkansas

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Arkansas is going with a pair of freshmen in the backcourt in 2025-26, and so far, the duo of Meleek Thomas and Darius Acuff Jr. has been pretty good, combining for close to 40 points per game. In year two with legendary head coach John Calipari, the Razorbacks are a team to keep an eye on. However, their Feast Week loss to Duke showed they are not yet ready to beat the cream of the college basketball crop, yet.

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24. Texas Tech

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Texas Tech has progressed yearly over Grant McCasland’s first two seasons overseeing the Red Raiders program. Meaning 2025-26 has a lot of potential and could see the team win 30 games for the first time in 30 years. If the impressive duo of JT Toppin and Christian Anderson can continue to play like they already have this season, Texas Tech can be a tough out for teams in the Big 12.

However, early-season losses to Illinois and Purdue show they are not a threat to Houston or Arizona yet.

23. Indiana

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In year one for new head coach Darian DeVries, Indiana has looked good and warrants a spot in our latest top 25. While they haven’t beaten any world beaters, senior Lamar Wilkerson and the coach’s son Tucker DeVries lead a balanced group that is off to a 6-0 start and sits atop the Big Ten.

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22. Vanderbilt

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Vanderbilt’s backcourt duo of Tyler Tanner and Duke Miles has gotten off to a really good start to the new season, and they are leading a Commodores offense (98.1 PPG) that is No. 2 in he nation heading into the weekend. While they haven’t faced stiff competition, you can’t deny an unbeaten team that is scoring close to 100 points a game nightly.

21. Auburn

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Senior Keyshawn Hall is making a statement early in the new season for Auburn. He is averaging a double-double (20 points and 9 boards) and has spearheaded a 6-2 Tigers team. While they came up short against Houston and Michigan this season, they are top-10 squads in 2025, so there isn’t a ton of shame in those setbacks. But they showed their upside with a bounce-back win this week over a top-15 St. John’s team.

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20. Florida

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Following a tough loss to Arizona to open the year, defending champions Florida has rebounded and started to get on a roll in recent games. Juniors Alex Condon and Thomas Haugh have been asked to carry a bigger load from the start in 2025-26, and the pair of veteran forwards has shown they are up to the task by putting up career-best numbers to begin their campaign.

However, a surprising loss to TCU this week is clear evidence that they may not be ready yet to compete with the elite programs to begin the season.

19. Kentucky

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Mark Pope has a deep and talented Kentucky roster, but they are still missing a key part of it with Jayden Quaintance expected to be out for a lot of the 2025-26 season. Against lower-tier teams, they have looked impressive. However, a pair of decisive losses to top 25 teams, Louisville and Michigan State, may be evidence that this group has a clear ceiling this season.

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18. UCLA

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While UCLA struggles on the gridiron, Mick Cronin has had good teams for all but one of his seven seasons overseeing the basketball program. That is again the case in 2025-26 as the Bruins’ roster is deep, experienced, and showed their potential in a competitive clash with a talented Arizona team. It was the one game where the Big Ten team met serious resistance and didn’t score a dominant win.

Yet, their loss this week to Cal is a major reason why they fall in our latest college basketball rankings.

17. USC

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Year one for Eric Musselman at USC wasn’t what anyone hoped for as they finished the season 17-18. But transfers Chad Baker-Mazara and Rodney Rice have been dynamite for the Trojans this year, with each averaging 20 points per game. It’s why they are tied for first in the Big Ten and remain unbeaten at 7-0 heading into the weekend.

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16. Kansas

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After a disappointing 21-13 showing and a first-round ouster in the tournament last year, Bill Self and Kansas are hoping things can get better in 2025-26. But after early-season losses to top-25 teams North Carolina and Duke, there was understandable concern about this year’s team. However, led by sophomore Flory Bidunga, the Jayhawks have looked better and had a big Feast Week, including a win over Tennessee.

15. North Carolina

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Hubert Davis’ North Carolina team is off to a very good start in large part due to the strong play of freshman Caleb Wilson. The Atlanta native leads the Tar Heels in points (20), rebounds (10), and steals (2) after the first few weeks of the season. However, he is also getting big support from veterans Henri Veesaar and Seth Trimble. It is why UNC looks like a real threat to Duke this season.

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Despite the good vibes, they came crashing to earth during Feast Week in a lopsided loss to Michigan State.

14. Illinois

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Brad Underwood has turned Illinois into a top program every season in the Big Ten, and nothing is changing in 2025-26. Cal transfer Andrej Stojakovic has immediately become the team’s leading scorer. But the player that makes this Illinois team more dangerous than recent seasons is talented freshman David Mirkovic. The big man is averaging an impressive 15 points and 10 boards a night. If they beat UConn this week, they would be right back in the top 10.

13. Alabama

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Alabama set up a tough schedule for itself to begin the season, and it has navigated facing four top 10 teams by splitting those matchups. Their two losses came against an elite Purdue and a strong Gonzaga squad, so there is no shame in that. They are a talented team led by NBA lottery prospect Labaron Philon Jr., who has looked very good to begin the season.

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12. Iowa State

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In his final season at Iowa State, Tamin Lipsey is off to a strong start. The home state great leads the team in points (18), assists (5), and steals (3). Furthermore, the Cyclones have gotten good play from the front-court duo of Joshua Jefferson and Milan Momcilovic. It’s why they started the year 7-0 and scored a nice win over St. John’s this season.

11. Tennessee

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Tennessee freshman Nate Ament is proving why he is a top prospect for the 2026 NBA Draft. He is second on the team in points (19) and leads in rebounds (7) per game. The combo of him and senior guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie is why the Vols sit atop the SEC heading into Feast Week.

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Although they fell to Kansas in a surprise upset during Feast Week, a big win over a top-five Houston team before that moves them up in our latest college basketball rankings.

10. Gonzaga

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Mark Few’s Gonzaga squad is off to a fast start to the season due to high-level play from their veteran front court of Braden Huff and Graham Ike. The Bulldogs have a lot more experience than most teams, and it has shown in their 7-1 start. However, while they beat Alabama this season, getting smashed by Michigan in a 40-point loss shows they still have some work to do.

9. BYU

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BYU is seen as a real title contender this season because of the talents of future NBA lottery pick AJ Dybantsa. However, the Cougars also have a very good backcourt combo in Richie Saunders and Robert Wright III, who are putting up nearly 40 points per night. Although they suffered an early-season loss to UConn, the Cougars will likely be in the top 10 all season because of their trio of gifted stars.

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8. Michigan State

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Legendary coach Tom Izzo unsurprisingly looks to have another good Michigan State team on his hands in 2025-26. They have a deep squad that has proven to be a handful for opponents this season. There is no better proof of their potential than scoring a pair of big wins over ranked teams, Kentucky and North Carolina. Sophomore Jeremy Fears Jr. has been impressive as the leader of their offense and leads the country in assists (10 per game).

7. Michigan

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To begin the new season, Michigan is showing they are again a team to keep an eye on in the Big Ten for year two under head coach Dusty May. A major reason is the addition of Yaxel Lendeborg in the transfer portal. He will get a lot of attention, but the Wolverines’ front line, in general, is arguably the best in the nation and a major reason they land in our top 10.

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It showed in a dominant win this week over a talented Gonzaga team as the Wolverines crushed the Bulldogs by 40 points.

6. Louisville

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Louisville has gotten off to an unbeaten start this season due to the strong play of its trio of talented guards. Mikel Brown Jr. is getting a lot of buzz about being a top 10 pick in next year’s NBA Draft. However, senior Ryan Conwell has been just as good, and fellow Cardinals veteran Isaac McKneely is as reliable as ever. These three make them tough to match up with every night, and there is no better proof than scoring an early-season win over a top-10 Kentucky team.

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5. UConn

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What a surprise. It’s another season in college basketball, and UConn is among the elite teams in the nation. While they took a bit of a step back last season, they are primed for another deep run in March.

Senior big man Taris Reed Jr. has been great, as well as front-court partner Alex Karaban. What is so fascinating about the Huskies is that they have been this good already and haven’t even gotten star freshman Braylon Mullins on the court yet this year. One can only wonder how different their game against Arizona would have been if they had him.

4. Houston

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Kelvin Sampson and his Houston team are again one of the very best teams in the nation to begin the new season. Senior Emmanuel Sharp has been as important as ever and is leading the way in scoring. However, they have serious potential to get back to the championship game in March if freshmen Kingston Flemings and Chris Cenac Jr. can continue to develop into the elite talents many believe they are.

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They have had a good start to the season, but their recent loss to Tennessee shows they are still second-best in the conference to Arizona.

3. Duke

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Duke is off to another classic Blue Devils start in 2025-26 because of the outstanding play of super prospect Cameron Boozer. The freshman, who had to take over for another super prospect in Cooper Flagg, leads the team in points (21), rebounds (9), assists (4), and blocks (1).

Duke will go as far as Boozer takes them, and he already has them in the top five of our college basketball rankings after early-season wins over top-25 teams Kansas and Arkansas.

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2. Purdue

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Purdue is ranked among the top teams in the nation to begin the 2025-26 season because it has something most top 25 teams lack: Top players with a boatload of experience. Seniors Fletcher Loyer and Trey Kaufman-Renn are off to very nice starts.

Their ability to use their veteran savvy to outwit opponents will make them a problem all season long. That has already become apparent in big early-season wins over top 15 squads Alabama and Texas Tech.

1. Arizona

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Arizona looks set to have a serious run at a championship next March. Led by star senior and Jaden Bradley and big-time NBA prospect and freshman Koat Peat, the Wildcats have already posted wins over three top 15 teams to begin the year, including UConn. Arizona is showing why there is so much hype around them this season, and the Big 12 has a two-headed monster in Arizona and Houston.

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