The top-25 teams in men’s college basketball for 2024-2025 season, previewed by our experts
Another chapter in college basketball begins on Monday as the 2024-25 season kicks off. Last April, UConn, led by head coach Dan Hurley, cut down the nets in at the national championship in Arizona, beating Purdue 75-60.
With the transfer portal, new incoming freshmen and conference realignment changes, this season could end up being exciting and unpredictable as well.
To prep for the start of the upcoming season, we’ve enlisted the experts from our SB Nation team communities to help preview the top-25 coming into the year. Here’s what you need to know about this season’s top teams.
No. 25 Rutgers
The Scarlet Knights are preparing for their most anticipated season in recent memory. The addition of dynamic freshmen Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey has Rutgers’ hype at an all-time high.
The 2023-24 season is behind Rutgers. It was an underwhelming year full of a cast of characters that did not live up to expectations. Head coach Steve Pikiell worked hard in the transfer portal to make up for losses and he landed plenty of talent and experience. This includes New Jersey natives Zach Martini (Princeton) and Jordan Derkack (Merrimack). Pikiell also worked to improve three-point shooting, an area where Rutgers was near the bottom of the nation last season.
Sharpshooting PJ Hayes transferred in from San Diego to go along with the dynamic duo of first-year players. This is a new look Scarlet Knights team that features star power, depth, and experience. So, what could go wrong?
This is a group that has not played together just yet and this has left some speculation in a loaded Big Ten. When looking at the big picture, Rutgers could come together quickly under the guidance of Pikiell. The biggest question mark would be the defensive ability of this team, especially without the presence of a traditional center. This is Pikiell’s specialty and an area he will have to build over the course of the season.
Ron Harper Jr. was part of a core that brought basketball back to Piscataway. Now, his younger brother is hoping to be part of a group that takes the next step. — Greg Patuto, On the Banks
No. 24 Ole Miss
Second year head coach Chris Beard looks to have revamped and rebuilt the Ole Miss roster from a standpoint of role players while maintaining most of the top end talent from last year’s 20-win team. Back is Matthew Murrell, Jaemyn Brakefield and Jaylen Murray while transfers Dre Davis, Malik Dia. and Sean Pedulla and freshmen newcomer John Bol add important pieces to the roster.
This team is the first in more than 25 years at Ole Miss to be preseason top 25 ranked, so the expectations have basically never been higher. Even with that historical fact, the Rebels are one of nine SEC teams in the preseason top 25. An NCAA bid will have to start with a near perfect non-conference run and nine or more wins in conference play for Ole Miss to be dancing. — By @OneMan2BeatRCR, Red Cup Rebellion
No. 23 Kentucky
Entering Year 1 of the Mark Pope era, Kentucky is one of the trickier teams to project in the top 25. That’s usually the case when you have a brand-new roster made up largely of veteran transfers, led by former Big 12 Sixth Man of the Year Jaxson Robinson. The scoring wing will be the Wildcats’ go-to player, but they have plenty of other capable scorers in Andrew Carr, Kerr Kriisa, and Otega Oweh, while Final Four hero Lamont Butler will make a case for being the best defender in college basketball.
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How well this team meshes will define the season. This team’s overall talent could develop into a Sweet 16-level squad, even with a daunting schedule that could see them have 15+ games vs. teams that make the 2025 NCAA Tournament.
This team will also live and die by the 3-point shot, as evidenced by the 79(!) they attempted in two exhibition games. They’ll be the kind of team that can get hot and beat a great team on the road, only to get cold and lose at home to a bad one.
Look for this to be a rocky but fulfilling season in Lexington that hopefully ends with the program’s first second-weekend NCAA Tournament trip since 2019.— Jason Marcum – A Sea Of Blue – @marcum89
No. 22 UCLA
UCLA is looking to return to prominence. The Bruins struggled last season and ended around .500 at 16-17 overall and 10-10 in the final year of the Pac-12. They stumbled to the finish line as they lost five of their final six games of the regular season. They had three separate losing streaks of at least four games. That marked the first setback of the Mick Cronin era as UCLA as its win total improve each year under him (19 to 22 to 27 to 31).
Three of the top four scorers are back in Westwood. Dylan Andrews led the squad in scoring last season and is back in the blue and gold for his junior year. He posted 12.9 points and 3.7 assists a night last season. Sebastian Mack averaged 12.1 points and 3.6 rebounds. Lazar Stefanovic was also in double figures with 11.5 points and a team-best 6.1 boards.
Cronin brought in a load of transfers. Kobe Johnson moved across town from USC to join the Bruins. He accumulated 10.9 points, 4.6 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 2.2 steals per game with the Trojans in 2024. Eric Dailey Jr. comes to UCLA from Oklahoma State, where he amassed 9.3 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game.
Dominick Harris scored a team-high 14.3 points per game with Loyola Marymount last season. William Kyle III comes to the Bruins after two years at South Dakota State. He tallied 13.1 points, 6.6 rebounds and 1.6 blocks in 2024 as he was the starting center for the Jackrabbits’ run to a Summit League title and NCAA tournament berth.
Tyler Bilodeau contributed 14.3 points and 5.7 rebounds a night at Oregon State last year. Skyy Clark led Louisville with 13.2 points a contest in 2024. He also tallied 3.1 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game.
It’s a new era for the program as it is now in the Big Ten. The Bruins begin the year ranked No. 22 in the AP poll. Before conference play, UCLA plays a gauntlet in the non-conference. It takes on New Mexico, Arizona, North Carolina and Gonzaga over the first two months of the season. — Ian Sacks, @ianrsacks
No. 21 Florida
Florida made its return to the NCAA tournament last season after a two-year absence. The Gators have participated in 19 of the last 25 Big Dances, but they have not reached the Sweet 16 since 2017. They are in search of their first Final Four since 2014.
Walter Clayton headlines the group for year three of the Todd Golden era. The Iona transfer led the team with 17.6 points per game and was named to the Naismith Trophy Watch List. He also registered 3.2 rebounds and 2.6 assists.
Will Richard is also back in Gainesville after also posting double figures. He tallied 11.4 points and 3.9 boards. Alex Condon (7.7 points and 6.4 rebounds) and Micah Handlogton (5.3 points and 6.9 boards) are still with the Gators as well.
Two transfers to keep an eye on are Sam Alexis and Rueben Chinyelu. Alexis averaged 10.8 points, 9.1 rebounds, 2.1 blocks and 1.8 assists per game last season Chattanooga. Chinyelu played an integral role in resurrecting the Washington State program. He amassed 4.7 points, 5.0 boards and 1.3 blocks as Wazzu participated in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 16 years.
Golden’s squad saw an eight-win improvement from year one to year two. They registered just the second 20-win season over the last six. The Gators begin this season ranked 21st in the AP preseason poll. Florida is one of nine SEC teams ranked in the top 25.
Ahead of conference play, Florida will face Florida State, Wake Forest, Virginia, Arizona State and North Carolina in non-conference. — Ian Sacks, @ianrsacks
No. 20 Cincinnati
If you’re only a casual college basketball follower, you probably haven’t thought about the Bearcats much since Mick Cronin left in 2019. They haven’t made the NCAA tournament since and haven’t been stocking up on household names in the transfer portal.
However, Wes Miller has Cincinnati on an upward trajectory, improving the team’s KenPom rank in each of his first three seasons. Last year, UC finished its first campaign in the Big 12 by making it to the NIT Quarterfinals and placing 39th in KenPom.
Most of the key pieces from that squad are back for another year, and there’s a healthy supplement of new additions.
Junior wing Dan Skillings really gets to his spots on the offensive end and shines defensively, and many are tipping him to be one of the top players in the Big 12.
Retention and development is the theme throughout the entire roster, with point guards Jizzle James and Day Day Thomas also back for year two in the program. With a full year to adjust to the level behind them, those two should take big steps forward this season as well.
Shooters Simas Lukosius and CJ Fredrick are back too, with another deadly shooter, Connor Hickman, who is also a terrific defender, transferring in from Bradley to give a two-way punch in the backcourt.
Aziz Bandaogo’s presence around the rim, as well as Texas transfer Dillon Mitchell’s rebounding and athleticism, should give the Bearcats a strong defensive look in the frontcourt.
Finally, Cincinnati’s depth expands beyond to a few freshmen who can make an impact, with four-star Tyler Betsey the best among them.
It’s time for Bearcat basketball to be back in the national spotlight. — Sam Federman, @Sam_Federman
No. 19 Texas
Under third-year head coach Rodney Terry, the Sporting News Coach of the Year in 2023, the Longhorns enter the SEC facing critical questions about the upside of Terry’s program. Is Texas a team that can compete for Final Four berths as in 2022-23 when Terry was the interim coach or a collection of pieces that don’t fit together like last year? Six new transfers supplement the No. 11 signing class nationally led by the country’s No. 5 prospect, guard Tre Johnson, as the newcomers for the Horns joining forward Kadin Shedrick and do-it-all-guard Chendall Weaver, the key returning contributors.
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There’s plenty of scoring and versatility for Texas that boosts the team’s upside while also calling back to those concerns about how well the group can mesh. Oregon State transfer guard Jordan Pope is known for his scoring ability, as is Arkansas transfer wing Tramon Marks. Terry compares Johnson’s silky bucket-getting ability to that of Kevin Durant. Shedrick anchors the frontcourt searching for a second-year jump after spending last offseason rehabbing from shoulder surgeries, while Creighton and Kansas State transfer forward Arthur Kaluma is an experienced contributor Texas will rely on for his defensive rebounding. The gritty, athletic Weaver leads the glue guys, a group including two Indiana State transfers – defense-forward guard Julian Larry and his forward Jayson Kent, an elite cutter who can help stretch the court.
The team has adopted an “EBE” mentality – EveryBody Eats, the exact type of mantra this group needs to coalesce into a conference championship contender capable of making another deep run in the NCAA Tournament in a critical season for Terry to prove his roster-building and culture-building ability. — Wescott Eberts, @SBN_Wescott, Burnt Orange Nation
No. 18 Marquette
Two years ago, Marquette lost three starters from a 19-13 team, none to an NBA contract, and they were picked to finish ninth in the Big East. Fast forward to now, Tyler Kolek and Oso Ighodaro were second round NBA Draft picks after guiding the Golden Eagles to a 27-10 record and the program’s first Sweet 16 appearance since 2013…and the AP voters have decided to just trust head coach Shaka Smart and install Marquette as a top 20 team heading into this season.
Replacing Kolek and Ighodaro will not be done by any one player on the roster, so expect to see a slightly different, muck-it-up type of Marquette team this season. The Golden Eagles do return Kam Jones, who has led the team in scoring in each of the past two seasons, along with two other starters and a collection of role players from last season all of whom could have a chance to break out this year. Ben Gold and Chase Ross are your likely new starters, but it appears that Marquette will go without top 75 freshman Damarius Owens for a least a little while to start the season after a relatively minor preseason injury. You’ll notice I did not mention a transfer in there, and that’s because Smart has declined to add a Division 1 transfer for the third straight offseason, making MU one of just a handful of teams to do that this year. — Andrew Fleck, Anonymous Eagle
No. 17 Indiana
Indiana makes its return to the AP Top-25 poll after a disappointing 2023-24 season saw the Hoosiers miss the tournament amid a period of fan turmoil around the program. Mike Woodson kept key pieces like Malik Reneau, Mackenzie Mgbako and Trey Galloway in Bloomington while adding portal talent like Oumar Ballo, Myles Rice and Kanaan Carlyle.
These Hoosiers are among the best rosters in the Big Ten on paper. We’ll have to wait and see if they can prove that on the court. — L.C. Norton, The Crimson Quarry
No. 16 Arkansas
After years of teased contention in Fayetteville, things have changed drastically for the Razorbacks in the offseason.
First of all, Musselman is out, and head coach John Calipari is in, bringing a slew of freshman recruits and Kentucky transfers with him. The former head coach for the Wildcats brings DJ Wagner, Adou Thiero and Zvonimir Ivisic down from Lexington to don the red-and-white.
Additionally, the transfer portal was kind to Calipari’s team, with the Hogs adding Jonas Aidoo from Tennessee and possibly the most sought-after player in the portal, Johnell Davis, who comes in after a productive four years at Florida Atlantic where he was a key component in the Owls’ Final Four run.
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As has always been a signature of Cal, he has been the pinnacle of freshman recruitment in the last 15 years, this season being no different. Boogie Fland comes in after flipping his commitment from Kentucky to be the lone rotational pure point guard on this roster while Karter Knox, brother of former Kentucky player Kevin Knox, has shown promise as a polished and ready-to-play wing that could easily fight his way into the starting lineup.
Tying it all together is returner Tevon Brazille, who has dealt with injuries in the past that have kept him from taking the professional route, but should be a more-than-impactful forward who’s athleticism gives Fland an excellent lob threat when needed.
Having a brand-new roster in this transfer age, expect some growing pains early on as Arkansas takes on Baylor, Miami, Illinois and Michigan in non-conference play, and the SEC being as strong as it’s ever been this year, the Razorbacks will have their work cut out for them. With the program seeing possibly its most talented roster since the 2020-21 squad that made it all the way to the Elite Eight, though, there is optimism in Fayetteville that Calipari will be able to produce a winner this season. — Isaac Bourne, @IsaacBourne_
No. 15 Creighton
Creighton enters the season ranked No. 15 in the country. The Bluejays have participated in the last four NCAA tournaments. After coming one foul call away from reaching the school’s first Final Four in 2023, they returned to the Sweet 16 last season. They earned a three-seed last March, which was tied for the highest in program history.
Ryan Kalkbrenner highlights the list of returners. Named to the Naismith Trophy Watch List, he notched 17.3 points, 7.6 rebounds and 3.1 blocks per game. He collected his third Big East Defensive Player of the Year award, which is tied for the most in conference history. The other players to accomplish that feat are Alonzo Mourning and Patrick Ewing.
Kalkbrenner is the top returning scorer as Baylor Scheierman and Trey Alexander are no longer around. The Missouri native is joined by fellow starters Steven Ashworth (11.1 points, 4.2 assists and 3.3 rebounds) and Mason Miller (5.6 points and 3.3 boards).
Greg McDermott brought in a pair of studd transfers. Pop Isaacs joins Creighton after two seasons at Texas Tech. The guard led the Red Raiders in scoring with 15.8 points per game last season, which was sixth in the conference. He also dished out 3.5 assists per game. Jamiya Neal tallied 11.0 points and 5.4 rebounds at Arizona State last season as his minutes doubled from the previous year.
The Bluejays have several key non-conference games before Big East play begins. They are set to face Nebraska, San Diego State, Texas A&M, Kansas and Alabama. — Ian Sacks, @ianrsacks
No. 14 Purdue
Welcome to Purdue basketball A.E. (after Edey). The Boilermakers come into the season with an unfillable 7’4, 300-pound void in the middle of the court. No one can fill Edey’s spot, but the good news for Purdue is Matt Painter is nothing, if not flexible and pragmatic. When Carsen Edwards had the reins, Purdue bombed away from 3-point line. The back court of Braden Smith and Fletcher Loyer will push Painter towards a more perimeter oriented squad. Trey Kaufman-Renn will finally have the opportunity to be the primary paint scorer and he will be one of the best in the Big 10. It will be a scramble between 5-7 talented players, including a couple 7’0”+ guys, to fill the other 2 starting spots and bench roles. On paper, this will be one of Matt Painter’s deepest teams, expect him to pick up the pace and put up points in bunches this season. — Drew Schneider, Hammer & Rails
No. 13 Texas A&M
Buzz Williams has led Texas A&M to back-to-back NCAA tournament appearances. With the bulk of his roster coming back from last year and some intriguing new pieces arriving via the transfer portal, this has to be the year the Aggies reach the second weekend of the dance.
Wade Taylor IV is back for his fifth year as one of the top scoring guards in America. Taylor isn’t exactly the most efficient scorer with 51 percent true shooting last year, but his knack for putting the ball in the basket (19.1 points per game last season) is invaluable to keeping the Aggies offense going. Henry Coleman is also back for his fifth season of college basketball as an undersized but strong big man who can attack the glass and provide some defensive versatility. A breakout year from forward Solomon Washington or guard Manny Obaseki could push this team to the next level. Zhuric Phelps comes over from SMU to give this roster another bucket-getter and take some pressure of Taylor. Williams needs to work some magic with the defense, but the Aggies’ unrelenting offense will make this team a pain to play against. — Ricky O’Donnell, SBNation.com
No. 12 Tennessee
For the first time in several years, Tennessee basketball is going to look quite different. Dalton Knecht, Santiago Vescovi, Josiah-Jordan James and Jonas Aidoo, four starters from last year’s team, have all moved on. That’s quite a bit of production to replace, but Rick Barnes was able to attack the portal nicely to reload.
Big time shooters Darlinstone Dubar (Hofstra) and Chaz Lanier (North Florida) join the lineup looking to follow in the footsteps of Knecht. Both players shot 40 percent or better from three-point range last season. Big men Igor Milicic (Charlotte) and Felix Okpara (Ohio State) form a completely new-look frontcourt. Okpara is a true rim protector, blocking 2.4 shots per game last season as a Buckeye. He should fit nicely into the Tennessee system.
Barnes will be able to lean on senior guards Zakai Zeigler and Jahmai Mashack while all of these new faces try to settle in and get comfortable. These elite defenders will set the tone as the newcomers to the roster settle into the defensive expectations of Rick Barnes.
It’s probably a good bet that Barnes and his staff will eventually get this roster rolling, but you could see some early bumps in the road as the team builds up some chemistry. — Terry Lambert, @TLambertTN, Rocky Top Talk
No. 11 Auburn
Bruce Pearl is back for another year on the Plains with a lot of returning talent, headlined by National Player of the Year contender Johni Broome.
The former Morehead State transfer, now in year three with the Tigers, is one of the best players inside the paint in all of college basketball. The interior defense spearheaded by his shot blocking and physicality ranked number one in the sport last year.
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He’s continued to expand his offensive game each year as well, which should also be helped by a less volatile backcourt. Auburn brings back Denver Jones, who they expect to take a big step forward. They also bring in one the clutchest players in the country in Furman transfer JP Pegues, along with Miles Kelly, a double digit scorer from Georgia Tech.
The guard group is completed by a volatile freshman scoring guard from New Jersey, Tahaad Pettiford.
On the wings, Chad Baker-Mazara, who was ejected in the NCAA Tournament against Yale, is back as one of the top two-way role players in the SEC. Chris Moore and Chaney Johnson bring more experience to the frontcourt.
When Broome comes off the floor, Dylan Cardwell fills in admirably, providing some of the best rim protection from a backup center in the country.
After losing in the first round of the tournament as a heavy favorite last year, Auburn is primed for another chance at a protected seed, and run at an SEC championship. — Sam Federman, @Sam_Federman
No. 10 Arizona
Tommy Lloyd’s fourth Arizona team will be his most experienced in terms of returning talent. Pac-12 Player of the Year Caleb Love is back for a fifth college season, second with the Wildcats, who also bring back guards Jaden Bradley and KJ Lewis along with some key big men in Motiejus Krivas and Henri Veesaar.
Arizona cleaned up in the transfer portal, adding wings Anthony Dell’Orso (Campbell) and Trey Townsend (Oakland) and ex-Tennessee power forward Tobe Awaka, while its recruiting class was highlighted by 5-star forward (and projected one-and-done) Carter Bryant.
The move to the Big 12 will mean a major step up in league competition for Arizona, which was picked to finish 5th despite its preseason top-10 national ranking. The nonconference slate is also challenging, as the Wildcats visit Wisconsin and host Duke before competing in the Battle 4 Atlantis over Thanksgiving, while in December there’s a neutral matchup with old Pac-12 rival UCLA and a pre-Christmas test from mid-major darling Samford. — Brian J. Pedersen, AZ Desert Swarm, @realBJP
No. 9 North Carolina
The Tar Heels are in an interesting position going into the 2024-25 season. While they get to enjoy the return of players like RJ Davis, Elliot Cadeau, and Seth Trimble, they also lost guys like Armando Bacot, Harrison Ingram, and Cormac Ryan. Thankfully, Hubert Davis brought in an impressive freshman class that features five-star guard Ian Jackson, and he did a good job of getting some promising pieces in the transfer portal.
We already got a glimpse of what Hubert Davis has planned this season when the Heels played in two exhibition games over the last couple of weeks. This is the first time perhaps ever that the Heels can present a five-out look with their starting lineup — all five potential starters, including center Jalen Washington, are respectable threats from the perimeter. This is uncharted territory for the program, so one can only hope that everything works out in Davis’ favor. RJ Davis and Cade Tyson both shot 39%+ from deep last season, and if they can somehow replicate their success this season, this could be an extremely dangerous team come March.
UNC has all of the pieces that they should need to be successful this season, but it’s all about figuring out how well these pieces will work together. I can see this team making a deep run in the NCAA Tournament if everything falls into place properly, but how deep of a run is anybody’s guess. If a fortune teller told me there is as good of a chance of this team finishing in the round of 32 as there is of them making it to the Final Four, I would have a hard time disagreeing with that. — Brandon Anderson @thbbrandon, Tar Heel Blog
No. 8 Baylor
With the coaching carousel running wild in the offseason, head coach Scott Drew staked his claim in Waco, letting Baylor fans know that he is here to stay. With Drew’s resume, it is easy to forget that since the Bears won their first-ever national title in 2021, the team has not seen it past the second round since then. With a new and talented roster every season, Drew is in a position with fans where his former production is desired once again, and he has the roster to do it.
The big names in the transfer portal for Drew come from the ACC, where Jeremy Roach from Duke and Norchad Omier from Miami join the squad after making all-conference teams in the previous season. Roach should be the lead guard for the team while Omier will be a solid offensive option for this roster that should be one of the top offensive teams in the country.
As far as freshmen, the Baylor first-year player that looks to succeed the talent of Ja’Kobe Walter is VJ Edgecomb, who brings much of a similar skillset to this roster. It will be interesting to see if Edgecomb can take the leadership position on this team to start the season or if he allows the veteran players to take control.
On the offensive side, Drew has brought in a roster that most likely will be relatively small, with Omier being the tallest player projected to get rotational minutes, and while 6’10 Josh Ojianwuna could get some minutes, it is more likely that Drew goes with a smaller lineup that can run and play fast, so the Bears are destined for one of the most exciting offenses in the country. — Isaac Bourne, @IsaacBourne_
No. 7 Duke
Head coach Jon Scheyer is channeling a bit of coach Mike Krzyzewski here with his most recent team–freshmen-led, but veteran-supported.
By freshman led, what better first-year player to lead the Blue Devils but the 6’9 five-star prospect from Montverde Academy? Cooper Flagg is just the second Duke prospect ever to garner a perfect 1.0000 on 247Sports, and the talent shows. His ability to get to the basket and all-around dominate anywhere on the court will be vital to his team’s success this season, while
Along with Flagg, Scheyer welcomes in Kon Knueppel and Khaman Maluach as well to claim a freshman class that rivals some of Duke’s latter years. Knueppel is a tall guard that will be an excellent kick-out option for the Blue Devils while Maluach stands 7’2 as an intimidating presence in the paint that is a strong rebounder and lob threat down low.
Tyrese Proctor returns this season after being a vital starter to last year’s Elite Eight run where he was a leading scorer on the team, while Caleb Foster comes back for his sophomore campaign after a season of being a solid rotational player.
This Blue Devil squad looks poised to dominate the ACC this season with very few weaknesses, showing that in an exhibition with a presumably-talented Arizona State team that went down 103-47 to Scheyer’s squad, and while just an exhibition, it gives fans a peek into what could be possibly the most talented team in Durham since the 2014 national championship-winning team led by Jahlil Okafor and Tyus Jones.
The only need is cohesion. With so much roster turnaround in the NCAA nowadays, the teams that fit well together typically can outlast squads that are talented but unfit to play with one another, so a Duke squad that finds its stride as a team is a Duke squad that is poised for banner number six. — Isaac Bourne, @IsaacBourne_
No. 6 Gonzaga
A new season of Gonzaga basketball means even more national championship aspirations to go along with it. Most college basketball programs are looking to find their next wave of players through the transfer portal which the Zags did (Pepperdine’s Michael Ajayi, Arkansas’ Khalif Battle, Tarleton State’s Emmanuel Innocenti and Colagate’s Braeden Smith who will redshirt) but more important to the future Hall of Famer Mark Few is the retention of his previous roster. He will be bringing six of the seven top scorers back from last season’s Sweet Sixteen squad. The most important being Ryan Nembhard who was named to the Bob Cousy Award watch list (given to the best point guard in college basketball) and Graham Ike who was named to the Karl Malone Award watch list (given to the best power forward in college basketball). That will be the 1-2 punch for the Zags.
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Gonzaga announced that they will be joining the Pac-12 Conference starting in 2026-2027 but that doesn’t mean the Zags won’t be testing themselves once again this season. No. 8 Baylor, Battle 4 Atlantis (with the possibility of playing No. 17 Indiana and/or No. 10 Arizona), No. 23 Kentucky, No. 3 UConn and No. 22 UCLA in their stacked non-conference slate. The West Coast Conference has three programs with real NCAA tournament at-large possibilities in the Saint Mary’s Gaels, San Francisco Dons and Santa Clara Broncos out of the Bay Area.
The championship window for this program will always be open. The Zags have an absurd amount of depth across the backcourt and the frontcourt this season, enough to take it all the way through San Antonio in the Alamodome. How deep will Mark Few truly go with his rotation, past the typical 7-8 core? It all comes down to the willingness and effort on the defensive end that must be enforced each and every time that Gonzaga steps out on the court. Everyone is aware that this offense has more than the capability to lead the nation in scoring per game. — Arden Cravalho, @a_cravalho, The Slipper Still Fits
No. 5 Iowa State
Iowa State has been a verge of a breakthrough under head coach T.J. Otzelberger. The Cyclones have hit the Sweet 16 twice in the last three years, and finished last season with the No. 1 overall defense in the country. In terms of talent and continuity, this is one of the very best rosters in the country, and perhaps the program’s best chance yet to crash the Final Four.
Milan Momcilovic will be expected to have a breakout sophomore season. The 6’8 wing is a sharpshooter from the outside, and has to touch to improve on his 36 percent three-point stroke from last year. As Momcilovic fires away from deep, the Cyclones have some athletic guards who can make things happen in the paint. Tamin Lipsey is one of the country’s most explosive guards on both ends of the floor. He’s a steals machine who can also sky high for rebounds and attack the basket with force in transition. Keshon Gilbert is also back as a 6’4 bucket-getter who gives this team some extra juice in the halfcourt.
Otzelberger knows how to coach defense. If he can get Iowa State to climb up the offensive efficiency rankings after finishing last year at No. 52, this team can compete with anyone in the Big 12, and maybe even the entire country. — Ricky O’Donnell, SBNation.com
No. 4 Houston
It’s national championship-or-bust for Houston this season. The Cougars spent the majority of last season at the top of the KenPom rankings and begin this season in the top spot as well. They return four starters from the team that went 32-5, claimed a No. 1 seed and reached the Sweet 16. The season flamed out due to an injury to Jamal Shead, who is the lone starter who is not back.
Graduate guard L.J. Cryer is back along with graduate forward J’wan Roberts, redshirt junior guard Emmanuel Sharp and senior forward J’avier Francis. Cryer and Roberts were named to the Naismith Trophy Watch List.
Cryer led the team in scoring last season at 15.5 points per game to go along with nearly two assists a game and more than one steal a night. Sharp also averaged in double figures at 12.6 per contest. He also contributed 3.5 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game. Roberts was a shade below 10 points at 9.5. He shot 59.6% from the field and tallied a team-best 6.8 boards. Francis chipped in six points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.6 blocks a game.
Kelvin Sampson’s team has participated in the last six NCAA Tournaments and has been a No. 1 seed the last two years. They reached five Sweet 16s, two Elite Eights and one Final Four in 2021 in that stretch.
Houston passed its first test in the Big 12 with flying colors. It went 15-3 and won the league that featured eight tournament teams by two games. The conference shapes up to pose another major challenge this season with five of the top 11 (and eight of the top 21) teams in the KenPom preseason rankings.
On top of a loaded conference slate, the Cougars face Alabama, Auburn, Notre Dame and Butler in the non-conference. — Ian Sacks, @ianrsacks
No. 3 UConn
As back-to-back national champions, Dan Hurley and the UConn Huskies have their sights set on joining John Wooden’s UCLA squads of the early 1970s and going for a three-peat. Even after losing four starters from last year’s title team — Donovan Clingan, Stephon Castle, Cam Spencer and Tristen Newton are all now playing professionally — Hurley snubbed the Lakers, returned to Storrs, and reloaded with another team that is primed for a deep March run.
Junior Alex Karaban is the Huskies’ only returning starter and figures to step into a more prominent role after serving as a critical support piece for UConn’s last two title runs. He’ll be joined by point guard Hassan Diarra and explosive big man Samson Johnson, key bench pieces from last season that are now ready to break into the starting five.
Saint Mary’s transfer Aidan Mahaney brings stability and shooting range to an intricate offense that is amongst the best in the country at getting shooters open looks. The addition of Michigan product Tarris Reed Jr. allows Hurley to employ the big-man platoon with Reed and Johnson in the same mold that Adama Sanogo, Clingan and Johnson were used in the past two title runs.
A strong core of underclassmen headlined by potential one-and-done freshmen Liam McNeeley are expected to also contribute. Solo Ball and Jaylin Stewart each contributed mightily as freshmen last season and should work their way into expanded roles in year two.
This year’s UConn team may not be as dominant as last year’s squad, where the Huskies set Big East records for conference wins and steamrolled its way to a sixth national title, but Hurley has the talent necessary for the chance at a historic third-straight national title. The UConn machine he has built keeps churning. — Dan Madigan, @dmad1433, The UConn Blog
No. 2 Alabama
It would be the mother of all understatements to say that Alabama fans are excited about the 2024-25 season.
Fresh off of the program’s first ever run to the Final Four, Alabama enters the season with an absolutely loaded roster. Nate Oats returns Naismith contender Mark Sears at the point guard position, sharpshooter Latrell Wrightsell Jr., blue collar forward Mo Dioubate and two elite “stretch four” types in Grant Nelson and Jarin Stevenson. The main weakness of last year’s squad was rim protection, and Oats filled that need with Cliff Omoruyi from Rutgers, arguably the best defensive big in the transfer portal, along with 6’11” five-star freshman Aiden Sherrell. Oats was also able to add from the portal USF wing Chris Youngblood, a Tuscaloosa native who was named Co-AAC POY last season, another sharpshooter in Houston Mallette from Pepperdine, and former McDonald’s All-American combo guard Aden Holloway from Auburn. Joining Sherrell in the freshman class are likely one-and-done and fellow McDonald’s All-American PF Derrion Reid and Labaron Philon, who Nate recently called one of the best two-way guards in college basketball.
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Oats has recently stated that he essentially has too much talent on the roster, which means that someone who would be starting at many places will be taking a redshirt this season. The Tide has done nothing so far to tamp down the hype around this squad after blowing the doors off of Wake Forest and Memphis in exhibition games despite missing Youngblood, Sherrell, Nelson, and Wrightsell with injury. This team plays an exciting brand of basketball, getting after it hard on the defensive end, pushing the pace, and launching threes from all over the floor. With so many new faces it will likely take a month or so for this team to come together, but on paper it’s tough to find any weaknesses. Muscle Shoals native Sears came back to school in order to bring the program its first national title, and if everything goes to plan he might do just that. — Joshua Chatham, Roll Bama Roll
No. 1 Kansas
After what was a down year by Kansas’ standards in 2023-24, Bill Self decided to hit the transfer portal and get immediate help. The upside is that the Jayhawks have one of the best collections of talent in the country. The downside is that figuring out each player’s role and how the team needs to play could take some time.
Returning from last year are point guard Dajuan Harris and forward KJ Adams, as well as preseason Big 12 Player of the Year Hunter Dickinson, while the only two major losses were Kevin McCullar and one-and-done Johnny Furphy. Self went portaling to bring in scorers like AJ Storr and Zeke Mayo, with established shooters in David Coit and Rylen Griffen, and backup point guard help in Shakeel Moore. Incoming freshman big man Flory Bidunga figures to make an impact as well, though his minutes may be limited behind established bigs in Adams and Dickinson.
The team will likely shoot quite a few more threes, an area where the team struggled as last year went on, and it’s deep enough to throw different looks at opponents depending on the matchup. After two exhibition games, albeit without a complete roster, the team has looked inconsistent but undeniably talented. They could have a few sloppy performances early, but as long as they stay healthy, Self could have a dominant group going by conference play. — DavidAZ, Rock Chalk Talk, @rockchalktalk
