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College basketball rankings: CBS Sports top 25 and 1 sees monster changes after ranked matchups

IMG_0985by:Griffin McVeigh11/27/24

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Johni Broome (Photo by Auburn Athletics)
Johni Broome (Photo by Auburn Athletics)

This period of college basketball marks a great time in the sports calendar. MTEs produce some great matchups for fans to enjoy during the holidays. Dramatic finishes and overall great games have certainly already taken place.

So, after some madness early in Feast Week, CBS Sports’ Gary Parrish revised his Top 25 and 1 rankings after several ranked matchups forced 22 teams to change their spots throughout the power rankings.

1. Kansas Jayhawks

Not many teams can stack up the early season resume Kansas has. Tuesday night was the latest impressive win, taking down Duke in Las Vegas without Hunter Dickinson for a chunk for the game.

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Add in wins against North Carolina plus Michigan State and the Jayhawks remain at the No. 1 spot.

2. Auburn Tigers

Auburn may be able to compete with Kansas when looking at quality wins. Maui has been quite kind to the Tigers as they are set to face Memphis in the championship game on Wednesday afternoon.

Bruce Pearl purposely stacked the nonconference portion of the schedule this year. Results are paying off in a big way thus far.

3. Gonzaga Bulldogs (+1)

Photo of Gonzaga head coach Mark Few by Junfu Han | USA TODAY NETWORK
Photo of Gonzaga head coach Mark Few by Junfu Han | USA TODAY NETWORK

All things considered, last season was a down one for Gonzaga. They found themselves on the bubble at times but still found a way to make the Sweet Sixteen.

This go-round is different as Gonzaga is one of the best teams in the country. As usual, the early schedule is tough for the Bulldogs before getting into conference play.

4. Iowa State Cyclones (+1)

Two games into Maui, Iowa State finds itself with a 1-1 record. A fifth-place game against Colorado is set to take place on Wednesday afternoon.

Even with the Auburn loss, Iowa State has climbed one spot in CBS’ rankings. The Big 12 projects to be as tough as ever and the Cyclones should be right there at the top.

5. Marquette Golden Eagles (+2)

Finally, a little love for the Big East in Marquette. No other team from the conference is ranked inside the CBS top 25, with the league’s class falling out completely.

Marquette is more than worthy of climbing two spots to No. 5, though. Shaka Smart has to love his team’s results as the calendar flips to December.

6. Tennessee Volunteers (+2)

Zakai Zeigler, Tennessee Basketball | Tennesseee Athletics
Zakai Zeigler, Tennessee Basketball | Tennesseee Athletics

A second SEC team ranked inside the top six, Tennessee is hoping to win another regular season conference championship. The journey will not begin until January but Rick Barnes is preparing his squad in a big way.

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Six wins and zero losses for the Vols thus far. Half of those are against high-major opponents, most recently Baylor.

7. Kentucky Wildcats (+2)

Mark Pope marked his arrival with a Champions Classic win against Duke. Expectations inside Big Blue Nation skyrocketed due to the result and will not slow down anytime soon.

A completely new roster is in Lexington after Jon Calipari‘s departure. So to see Kentucky play this well, this early, is quite impressive.

8. Purdue Boilermakers (+3)

Fresh off a national championship loss, Purdue has another team worthy of contending in March. Some starpower did leave the program but talent acquisition never seems to be a problem in West Lafayette.

However, one key piece has returned for the ’24-25 season — Trey Kaufman-Renn. The third-year player leads Purdue with 17.7 points and 6.0 rebounds per game.

9. Alabama Crimson Tide (+3)

Alabama guard Mark Sears and forward Grant Nelson vs. Illinois (courtesy UA Athletics)
Alabama guard Mark Sears and forward Grant Nelson vs. Illinois (courtesy UA Athletics)

Nate Oats is going through his normal nonconference schedule, seemingly facing a ranked opponent every time on the floor. Las Vegas saw a great overtime win for Alabama against Houston to start off the Players Era Festival Tournament.

That victory moved the Crimson Tide up three spots to No. 9. Plenty of other high-profile games are set to take place for them before starting SEC play as well.

10. Duke Blue Devils

Duke has lost a couple of heartbreakers to big-named programs. As mentioned, the Kansas game was the latest from Las Vegas. A last-second shot from three did not fall.

Even so, Jon Scheyer‘s team does not move in the CBS Sports Top 25 + 1. Some losses ahead of them keep Duke inside the top 10 for now.

11. Houston Cougars (-5)
12. North Carolina Tar Heels (-9)
13. Memphis Tigers
14. Indiana Hoosiers (+1)
15. Wisconsin Badgers (+1)
16. Baylor Bears (+1)
17. Arkansas Razorbacks (+1)
18. Pittsburgh Panthers (+1)
19. Ohio State Buckeyes (+2)
20. Texas Longhorns (+2)
21. Arizona Wildcats (+2)
22. Florida Gators (+2)
23. Cincinnati Bearcats (+2)
24. Ole Miss Rebels (+2)
25. Mississippi State (NR)
26. Oregon Ducks (NR)
New teams in: Mississippi State, Oregon
Teams leaving: UConn, Texas A&M