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College Basketball Rankings: Preseason AP Poll Top 25 revealed

IMG_6598by: Nick Kosko10/13/25nickkosko59
College Basketball Rankings: Preseason AP Poll Top 25 revealed
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The college basketball regular season is right around the corner so that means the AP Poll is here as well! The preseason rankings give us a look at the contenders this season as well.

Florida is the defending champion and they’ll be a contender to do it again in 2025-26. But, a couple of Big Ten teams might have something to say about that as well.

So without further ado, let’s dive into the first AP Poll of the year: the preseason rankings! We start at the top!

1. Purdue

Purdue has a nice group of returning talent from last year’s group. That includes Braden Smith and Trey Kaufman-Renn. 

Head coach Matt Painter should have this team in Big Ten title contention, as well as geared up for a Final Four run. Incoming transfer Oscar Cluff should be a player to watch for the Boilermakers.

2. Houston

Houston HC Kelvin Sampson
Bob Donnan | Imagn Images

Houston made a deep run last year, making it all the way to the NCAA title game and fell 65-63 to eventual champ Florida. Kelvin Sampson’s last goal? Win the whole darn thing.

The Cougars bring back Milos Uzan and JoJo Tugler. Not only that, the incoming freshmen class is loaded and Houston gets a high AP Poll ranking to start out.

3. Florida

The Gators are reigning champions as Todd Golden has this team as one of the class programs of college basketball. Another deep run is possible, just like the mid-2000s when Florida won back to back national titles.

Alex Condon and Thomas Haugh returned to this year’s frontcourt. Boogie Fland and Xaivan Lee highlight the transfer class, putting Florida high up the AP Poll.

4. UConn

UConn went for the three-peat last year, but fell well short in the NCAA Tournament. No shame in that though.

Dan Hurley is one of the top coaches in the sport and it certainly was refreshing to hear how open and honest he was about potential burnout in his career and the Los Angeles Lakers interest a couple of years ago. The Huskies have three key returners Solo Ball, Alex Karaban and Tarris Reed to pair with a good transfer class.

5. St. John’s

St. John's HC Rick Pitino
Brad Penner | Imagn Images

St. John’s gets a high AP Poll ranking despite looking rather different from last season. Rick Pitino landed a pretty good transfer class though.

Zuby Ejiofor, who returns, will be joined by the likes of Ian Jackson, Bryce Hopkins, Dillon Mitchell and Joson Sanon. St. John’s should be in the mix to make a deep run.

6. Duke

Duke had to overhaul a large portion of the roster and that included finding some sort of replacement for top NBA pick Cooper Flagg. Jon Scheyer should have a talented team though.

Isaiah Evans and Caleb Foster return to the squad this year. That’ll complement the likes of Cameron Boozer, Nikolas Khamenia and Dame Sarr.

7. Michigan

Dusty May and the Wolverines are a preseason top 10 team in the AP Poll and it’s easy to see why. Roddy Gayle and Nimari Burnett return to Michigan this year!

Elliot Cadeau, Morez Johnson and Yaxel Lendeborg are the newcomers in the maize and blue this season. May has been able to turn things around quickly for Michigan after transitioning from the Juwan Howard era.

8. BYU

Robert Deutsch-Imagn Images

BYU is coming off a Sweet 16 appearance and 26 wins last year. That was quite the debut for Kevin Young and the Cougars.

Moving forward, all eyes are on freshman AJ Dybansta, standing at 6-foot-9. Seniors Richie Saunders and Keba Keita will lead the way in terms of leadership on this squad.

9. Kentucky

Mark Pope has a solid squad that’s well within the AP Poll to start the season. Kentucky brings back Brandon Garrison and Otega Oweh to the lineup this year.

The incoming recruits and transfers are highlighted by Jasper Johnson, Jaland Lowe and Jayen Quaintance. This team should contend near the top of the SEC all year.

10. Texas Tech

The Red Raiders made a run to the Elite Eight last season, finishing with 28 wins and are an AP Poll Top 10 team to start this season. Expectations are high for Grant McCasland going into Year 3.

Let’s take a look at Christian Anderson, who played well as a freshman. Maybe he could be one of the better players in college basketball.

Preseason AP Poll Top 25 basketball rankings revealed

11. Louisville
12. UCLA
13. Arizona
14. Arkansas
15. Alabama
16. Iowa State
17. Illinois
18. Tennessee
19. Kansas
20. Auburn
21. Gonzaga
22. Michigan State
23. Creighton
24. Wisconsin
25. North Carolina

Others receiving votes in AP Poll: NC State 101, Oregon 98, San Diego St. 74, Texas 35, Ohio St. 23, Kansas St 13, Mississippi 11, Southern Cal 10, Missouri 8, Washington 7, Vanderbilt 7, Iowa 6, Boise St. 4, Mississippi St. 3, VCU 2, Virginia 2, Saint Mary’s 2, Indiana 1, Oklahoma 1, Baylor 1.