Kentucky Climbs Four Spots in the NET Rankings

Winning works wonders. Kentucky struggled to secure big wins early in non-conference play, but after a couple of successful Saturdays against non-conference foes, the Wildcats have climbed into the Top 25 of the NET Rankings.

Following the loss to Gonzaga, Kentucky was No. 39 in the NET Rankings without a Quad 1 win. They rose to No. 27 with a win over Indiana and are now up to No. 23 following the victory over St. John’s.

The St. John’s win is a Quad 1 victory. Unfortunately, Indiana isn’t helping out the Cats. The Hoosiers slid out of the Top 3, making that a Quad 2 win.

Michigan still has the top spot in the NET Rankings, followed by Arizona, Gonzaga, and Duke, who slipped two spots with a loss to Texas Tech. Undefeated Vanderbilt has the highest ranking of any SEC team at No. 9.

The NET Ranking is the only advanced metric used by the Selection Committee, but it’s not what Las Vegas uses to handicap games. KenPom is still bullish on the Cats, moving Kentucky up to No. 18. The Cats have the 14th-ranked defense in college basketball. Kentucky also jumped up two places in Bart Torvik‘s rankings to No. 26.

Here is a quick look at Kentucky’s team sheet:

• Quad 1: 1-4 (11 games remaining)
• Quad 2: 0-0 (5 games remaining)
• Quad 3: 0-0 (2 games remaining)
• Quad 4: 6-0 (1 game remaining)

Quad 1: 1-4

Home: 1-30 | Neutral: 1-50 | Away: 1-75

NET Rank	Date	Opponent	Result
3	12/05/2025	Gonzaga (Nashville)	L 59-94
9	01/27/2026	at Vanderbilt
9	02/28/2026	Vanderbilt
10	11/18/2025	Michigan State (Champions Classic)	L 66-83
15	11/11/2025	at Louisville	L 88-96
17	01/03/2026	at Alabama
19	12/02/2025	North Carolina	L 64-67
21	02/17/2026	Georgia
24	01/17/2026	at Tennessee
24	02/07/2026	Tennessee
25	02/14/2026	at Florida
25	03/07/2026	Florida
26	01/31/2026	at Arkansas
28	12/20/2025	St. John’s (CBS Sports Classic)	W 78-66
33	01/14/2026	at LSU
42	02/21/2026	at Auburn

Quad 2: 1-0

Home: 31-75 | Neutral: 51-100 | Away: 76-135

NET Rank	Date	Opponent	Result
31	12/13/2025	Indiana	W 72-60
53	01/21/2026	Texas
56	02/04/2026	Oklahoma
69	01/07/2026	Missouri
85	03/03/2026	at Texas A&M
107	02/24/2026	at South Carolina

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Quad 3: 0-0

Home: 76-160 | Neutral: 101-200 | Away: 136-240

NET Rank	Date	Opponent	Result
92	01/24/2026	Ole Miss
124	01/10/2026	Mississippi State

Quad 4: 6-0

Home: 161-362 | Neutral: 201-362 | Away: 241-362

NET Rank	Date	Opponent	Result
232	11/26/2025	Tennessee Tech	W 104-54
236	11/07/2025	Valparaiso	W 107-59
252	11/04/2025	Nicholls	W 77-51
265	12/23/2025	Bellarmine
321	11/14/2025	Eastern Ill.	W 99-53
350	12/9/2025	NC Central	W 103-67
351	11/21/2025	Loyola Maryland	W 88-46

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