The road to March Madness and Indianapolis is officially underway, and the opening week of the 2025-26 college basketball season has already delivered a glimpse of what’s to come. Veterans are setting the tone early, with players like St. John’s forward Zuby Ejiofor and Texas Tech’s JT Toppin providing leadership and energy that their teams can rally around. Meanwhile, the next generation of stars is wasting no time making its mark, as Duke’s Cameron Boozer, BYU’s AJ Dybantsa, Kansas’s Darryn Peterson, Arizona’s Koa Peat, and North Carolina’s Caleb Wilson have all shown flashes of why NBA scouts are already penciling them into next year’s first round. The first week also gave fans a handful of marquee matchups that lived up to the hype, from Arizona’s statement win over Florida in Las Vegas to Alabama’s gritty road victory at St. John’s. With the season just beginning, the landscape is already buzzing with promise and early intrigue, so with that in mind, let’s take a look at my top 25:

1. Houston (2-0)

Last Week’s Record: 2-0

Wins: vs. Lehigh, vs. Towson

Losses: None

This Week: vs. Oakland (11/12), vs. 22 Auburn (in Birmingham, AL) (11/16)

2. UConn (2-0)

Last Week’s Record: 2-0

Wins: vs. New Haven, vs. UMass Lowell

Losses: None

This Week: vs. Columbia (11/10), vs. 7 BYU (in Boston, MA) (11/15)

3. Duke (2-0)

Last Week’s Record: 3-0

Wins: vs. Texas (in Charlotte, NC), vs. Western Carolina

Losses: None

This Week: @ Army (11/11), vs. Indiana State (11/14)

4. Arizona (2-0)

Last Week’s Record: 2-0

Wins: vs. 3 Florida (in Las Vegas, NV), vs. Utah Tech

Losses: None

This Week: vs. Northern Arizona (11/11), vs. 15 UCLA (in Inglewood, CA) (11/14)

5. Alabama (2-0)

Last Week’s Record: 2-0

Wins: vs. North Dakota, @ 5 St. John’s

Losses: None

This Week: vs. 2 Purdue (11/13)

6. BYU (2-0)

Last Week’s Record: 2-0

Wins: vs. Villanova (in Las Vegas, NV), vs. Holy Cross

Losses: None

This Week: vs. Delaware (11/11), vs. 3 UConn (in Boston, MA) (11/15)

7. Louisville (2-0)

Last Week’s Record: 2-0

Wins: vs. South Carolina State, vs. Jackson State

Losses: None

This Week: vs. 9 Kentucky (11/11), vs. Ohio (11/15)

8. Kentucky (2-0)

Last Week’s Record: 2-0

Wins: vs. Nicholls, vs. Valparaiso

Losses: None

This Week: @ 12 Louisville (11/11), vs. Eastern Illinois (11/14)

9. Purdue (2-0)

Last Week’s Record: 2-0

Wins: vs. Evansville, vs. Oakland

Losses: None

This Week: @ 8 Alabama (11/13), vs. Akron (11/16)

10. Florida (1-1)

Last Week’s Record: 1-1

Wins: vs. North Florida

Losses: vs. 13 Arizona (in Las Vegas, NV)

This Week: vs. Florida State (11/11), vs. Miami (in Jacksonville, FL) (11/16)

11. St. John’s (1-1)

Last Week’s Record: 1-1

Wins: vs. Quinnipiac

Losses: vs. 15 Alabama

This Week: vs. William & Mary (11/15)

12. Illinois (2-0)

Last Week’s Record: 2-0

Wins: vs. Jackson State, vs. FGCU

Losses: None

This Week: vs. 11 Texas Tech (11/11), vs. Colgate (11/14)

13. Texas Tech (2-0)

Last Week’s Record: 2-0

Wins: vs. Lindenwood, vs. Sam Houston

Losses: None

This Week: @ 14 Illinois (11/11), vs. Milwaukee (11/14)

14. Michigan (1-0)

Last Week’s Record: 1-0

Wins: vs. Oakland

Losses: None

This Week: vs. Wake Forest (in Detroit, MI) (11/11), @ TCU (11/14)

15. Iowa State (2-0)

Last Week’s Record: 2-0

Wins: vs. Fairleigh Dickinson, vs. Grambling

Losses: None

This Week: vs. Mississippi State (in Sioux Falls, SD) (11/10)

16. Michigan State (2-0)

Last Week’s Record: 2-0

Wins: vs. Colgate, vs. 14 Arkansas

Losses: None

This Week: vs. San José State (11/13)

17. North Carolina (2-0)

Last Week’s Record: 2-0

Wins: vs. Central Arkansas, vs. 19 Kansas

Losses: None

This Week: vs. Radford (11/11), vs. NC Central (11/14)

18. Tennessee (2-0)

Last Week’s Record: 2-0

Wins: vs. Mercer, vs. Northern Kentucky

Losses: None

This Week: vs. North Florida (11/12)

19. UCLA (2-0)

Last Week’s Record: 2-0

Wins: vs. Eastern Washington, vs. Pepperdine

Losses: None

This Week: vs. West Georgia (11/10), vs. 5 Arizona (in Inglewood, CA) (11/14)

20. NC State (2-0)

Last Week’s Record: 2-0

Wins: vs. NC Central, vs. UAB

Losses: None

This Week: vs. UNC Greensboro (11/12)

21. Wisconsin (2-0)

Last Week’s Record: 2-0

Wins: vs. Campbell, vs. Northern Illinois

Losses: None

This Week: vs. Ball State (11/11)

22. Gonzaga (2-0)

Last Week’s Record: 2-0

Wins: vs. Texas Southern, vs. Oklahoma (in Spokane, WA)

Losses: None

This Week: vs. 23 Creighton (11/11), @ Arizona State (11/14)

23. Creighton (1-0)

Last Week’s Record: 1-0

Wins: vs. South Dakota

Losses: None

This Week: @ 19 Gonzaga (11/11), vs. MD Eastern (11/14)

24. Arkansas (1-1)

Last Week’s Record: 1-1

Wins: vs. Southern

Losses: @ 22 Michigan State

This Week: vs. Central Arkansas (11/11), vs. Samford (11/14)

25. Kansas (1-1)

Last Week’s Record: 1-1

Wins: vs. Green Bay

Losses: @ 25 North Carolina

This Week: vs. Texas A&M-CC (11/11), vs. Princeton (11/15)