With the new AP Top 25 men’s rankings coming out earlier this week, what better way to start off this column than to dissect this week’s top college basketball games? Almost every top 25 team shifted at least one spot in the rankings with Houston moving from second to first to claim No. 1 in the country. Of course, this is after only two games played, and we still have months of basketball left as we start our journey to March.
No. 11 Texas Tech will take on No. 14 Illinois today in a top 15 matchup for the first-ever meeting between the two programs. The hardest worker in this game may as well be the scoreboard operator as both teams’ offenses have been putting up clinics to start the season. Texas Tech scored 98 points in both home openers against Lindenwood and Sam Houston, which is somehow still less than Illinois’ whopping 113 points scored in home matchups against Jackson State and Florida Gulf Coast. This game should make for an exciting, fast-paced competition with both sides looking to hit triple digits.
No. 8 Alabama, home to one of the highest scoring college basketball offenses, will take on No. 2 Purdue on Thursday. The Tide are following a huge 103-96 win against pervious No. 5 St. John’s on the road. Coming off this win, the Tide jumped seven spots to claim the No. 8 rank. Purdue is coming off a nerve-wracking win at home against Oakland after the teams traded leads until Purdue star Braden Smith took control late in the second half to help the Boilermakers to a ten-point victory, 87-77.
This Friday, the Arizona Wildcats will take on the UCLA Bruins. The Wildcats are coming off back-to-back 93-point performances including knocking off defending national champion Florida in their home opener. Since then, Arizona has shot up eight spots to claim No. 5, where the Bruins sit at No. 15.
Saturday features No. 3 Connecticut against No. 7 BYU at TD Garden in Boston, MA. The last time UConn stepped foot on the court in TD Garden was in 2024 when they defeated Illinois in the Elite Eight and went on to win the National Championship game. This contest was home to UConn’s infamous 30-0 run which helped the Huskies cruise to the Final Four. The Huskies will look for some more magic this time around as BYU holds one of the nation’s top recruits of the 2025 class, AJ Dybantsa.
To round out the weekend, No. 1 Houston will face their toughest opponent of the season, No. 22 Auburn. Both teams are looking to start their ranked campaigns off strong as the first game against a big school is the perfect way to get a team into rhythm. Both teams were amongst the top in the country last season as Houston won the Big 12 championship, and Auburn won the SEC regular season ranking. With this early season matchup, both teams are given the chance to stand out and assert their credibility on a national scale.
With the second week of college basketball on its way, there is still plenty of season left to play. Although many say that anything can happen in March, the same is true even in November. With many high-key matchups taking place early in the season, the question comes down to which team will show their dominance early?