A rule change allowing college basketball programs to schedule legitimate preseason matchups against other top programs has provided a few new data points to consider for preseason rankings.
With the start of the men’s college basketball season one week away, I’ve made a few adjustments to my original preseason poll. Those preseason games do not count, but as North Carolina coach Hubert Davis said last week, it’s not like they’re lab experiments.
“They keep score,” Davis said.
That’s why I’ve dropped Purdue from the top spot. Not sure you could watch Friday’s preseason loss at Kentucky and come away thinking the Boilermakers were the better team. Overreaction? Possible. Two years ago, Purdue lost at Arkansas in the preseason and ended up one of the best two teams in the sport, while Arkansas watched the NCAA Tournament at home. But Purdue was trying to win Friday. Kentucky just looked better. And Purdue’s lack of athleticism compared to other top teams is noticeable.
Michigan is my new No. 1. What the Wolverines have at the center spot — Aday Mara starting and Morez Johnson Jr. as the backup — reminds me of the center combos UConn had on its back-to-back title teams. Each brings different strengths, and the ability to always have an elite center fresh is a huge advantage.
I’ve also taken into account conversations with coaches and NBA scouts over the last month and made a few other tweaks to the Associated Press Top 25 poll I submitted a few weeks ago. It’s never been more difficult to make predictions because of the massive roster turnover across the sport. That’s why I try not to be afraid to reassess previous opinions, especially early in the season.
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Key to season: Turnovers. This will be a top-10 offense if the Wolverines can get the turnover issues that hurt them last season under control. They gave it away 22 times in an exhibition overtime win at St. John’s.
The additions of point guard Elliot Cadeau (UNC) and center Aday Mara (UCLA) are going to help the Wolverines get great shots. Both are elite passers, but Cadeau can sometimes throw some wild passes. If he can minimize those, this up-tempo offense will hum.
Player to watch: Mara. Coach Dusty May is going to unlock his awesome passing ability. The 7-foot-3 Spaniard has terrific vision and has a knack for finding cutters. He has also added strength and should be a better finisher around the basket. Defensively, he’s an elite rim protector. He’s also always going to be able to be fresh with Morez Johnson Jr., a transfer from Illinois, backing him up.
No one in college hoops has a better starter-backup combo at center and power forward. At the four, UAB transfer Yaxel Lendeborg projects to be an All-American and Will Tschetter is a starter-level player whose shooting will allow May to occasionally put three bigs on the floor together.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
Sweet 16
Key to season: The logical answer is defense. Mark Pope has never coached a top-50 defense. This one has to rank much higher than top 50 for the Cats to compete for a national title. The early returns are promising, as Kentucky held Purdue, one of the best offenses in the sport, to 65 points and 38.6 percent shooting in its exhibition win. The length, the athleticism, the effort, it was all there. Pope put together what’s believed to be the most expensive roster in college basketball and the defensive emphasis looks like it’s going to pay off.
The key could also be how the pieces mesh offensively. Is Pitt transfer Jaland Lowe, a ball-dominant point guard, a fit, or will Pope adjust his system to fit Lowe (who is currently injured)? Is there enough shooting? Will the bigs be able to be triggers like Amari Williams and Andrew Carr were? (Alabama transfer Mouhamed Dioubate looked like an awesome fit against Purdue.) Pope’s track record says he’ll figure it out, but shockingly I’m more optimistic about his defense than the offense.
Player to watch: Malachi Moreno. Moreno, the No. 25 player in this freshman class, was better than expected in the Purdue win. He’s huge and moves really well for his size, with a good feel as a roller and finding pockets of space. His presence means there’s not a need to rush back Jayden Quaintance, who is getting a late start because of his ACL rehab.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
Sweet 16
Key to season: The power forward position. Houston has the best defensive center in college basketball in Joseph Tugler and two veteran starters returning on the perimeter. Plus, Kingston Flemmings will be one of the best freshmen guards in the country. What the Coogs are going to miss is the stabilizing force that J’Wan Roberts was at the four spot. He guarded, rebounded and the offense could run through him because of his ability to pass and attack from the post or elbows.
Freshman Chris Cenac Jr. is talented and can make a jumper, but he’s more of a center playing power forward. Can he guard his position? Can the Coogs find a reliable backup? Redshirt freshman Chase McCarty is the top option, or they could go smaller, which could potentially hurt their offensive rebounding. The Coogs are so good at the other four spots, but the development of Cenac and Isiah Harwell, who could also play some small-ball four, will likely determine their ceiling.
Player to watch: Emanuel Sharp. He has been the second or third option the last two years, and now it’s his turn to be the star. Sharp has proven himself as a knockdown 3-point shooter. What we haven’t seen as much is his slashing. He’s capable of scoring more off the bounce.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
National runner-up
Key to season: Defense. UConn’s back-to-back title teams both finished top 10 in defense. Last season the Huskies nosedived to 75th.
It’s possible that was partly bad luck. The 2-point defense was still good — 10th-best — but opponents shot 35 percent from deep after the previous two teams had held opponents to 29.7 and 31.2 percent beyond the arc. One strange outlier that led to this: opponents made 37.1 percent of their 3s off the bounce, per Synergy, and the previous two seasons they’d made 25.6 and 25 percent.
Whether it’s needing better luck or better perimeter pressure, the Huskies have to get back to guarding to be a top-10 team again.
Player to watch: Silas Demary Jr. Tristen Newton, at 6-foot-5, was a huge difference-maker for the title teams and the Huskies were missing his ability to go get a bucket when one of Dan Hurley’s intricate set plays didn’t generate an easy basket.
Demary, a Georgia transfer, is also 6-5 and his advanced numbers as a sophomore almost mirror Newton’s first year as a Husky — usage rate, shooting numbers and free-throw rate are nearly identical. If he’s able to be a Newton clone, then good things are coming for UConn.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
Second round
Key to season: Boogie Fland and Xaivian Lee. Florida will rely on the transfer guards from Arkansas and Princeton, respectively, for scoring and replacing a decent portion of the production lost from Walter Clayton Jr., Alijah Martin and Will Richard. That’s a huge ask.
Fland had flashes as a freshman at Arkansas and simply becoming a sophomore should help. Lee was great in the Ivy League but this is a huge leap. The frontcourt is rock solid with every significant contributor returning. These two have to hit for the Gators to even be close to as good as they were last year.
Player to watch: Thomas Haugh. Because the frontcourt is so deep, Haugh will likely start at small forward and play a decent amount of minutes at that spot. If he can thrive in that role, it’ll help ease some of the pressure on those two transfer guards.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
National champion
Key to season: Whether five-star recruits Brayden Burries and Koa Peat handle big roles as freshmen. Peat might have the most college-ready body of any frontcourt freshman in college basketball. He also seems like a mature player for 18 years old.
Burries was sensational in Arizona’s Red-Blue Showcase, scoring 22 points on 11 shots in 20 minutes. Granted, it was a scrimmage, but there’s no denying he is a gifted scorer. He fits in the Caleb Love role, but it’s a little unsettling going from a fifth-year senior as your go-to guy to a true freshman.
Player to watch: Jaden Bradley nearly doubled his points and assists in his second year in the program, and point guards in the Tommy Lloyd/Mark Few system tend to get better with age. While there’s a lot on the shoulders of Burries, it helps that he has a senior point guard starting next to him.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
Sweet 16
Key to season: Guard play. I was the lowest on St. John’s among Associated Press Top 25 voters and felt justified after KenPom had the Johnnies at No. 16. After watching the Michigan exhibition, guard play is still the concern, but, the frontline is good enough to ease some of that concern.
Rick Pitino is going big, starting Zuby Ejiofor, Dillon Mitchell and Bryce Hopkins. Three-point shooting, similar to last year, could be an issue. St. John’s made just 4-of-23 from deep against Michigan, but that frontline is going to make St. John’s one of the best offensive rebounding teams in the country.
Mitchell is the key to making it work. The former five-star has found the perfect coach to bring the most out of him, and he’s going to be great at the top of Pitino’s press. Also, Idaho State transfer Dylan Darling looks like he belongs at this level and gives Pitino a true point guard.
Player to watch: Hopkins. Hopkins averaged 15.8 points and 8.5 rebounds in 2022-23 and led Providence to a NCAA Tournament bid. He has dealt with injuries since. Can he get through the year healthy? He doesn’t need to have the same level of production he had three seasons ago, but St. John’s greatest strength is overwhelming teams with its strength and length. If he stays healthy, the floor is pretty high and the progression of young guards Joson Sanon and Ian Jackson will likely determine this team’s ceiling.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
Second round
Key to season: The defense. It takes a top-20 defense to win a national championship. Purdue ranked 53rd in adjusted defense last year and was deficient in the interior, allowing opponents to shoot 55.6 percent inside the arc. Matt Painter addressed that with South Dakota State transfer Oscar Cluff. The return of 7-foot-4 Daniel Jacobson will also help.
What was striking in an exhibition loss at Kentucky, though, was the difference in athleticism between the two rosters. Perimeter defense could still be a concern. There’s no scenario where this offense isn’t awesome. This season will come down to defense and rebounding.
Player to watch: Omer Mayer. The Israeli point guard gives Purdue another playmaker next to Braden Smith, which will ease some of the pressure on the senior to generate everything in the offense and play so many minutes.
Mayer has the physique and IQ to make an impact as a freshman. It could take a little time to adjust to the speed of the game, but he has a chance to be the next great Purdue guard.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
Sweet 16
Key to season: Guard play. Even though he’s a freshman, Cameron Boozer can be a rock for Jon Scheyer. He has an extremely mature game and he’s going to produce.
How good the Blue Devils are will depend on their guards. Caleb Foster was a disappointment last year and Scheyer doesn’t have a veteran behind him this time. Dame Sarr is talented but could take some time to adjust to the college game. Isaiah Evans was a microwave off the bench last year but it’s not as easy when defenses are locking in on you. Duke is not lacking in talent, but it is unproven.
Player to watch: Patrick Ngongba II. It’s good to be Duke, where you can sit a five-star on your bench for a season developing and learning before you have to rely on him. While guard play is a concern, Scheyer could adjust his offense to play through the two bigs.
Again, Boozer is pretty close to a sure thing. Now it’s time to see what Duke has in Ngongba. Good news is there’s another good player there if he isn’t ready in Maliq Brown.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
Final Four
Key to season: The transfer portal additions succeeding. It’s hard to see a world where Darryn Peterson isn’t a great college player. He plays more like a veteran than a freshman, and he has surpassed AJ Dybantsa as the favorite to the No. 1 pick in next year’s NBA Draft. He’s good enough to win games almost by himself.
The others look to fit around him, and Flory Bidunga is a good bet to be a breakout star this year. But the X-factors are the portal additions. KU doesn’t have a great hit rate in the portal the last two years. This cycle, Bill Self seemed to go for fit over name. Melvin Council Jr. (St. Bonaventure), Tre White (Illinois) and Jayden Dawson (Loyola Chicago) do not have to be stars, but they need to be dependable.
Player to watch: Peterson. Self has hyped Peterson more than any freshman he’s ever coached, and that includes Andrew Wiggins and Joel Embiid. He is putting a ton of pressure on the freshman to perform, and he looks able to handle it and thrive.
Last year’s KU team missed a surefire pro, something Self has always had. Well, he has the most surefire of them all on this roster. Now it’s time for Peterson to justify the hype.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
First round
Key to season: Chemistry. On paper, there’s an argument to be made that this is the most talented team in college basketball. Mikel Brown Jr. was the best player on the under-19 gold-medal winning team this summer — AJ Dybantsa won MVP, but it should have been Brown. Pat Kelsey landed three top-35 transfers on the perimeter and also returns J’Vonne Hadley.
Up front, 22-year-old Sananda Fru is expected to be one of the top international imports, Kasean Pryor was arguably Louisville’s most talented player last year before getting hurt and Aly Khalifa is one of the best passing bigs in the sport. This is an awesome roster. Let’s see how it fits together.
Player to watch: Ryan Conwell. The Louisville system has some similarities to the system Conwell played in at Indiana State two years ago. Those Sycamores were on the best offensive teams in the country, and Conwell thrived, averaging 16.6 points per game with a 120.6 offensive rating.
He didn’t drop off at Xavier, averaging 16.5 points and shooting 40-plus percent from 3-point range for the second straight season. Brown could end up the star, but Conwell is the surest bet of that deep perimeter group to produce.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
First round
Key to the season: Health. JT Toppin has already shown he is perfect in this system and Christian Anderson is a breakout candidate. While the shooters around them haven’t done it at the high-major level, I’d bet on them translating in their roles.
But the difference between the Red Raiders and most of the other teams in these rankings is depth. They will be leaning a lot on six players and could be in trouble if injuries occur to any starters.
Player to watch: LeJuan Watts. Grant McCasland is a big believer in Watts’ ability to fill the Darrion Williams role. Based on how he played at Washington State, it feels like a perfect fit. If he can be even 80 or 90 percent as good as Williams, then Texas Tech should be in great shape.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
Elite Eight
Key to season: Defining roles. When BYU leaned into Richie Saunders as the best player on the team last year, Dallin Hall and Egor Demin learned how to coexist and Kevin Young started leaning more on Hall, BYU got really good. Hall was the glue guy for the Cougars. But he’s now at Virginia, and newcomers Robert Wright III and AJ Dybantsa are going to want the ball in their hands.
Figuring out how to keep everyone happy and building an offense with flow will be the challenge for Young, who aced year one. Love the talent he’s collected. Let’s see how they mesh and defend. The defense has to get better to get past the second weekend.
Player to watch: Dybantsa. He has National Player of the Year and No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft potential. He looked great in two exhibition wins. His jumper is flat and I wonder if he can consistently make outside shots, but he’s going to put up big numbers because it’s hard to keep him from getting to his spots.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
Sweet 16
Key to season: The Balkan Five. Brad Underwood has four players who were born in the Balkan region and a fifth (Andrej Stojakovic) whose father, former Sacramento Kings guard Peja Stojakovic, is from that part of the world. Those five players will be the heart and soul of this team.
Tomislav Ivisic is a very good college player, his brother Zvonimir had some good stretches at Kentucky and Arkansas, and Stojakovic put up numbers on losing squads at Stanford and Cal. So the question is how good are Mihailo Petrovic and David Mirkovic?
Petrovic was an MVP candidate in the Adriatic League. He has elite speed and he’s 22 years old. And Mirkovic’s production in his final year in the Adriatic League was slightly better than Tomislav Ivisic’s. If he can be close to as good as Ivisic was in his first season with the Illini, that’s a really good college player. I’m very interested to see how this experiment plays out.
Player to watch: Keaton Wagler. An NBA scouting buddy who attended an Illini practice let me know Wagler was a good choice for this list of underrated freshmen who could pop. “He’s damn good,” the scout said.
Wagler is extremely skilled and smooth, and at 6-foot-6 can play either guard spot. He should fit seamlessly with both Petrovic and Boswell and do not be surprised to see him in the Illini’s starting lineup.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
Second round
Key to season: 3-point shooting. It’s hard to have an elite offense without 3-point shooting. What Arkansas guards did best a year ago was drive to the basket, but it’s a lot easier to drive if there’s spacing.
The bad news is the team’s best 3-point shooter last season, Zvonimir Ivisic (at 37.6 percent), transferred to Illinois. It’s also probably not great news when the 7-foot-2 center is the best 3-point shooter. Johnell Davis, who led the team in 3s made, is also gone. John Calipari has a good core returning and continuity should help the offense, but for the Razorbacks to contend for an SEC title, they need to at least shoot a respectable percentage from beyond the arc.
Player to watch: Malique Ewin. The Florida State transfer was one of my favorite under-the-radar guys in the portal. Five-out basketball with a center who can be a trigger is the rage in college hoops, and Ewin has the passing chops to thrive in that role. Will Calipari put him in those spots? We’ll see. But he could be a difference maker if he’s allowed to have a playmaking role.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
Sweet 16
Billy Richmond III
Forward
Key to season: Point guard play. Mark Few has had a top-20 offense for 11 straight seasons and it’s probably safe to assume that’s going to continue, but the challenge for this group is replacing Ryan Nembhard. He was a savant at the position.
This could be similar to when Few had to replace Kevin Pangos in 2015, and Gonzaga’s offense went from fifth-best to 22nd. The amazing thing about Gonzaga is that Few somehow convinced Braeden Smith, the 2024 Patriot League Player of the Year at Colgate, to transfer and sit out for a year to learn behind Nembhard. Smith has huge shoes to fill and it’s hard to envision he can be as good as Nembhard, but the ability to sit, learn and absorb the Gonzaga culture is incredibly valuable.
Player to watch: Graham Ike. It seems like he’s been in school forever, but Ike has one more year left because his freshman year was 2020-21, the year everyone got back because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Ike averaged 17.3 points per game last year with a 125.1 offensive rating. With him and Braden Huff, the Zags have one of the best front lines in the country.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
Second round
Emmanuel Innocenti
Forward
Key to season: Donovan Dent and Xavier Booker. UCLA returned a solid core, including three starters (Tyler Bilodeau, Eric Dailey and Skyy Clark). Mick Cronin landed one of the best point guards available in Dent from New Mexico and then took a gamble on Booker, who was once considered an elite prospect but underwhelmed at Michigan State.
Dent is going to have the ball in his hands a lot and he could make me look silly for ranking the Bruins this low. My skepticism mostly comes with Booker, who seemed like an odd fit. But if Cronin can get Booker defending at an elite level and being solid on the other end, this team could be top-five good.
Player to watch: Booker. Whether Dent is All-American good or just a really solid Big Ten starter, it’s likely he’s an upgrade for the Bruins. Booker is the big swing player. He averaged just 12.8 minutes per game for Michigan State with low efficiency numbers. He’s a stretch 5 who has shot just 27.3 percent from 3. He has a lot to prove.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
Second round
Key to season: The defense. Nate Oats has had a top-20 offense for four straight seasons, and it’s the defense that usually determines how good his team is. In the two years he’s had a defense that ranked third in adjusted efficiency, Alabama went 16-2 in the SEC. Last season, the Crimson Tide were 28th and they were a No. 2 seed.
But in his other three years in Tuscaloosa, the Crimson Tide have had sub-90 defenses and double-digit losses each year. One of those teams (the 2024 group) was so good offensively they were able to make the Final Four. But it’s usually that end of the floor that dictates how good Bama is going to be.
Player to watch: Labaron Philon Jr. The sophomore was so good as a freshman that he probably would have been drafted had he left for the NBA. Now this is his team to run. Mark Sears dominated the ball the last two years, so it’ll be an adjustment to not have him around. Oats always wants to play fast. He might rev the gas even more with Philon now as his lead guard.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
Elite Eight
Latrell Wrightsell Jr.
Forward
Key to season: Ethan Burg and Nate Ament. Rick Barnes has leaned heavily on a wing scorer from the portal the last two years. Tennessee nailed the evaluations on Dalton Knecht and Chaz Lanier. This time, Barnes is going to lean on a potential one-and-done freshman in Ament. Sharing perimeter scoring duties could be Burg, who averaged 11.1 points per game last year in Israel’s top league.
Maryland transfer Ja’Kobi Gillespie does give the Vols some more scoring pop from the point guard spot, but for the offense to be good again, those other two newcomers need to produce.
Player to watch: J.P. Estrella. Estrella was shut down after three games last season because of a foot injury and he averaged only five minutes per game as a freshman the year before. But every year in programs like Tennessee there are development projects who pop, and he has the game to be one of those guys.
He’s 6-foot-11 with the ability to score both with his back to the basket and his perimeter jumper. The Vols are deep up front and should be awesome on the boards, whether Estrella scores or not. But if you’re looking for a player to fill the role of scorer off the bench that Jordan Gainey provided, it could be Estrella.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
Elite Eight
Key to season: Finding an identity. I like most of the pieces on paper. Henri Veesaar was one of the best centers available in the portal. Caleb Wilson was one of the best defenders in the 2025 class and is a one-and-done type talent. Kyan Evans gives the Heels some shooting, whether it’s as a starter or off the bench.
But who’s the go-to scorer and what will be the offense’s bread and butter? I’m not really sure. “Just get RJ Davis shots” was basically the best option the last few years and he’s gone, and the Heels may not have a dynamic guard like that on the roster.
Player to watch: Luka Bogavac. The 22-year-old’s status is still up in the air. If allowed to play, Bogavac could be that dynamic scorer for the Heels. He averaged 14.9 points per game last season in the Adriatic League. Based on how the roster is built, he might need to be a go-to scorer for this offense to work. Usually bigs translate faster coming from overseas, so that’s the question mark with a guard like Bogavac.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
First round
Key to season: Interior defense. Creighton has to replace one of the best defensive centers in basketball in Ryan Kalkbrenner, who Big East coaches have to be thrilled is gone (and now starting for the Charlotte Hornets). The Bluejays should have no issue scoring, especially with the addition of Iowa transfers Josh Dix and Owen Freeman. The concern is those two are coming from a defense that ranked 167th. Creighton doesn’t need to be elite on that end, but it cannot be Iowa-level bad.
The good news: The Jays are off to a good start, holding Iowa State to 55 points in an exhibition win. (They were missing Freeman.)
Player to watch: Josh Dix. Dix was one of my favorite wings available in the portal. He’s skilled, especially for 6-foot-6, and he can score at all three levels. Greg McDermott is one of the best offensive coaches in the sport. Dix should thrive in his system.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
Second round
Key to season: Shooting guard play. Iowa State has three really good starters returning in Tamin Lipsey, Milan Momcilovic and Joshua Jefferson. The big question mark for the Cyclones is how they’ll replace the production of Curtis Jones at shooting guard.
The two tasked with that responsibility will be WAC Player of the Year Dominick Nelson (Utah Valley) and freshman Jamarion Batemon. T.J. Otzelberger has a pretty good hit rate navigating the portal for some under-the-radar gems, and if Nelson is another Jones-level find, then the Clones should be just fine.
Player to watch: Momcilovic. The junior didn’t live up to lofty expectations for his junior season. He was on the watch list as a potential 2025 NBA draft pick, but he was inconsistent scoring and a midseason hand injury didn’t help.
With Jones and Keshon Gilbert graduating, it could be Momcilovic’s time to be the clear-cut, go-to guy for the Clones. He has the game to be an elite scorer at the college level, and if I were making a list of potential surprise All-Americans, he’d be on it.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
Second round
Key to season: Building a winning DNA. I hate using a cliche like “winning DNA,” but Washington is coming off a 4-16 season in the Big Ten and its best two guards went 7-13 in the Big Ten at USC. And Hannes Steinbach, who might be Washington’s best player, has never played a minute of college basketball.
I like the pieces on paper and this is my out-of-nowhere pick for the Top 25 — I’m one of three Associated Press Top 25 voters who picked the Huskies. One reason to believe: Danny Sprinkle has proven he can flip a program. He inherited a losing program at Montana State and went to the NCAA Tournament in his third and fourth years. (Montana State hadn’t made the tourney in 26 years.) At Utah State, he didn’t inherit a returning starter and made the tourney in his lone season there. So this is what he does.
Player to watch: Steinbach. The German averaged 17.4 points, 13.0 rebounds and made 74.2 percent of his 2-pointers this summer at the U19 World Cup. He’s terrific in the pick-and-roll and has awesome hands, touch and feel. He should be one of the best freshmen in college hoops.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
Missed tournament
Key to season: Quit fouling and start guarding. Ohio State ranked last in the Big Ten in defensive free-throw rate last season. The biggest offenders — Sean Stewart and Aaron Bradshaw — are gone, but new center Christoph Tilly also fouled often (4.7 times per 40 minutes). If the Buckeyes can improve their interior defense and quit fouling so much, this should be a NCAA Tournament team.
Player to watch: John Mobley Jr. Mobley averaged 13 points and made 77 3-pointers at a 38.5 percent clip as a freshman. It takes a special shot maker to put up those kind of shooting numbers as a freshman in the Big Ten. There are not many players in college with his range and quick release.
Point guard Bruce Thornton was Ohio State’s best player last year and will likely be the one with the preseason accolades, but Mobley don’t be surprised if Mobley emerges as Ohio State’s leading scorer.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
Missed tournament
Key to season: Defense. Missouri needs to foul less and rebound better than a year ago. The Tigers like to gamble on defense but need to be more sound and able to play in slower-paced games, like the one they lost to Drake in last year’s tournament.
Dennis Gates has an even deeper team than a year ago, and his program has done a good job with development. This team is going to play fast and should be able to score.
Player to watch: Shawn Phillips Jr. Mizzou’s coaches have been raving about Phillips since he got on campus and he lived up to the hype in an exhibition win against Kansas State with a double-double (14 points and 10 boards) in only 19 minutes on the floor. He gives Mizzou a vertical lob threat and the opportunities should be there with the speed of the guards combined with their spacing. His shot blocking could also help improve the defense.
2025 NCAA Tournament finish
First round
Oct 27, 2025
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