One of my favorite weird facts connected to college basketball is that every eventual national champion since 2004 was ranked in the top 12 of the sixth Associated Press Top 25 poll of the season.
This is Week 6.
If you’re curious, 10 of the 12 teams in Tuesday morning’s CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings are the same schools in this week’s AP Top 25 Poll; the only differences are the Top 25 And 1 has North Carolina and Arkansas in the top 12 while the AP does not, and the AP has Houston and Louisville in the top 12 while the Top 25 And 1 does not.
Arizona jumps to No. 1 in AP Top 25 over Michigan, Duke; Kentucky drops out of college basketball rankings
Cameron Salerno
So let’s stretch it to 14.
Do you think the winner of the 2026 NCAA Tournament will be one of these 14 schools?
I know that eliminates my preseason No. 1 St. John’s (insert jokes here), but, yeah, I think it’s reasonable to assume one of the above 14 teams will win the 2026 NCAA Tournament.
But did you notice that list also excludes Florida?
Yes, the reigning national champions are outside of the top 12 of the AP poll and the Top 25 And 1, largely because the Gators are 5-3 with losses to Arizona, Duke and TCU — and in possession of zero victories over teams ranked in either the AP poll or the Top 25 And 1. It’s been a disappointing start to the season, especially for Princeton transfer Xaivian Lee, who is shooting just 24.7% from the field and 21.1% from 3-point range through his first eight starts at the high-major level.
Florida plays UConn on Tuesday night in the Jimmy V Classic at New York’s Madison Square Garden, which obviously presents a nice stage for Lee and the Gators to change some narratives and reestablish themselves as real back-to-back-threats. Tip is scheduled for a little after 9 p.m. ET. UConn is listed as a 4.5-point favorite, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.
