Purdue, Houston, Florida lead AP Top 25 men’s basketball preseason poll

The AP Top 25 preseason men’s college basketball rankings are here for the 2025-26 season. Purdue leads the poll, marking the first time in school history that the Boilermakers begin the season in the top spot. 

Below is the full AP Top 25, along with some takeaways from the rankings:

RANKING
TEAM
POINTS

1
Purdue (35)
1485

2
Houston (16)
1459

3
Florida (8)
1382

4
UConn (2)
1299

5
St. John’s
1203

6
Duke
1123

7
Michigan
1084

8
BYU
1078

9
Kentucky
1056

10
Texas Tech
1015

11
Louisville
966

12
UCLA
741

13
Arizona
715

14
Arkansas
695

15
Alabama
620

16
Iowa State
616

17
Illinois
567

18
Tennessee
462

19
Kansas
453

20
Auburn
424

21
Gonzaga
387

22
Michigan State
188

23
Creighton
158

24
Wisconsin
136

25
North Carolina
104

Others receiving votes: NC State 101, Oregon 98, San Diego St. 74, Texas 35, Ohio St. 23, Kansas St 13, Mississippi 11, Southern Cal 10, Missouri 8, Washington 7, Vanderbilt 7, Iowa 6, Boise St. 4, Mississippi St. 3, VCU 2, Virginia 2, Saint Mary’s 2, Indiana 1, Oklahoma 1, Baylor 1.

Purdue opens the year at No. 1

The Boilermakers secured the No. 1 spot in the preseason poll for the first time in the school’s history, earning 35 first-place votes.

Purdue is coming off a 24-win season and a Sweet 16 berth, where the Boilermakers fell to Houston. With the return of All-American guard Braden Smith and All-Big Ten forward Trey Kaufman-Renn, who averaged 20.1 points per game, this team is positioned to make a championship run. 

Houston redemption year?

After falling just short in last season’s national championship, the Cougars open at No. 2 with 16 first-place votes. This marks the team’s best preseason AP ranking since 1967-68. Houston fell 65-63 to Florida in the title game, but with a veteran roster returning, the Cougars look poised to make another run at the championship.

🔙 READ MORE: Top 10 bounce back teams for the 2025-26 season

The reigning champs are No. 3

With eight first-place votes, the Florida Gators open the season with their highest preseason ranking since 2006-07 — the last time they entered as defending national champions

The 2024-25 national champions return a strong core in Alex Condon and Thomas Haugh,  while adding two standout transfers —  Arkansas’ Boogie Fland and Princeton’s Xaivian Lee — as they aim for a championship repeat. 

📺 WATCH: Florida vs. Houston – 2025 men’s national championship highlights

UConn and St. John’s round out the top five

UConn takes the No. 4 spot, earning the remaining two first-place votes. St. John’s caps off the top five, led by Zuby Ejiofor, who could emerge as one of the Big East’s top players this season.

📊 COMPARE: Andy Katz’s preseason Power 37

Other notable rankings

Two Final Four teams are absent from this year’s top five. Duke just missed the cutoff, coming in at No. 6, while Auburn starts the season at No. 20 despite last year’s Final Four appearance.