Michigan clinched the outright Big Ten title Friday night, and Duke dismantled Virginia at Cameron Indoor. The gap between the sport’s top tier and everyone else is widening by the week. With the NCAA Tournament less than three weeks away, PFSN’s Men’s CBB Power Rankings separates the contenders from the pretenders, with analysis on the top 25 teams in the country.
But first, a note. The Florida Gators aren’t included in this list, and that may seem like an error. Relax. Come tournament time, there will be a weight placed on form, and that will certainly bump up Florida in a major way. Their ranking has improved in seven straight weeks, and after yet another impressive showing, they are almost certain to be a major factor in how the 2026 postseason plays out.
1) Michigan Wolverines
The Wolverines dispatched Illinois in a 14-point road win Friday, a nice showing a week after Duke handled them in Washington. Michigan has stayed atop these rankings for a while now, and while the Wolverines’ metrics nearly mirror those of the Blue Devils, they’ve produced them against superior competition.
Dusty May’s group is 27-2 and just wrapped up its first outright Big Ten regular-season title since 2021. Morez Johnson Jr. went for 19 and 11 against his former team, Aday Mara was 8-for-9 from the field, and the second-half scoring surge felt like a team that knows exactly what it is. Michigan enters the NCAA Tournament as my favorite to cut down the nets.
2) Duke Blue Devils
Virginia is a good team, but the Cavaliers were reduced to rubble Saturday at Cameron Indoor. Duke’s 77-51 win wasn’t a case of an overmatched opponent as Virginia entered ranked 11th with a nine-game win streak. The Blue Devils held them to 29% shooting and got 19 from Isaiah Evans, who hit five 3s, three of them before the first media timeout.
The top teams are truly starting to separate from the field, and Duke is as deserving of the “elite” label as anyone in the country. At 27-2 with a share of the ACC regular-season crown already clinched, Jon Scheyer’s group now has 10 wins over AP Top 25 opponents and is the first team in ACC history to accomplish that in a single regular season.
3) Purdue Boilermakers
The sledding was certainly easier early in the season than it has been since mid-January, and the flaws of this team have been exposed. The defense, as per usual, is an issue. Michigan State made 23-of-36 shots inside the arc against them, and that creates a low floor.
That said, Braden Smith is the type of guard who can keep a team afloat in a shootout game script. If the opposition goes cold for any five-minute window, Smith’s ability to capitalize makes Purdue dangerous. The ceiling is real, but the path to the second weekend requires some things to break right defensively.
4) Illinois Fighting Illini
The overtime loss at UCLA was a tough way to end last week, and hosting Michigan wasn’t exactly a soft landing spot for a bounce back. Still, Keaton Wagler heads an all-time offense, and despite the limitations on the other end, the Illini rarely send opponents to the free-throw line, a trait that can mask some of the raw defensive flaws.
Illinois is going to outscore most teams it faces, and in a single-elimination tournament, that explosive upside matters. The question is whether the defense can hold up in a tight second-half situation against a disciplined opponent.
5) Nebraska Cornhuskers
A big second half removed any doubt from the Huskers’ Saturday game at USC. Limited depth is certainly an issue, as only six players scored. Still, the attention to detail on both sides of the ball makes this core group as dangerous as any outside the Tier 1 teams.
Nebraska doesn’t beat itself, and when the rotation is short by design rather than necessity, it can actually tighten the focus. Fred Hoiberg’s group will be a tough out in March.
6) Louisville Cardinals
A pair of road losses last week makes our men’s CBB power ranking look … optimistic. I won’t argue the optics, but a minus-30 free-throw attempt differential across those two games and a less-than-healthy Mikel Brown need to be considered.
If Brown is being managed with an eye on mid-to-late March, this feels like a team destined to come in underseeded by multiple lines. The Cardinals’ ceiling is much higher than their current form suggests, and tournament evaluation is about projecting forward, not reacting to the last seven days.
7) Arizona Wildcats
I know Kansas has been up-and-down, but beating them by 23 on a day where Darryn Peterson is active and involved (24 points on 21 shots) is yet another feather in the cap of the Wildcats and their growing list of impressive wins.
Are they the most talented roster? Maybe, maybe not, but the wins are piling up, and a title is very much within the range of outcomes for this team, potentially in dominating fashion, the way UConn steamrolled the field in 2024. Tommy Lloyd has this program playing its best ball at exactly the right time.
8) Iowa State Cyclones
The Cyclones remain just a touch ahead of the Red Raiders despite the weekend defeat. Iowa State had its two stars available and productive (7-of-13 from 3), something Texas Tech obviously can’t claim, but the depth is a real issue, as everyone else went 1-of-11 from deep.
The defense is more reliable than what we saw over the weekend, and if T.J. Otzelberger’s group can rediscover that identity over the next two weeks, this is still a team that can advance to Indianapolis.
9) Texas Tech Red Raiders
A nine-point win at Iowa State without JT Toppin? I didn’t think that was remotely possible, but with Donovan Atwell proving himself as one of the best marksmen in the nation, the ceiling remains high.
The floor could be lower than most teams in their projected seed range. The Toppin variable creates genuine volatility, but Grant McCasland’s squad showed it can win an elite road game without its best player. That kind of adaptability matters in March.
10) Arkansas Razorbacks
Is it possible that Saturday’s 111-77 loss at Florida wasn’t as close as the final score? I’d argue the score differential reached 25 before the good shot count for the Razorbacks reached double figures, but I’m willing to believe that says more about the Gators than anything.
I remain bullish on this Darius Acuff-led team. Even with everything going sideways, they had nearly as many steals as turnovers over the weekend. That disruptive defensive identity doesn’t disappear because of one ugly afternoon in Gainesville.
11) Michigan State Spartans
February wins over Illinois and at Purdue on Thursday are great, but doing so in tight games where they handle the pressure against elite competition is even better.
Sparty gets a chance to avenge a loss to Michigan this weekend, and if Tom Izzo’s group can pull that off, they’re positioned to be a 3-seed in the NCAA Tournament, a line that would allow them to avoid facing a 1-seed until the Elite Eight. The resume is building at exactly the right pace.
12) Gonzaga Bulldogs
The Zags were lucky to lose by only 11 at Saint Mary’s on Saturday: they shot 39% from the field and were minus-33 points from 3. There’s no shame in falling to a home team shooting the lights out, but eight points on 3-of-9 shooting from the bench in 50 minutes of action is a concern.
Mark Few needs more from the supporting cast if Gonzaga is going to survive the first weekend.
13) UConn Huskies
They saved victory from the jaws of defeat over the weekend against Seton Hall, and while a tight contest wasn’t expected, maybe it was needed. Things are lining up like the 2024 season for the Huskies: some bumps along the way, a team that doesn’t always look dominant, and a sense that they’re building toward something.
That one ended with a net in their hands. Dan Hurley’s group won’t sneak up on anyone, but the pedigree and the talent are both there.
14) SMU Mustangs
Some teams pop in PFSN’s specific metrics while falling short in areas that aren’t weighted as heavily. SMU is pretty clearly that team, coming off a 0-2 week that now has the Mustangs sitting at 10 defeats.
A win over Miami on Wednesday would help the outlook: this team can be dangerous, but the floor scenario is terrifying. Andy Enfield’s squad needs a strong close to justify its positioning here.
15) Tulsa Golden Hurricane
Three straight wins for a team with three players averaging north of 14 points per game. Tulsa isn’t assured of a tournament invite, and they likely need to win the American, but if they qualify, don’t let the Golden Hurricane sneak up on you. Balanced scoring and a team that believes in itself can do damage in a short tournament setting.
16) Alabama Crimson Tide
Labaron Philon Jr. hit the winner at Tennessee over the weekend, and his explosive potential is becoming a reality on a near-nightly basis. Some high-volume scorers like Philon are featured on offenses with a poor assist-to-turnover rate, but that’s not the case here.
The defense isn’t Sweet 16 good, but the offense has Final Four potential, and that makes Alabama an interesting team to track between now and the selection show. Nate Oats has found something with this group.
17) North Carolina Tar Heels
The Tar Heels won a pair of home games last week and get Clemson before ending their regular season at Cameron Indoor.
The Caleb Wilson return is nearing, and if Seth Trimble’s aggression is here to stay (26 free throw attempts during this three-game win streak), this is going to be an ultra-dangerous 5- or 6-seed in a few weeks. Hubert Davis’s group is peaking at the right moment.
18) Vanderbilt Commodores
Vandy was downed by Kentucky in sound fashion Saturday, handing them their third loss in a four-game run. The result doesn’t bother me as UK is a tough team to handicap, especially at home, but the “how” does.
The Commodores lost a game in which Tyler Tanner shot 75% from the field, and Duke Miles had seven assists against just two turnovers. When you get those individual performances and still lose, the collective issues run deeper than the box score.
19) Iowa Hawkeyes
The offensive stability is nice to have, but losses to Penn State and Maryland in a three-week window can’t happen. Yes, the win over Nebraska two weeks ago still exists, but the depth limitations are becoming clearer as the season progresses. Fran McCaffery’s roster needs to tighten its rotation and find answers quickly. The margin for error in the Big Ten is razor-thin.
20) Saint Louis Billikens
The rebound savvy is good to have, but not a floor elevator. Saint Louis beat Dayton by 31 points to end January, but fell to them less than a month later by 15. Robbie Avila is a special player, but does he have enough help to win multiple tournament games?
The A-10 regular-season title gives them a path, but the supporting cast needs to deliver in spots where Avila can’t carry the full load.
21) Kansas Jayhawks
Three absolute beatdowns in two weeks? This is far from a high-floor roster, but we did get proof of concept of the ceiling with a 69-56 win over Houston on Monday. Darryn Peterson remains the most volatile star in the sport, capable of taking over a game or disappearing entirely. Elite potential, bracket-busting downside: this is what March is all about.
22) Saint Mary’s Gaels
A huge win against the Zags on Saturday night gives the Gaels eight straight heading into the postseason. They are the best free-throw shooting team in the nation, and Paulius Murauskas’ ability to clean the glass, make his freebies, and step out to the perimeter is proving to be a problem for just about everyone.
Randy Bennett’s program does this every year, getting hot at exactly the right time, and making people uncomfortable in the bracket.
23) BYU Cougars
After losses to UCF and West Virginia, the win against Iowa State feels like it was a lifetime ago. Robert Wright III has stepped up in the absence of Richie Saunders, but this is a two-man show, as he and AJ Dybantsa scored 43 of 71 points and took 30 of 51 shots in the WVU loss.
That’s a tough sell against the top few tiers that are loaded with secondary threats. Kevin Young needs his supporting cast to find its footing before the Big 12 Tournament.
24) NC State Wolfpack
The ship is sinking fast with a 1-4 stretch and Duke on tap. The Wolfpack have been led in scoring by a different player in three straight games, and while that can be a blessing, it can also be a curse when there’s no true go-to option in crunch time.
Their early-season metrics have them hanging onto this top-25 ranking for dear life, and I expect that grip to loosen when the regular season wraps Saturday.
25) Virginia Cavaliers
The Cavs were blown out by Duke on Saturday, but that doesn’t undo the 29-point win at home against NC State on Tuesday. The nine-game win streak came to an end in ugly fashion with Duke holding them to a season-low 51 points.
Still with four players averaging in double figures, a top-40 defense, and a top-40 assist-to-turnover rate, Ryan Odom’s group is not one to take lightly. The first-year coach has exceeded every reasonable expectation in Charlottesville.
