Tennessee's first game after moving to No. 1 in the Associated Press Top 25 poll for the first time since 2019 went smoothly.
Final score: UT 75, Miami 62.
The Vols cruised to another double-digit win in the early game of Tuesday's 30th annual Jimmy V Classic inside New York's Madison Square Garden. So Rick Barnes' program is now 9-0 with all nine victories coming by at least 13 points. Four of those wins are over teams that rank in the top 95 at BartTorvik.com — specifically Baylor, Louisville, Virginia and Miami. As a result, Tennessee remains No. 1 in Wednesday morning's updated CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings for the seventh consecutive day.
Auburn is No. 2. Kentucky is No. 5. Alabama is No. 7.
In total, there are now four SEC schools in the top seven of the Top 25 And 1, seven in the top 17 and nine in the top 25. Undeniably, it's the best men's basketball conference in the country this season — both the deepest and the one with the most legitimate national title contenders. There are lots of ways to illustrate that second point, one of which is by linking Kyle Boone's piece from Tuesday that reminded us how, since 2004, every eventual national champion has been ranked inside of the top 12 of the Week 6 AP poll.
This is Week 6.
For what it's worth, five of the top 12 teams — more specifically, five of the top nine teams — in this week's AP poll come from the SEC. My pal Soren Petro, who does radio on 810 WHB in Kansas City, asked me Tuesday if I would take the SEC or the field to win the 2025 NCAA Tournament.
Great question!
I believe, what the smart folks would tell us, is that "the field" is still the right answer. But, man, it's probably closer than any of us anticipated it would be heading into this season.
Top 25 And 1 rankings
Rk | Teams | Chg | Rcrd | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Chaz Lanier finished with 22 points and three rebounds in Tuesday's 75-62 win over Miami. The Vols' next game is Saturday at Illinois. | -- | 9-0 |
| 2 |  | Miles Kelly finished with 15 points and five rebounds in Sunday's 98-54 win over Richmond. The Tigers' next game is Saturday against Ohio State. | -- | 8-1 |
| 3 |  | Curtis Jones finished with 19 points and five assists in Sunday's 100-58 win over Jackson State. The Cyclones' next game is Thursday at Iowa. | -- | 7-1 |
| 4 |  | Kam Jones finished with 32 points and six assists in Saturday's 88-74 win over Wisconsin. The Golden Eagles' next game is Saturday at Dayton. | -- | 9-1 |
| 5 |  | Andrew Carr finished with 19 points and seven rebounds in Sunday's 90-89 overtime win over Gonzaga. The Wildcats' next game is Wednesday against Colgate. | -- | 8-1 |
| 6 |  | Khaman Maluach finished with 17 points and seven rebounds in Tuesday's 72-46 win over Incarnate Word. The Blue Devils' next game is Tuesday against George Mason. | -- | 8-2 |
| 7 |  | Mark Sears finished with 20 points and seven assists in Wednesday's 94-79 win at North Carolina. The Crimson Tide's next game is Saturday against Creighton. | -- | 7-2 |
| 8 |  | Khalif Battle had three turnovers and one assist in Saturday's 90-89 overtime loss to Kentucky. The Zags' next game is Saturday against UConn. | -- | 7-2 |
| 9 |  | Braden Smith finished with 24 points and 10 rebounds in Sunday's 83-78 win over Maryland. The Boilermakers' next game is Saturday against Texas A&M. | -- | 8-2 |
| 10 |  | AJ Storr was 1 of 7 from the field in Sunday's 76-67 loss at Missouri. The Jayhawks' next game is Saturday against NC State. | -- | 7-2 |
| 11 |  | Jaden Akins finished with 18 points and two rebounds in Saturday's 89-52 win over Nebraska. The Spartans' next game is Tuesday against Oakland. | -- | 8-2 |
| 12 |  | Sean Pedulla finished with 19 points and six rebounds in Saturday's 86-53 win over Lindenwood. The Rebels' next game is Saturday against Southern Miss. | -- | 8-1 |
| 13 |  | Eric Dailey Jr. finished with 19 points and five rebounds in Sunday's 73-71 win at Oregon. The Bruins' next game is Saturday against Arizona. | -- | 8-1 |
| 14 |  | TJ Bamba had five turnovers in Sunday's 73-71 loss to UCLA. The Ducks' next game is Sunday against Stephen F. Austin. | -- | 9-1 |
| 15 |  | Rodney Rice finished with three turnovers and one assist in Sunday's 83-78 loss at Purdue. The Terrapins' next game is Dec. 17 against Saint Francis. | -- | 8-2 |
| 16 |  | Walter Clayton Jr. finished with 27 points and four assists in Wednesday's 87-69 win over Virginia. The Gators' next game is Saturday against Arizona State. | 1 | 9-0 |
| 17 |  | Josh Hubbard finished with 25 points and three assists in Sunday's 91-84 win over Prairie View. The Bulldogs' next game is Saturday against McNeese. | 1 | 8-1 |
| 18 |  | Kasparas Ivisic finished with 24 points and six rebounds in Tuesday's 86-80 win over Wisconsin. The Illini's next game is Saturday against Tennessee. | 2 | 7-2 |
| 19 |  | Seth Trimble finished with 19 points and seven rebounds in Saturday's 68-65 win over Georgia Tech. The Tar Heels' next game is Saturday against La Salle. | 2 | 5-4 |
| 20 |  | Nate Santos finished with 24 points and four rebounds in Saturday's 86-62 win over Lehigh. The Flyers' next game is Saturday against Marquette. | 2 | 8-2 |
| 21 |  | Nick Boyd finished with 17 points and six assists in Saturday's 74-57 win over San Diego. The Aztecs' next game is Wednesday against Cal Baptist. | 2 | 6-2 |
| 22 |  | L.J. Cryer finished with 22 points and two steals in Tuesday's 62-42 win over Troy. The Cougars' next game is Dec. 18 against Toledo. | 2 | 6-3 |
| 23 |  | Jalon Moore finished with 20 points and five rebounds in Saturday's 94-78 win over Alcorn State. The Sooners' next game is Saturday against Oklahoma State. | 2 | 9-0 |
| 24 |  | Chase Hunter finished with 18 points and two assists in Saturday's 65-55 win at Miami. The Tigers' next game is Saturday against Memphis. | 2 | 9-1 |
| 25 |  | Asa Newell finished with 20 points and 11 rebounds in Saturday's 69-48 win over Notre Dame. The Bulldogs' next game is Saturday against Grand Canyon. | NR | 8-1 |
| 26 |  | Basheer Jihad finished with 19 points and five rebounds in Tuesday's 90-53 win over San Diego. The Sun Devils' next game is Saturday against Florida. | NR | 8-1 |
In: Georgia, Arizona State
