Are you ready? It's been a long offseason — if only because every college basketball offseason is long, bordering on seven months. Either way, the opening day of the 2024-25 season has finally arrived. Monday's schedule is full. Most of the games aren't great. But some of them are — like No. 8 Baylor vs. No. 6 Gonzaga and No. 19 Texas vs. Ohio State vs. So Monday will be fun.
But what about the rest of the season?
How much fun will we have this season? Will UConn actually three-peat? Or will Kansas coach Bill Self win his third title? Or will Duke's Cooper Flagg win his a championship while becoming the youngest Wooden Award winner in history?
There are storylines entering any season, obviously. But this season has storylines on top of storylines on top of storylines. With that in mind, and with the season just hours away from tipping, here are 68 things to get excited about heading into the 2024-25 Division I men's college basketball season.
1. Will UConn three-peat? The biggest story heading into the season is clearly UConn's attempt to become the first program to three-peat since UCLA did it in 1971, 1972 and 1973. Winning three straight championships in any sport, under any circumstances, is obviously a huge (and rare) accomplishment — but it would be especially impressive for UConn considering the Huskies A) won their first championship without even being ranked in the preseason AP Top 25 poll, B) won their second straight championship after losing three starters from the first championship team, and C) will have to win what would be their third straight championship after losing four starters from their second championship team. So will it happen? Obviously, the odds are stacked against it (even if UConn is the favorite in most betting markets). But, as I've written before, bet against Dan Hurley and his staff at your own risk. They've proved skeptics wrong two straight years. It's not crazy to think they just might do it again. – Gary Parrish
2. Or will Self become the first active coach to win three national titles? Hurley isn't the only man in a position to maybe grab a third national title this season. Self, the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame coach at Kansas, can also join that elite club after winning his first championship in 2008 and second 14 years later. The Jayhawks are entering the season No. 1 in the AP Top 25 poll, Coaches Poll and CBS Sports Top 25 And 1, which highlights how KU's championship aspirations are just as realistic as UConn's. The Jayhawks will need to be better offensively and generally healthier to actually make it to the final night of the season. But a roster headlined by returning standouts Hunter Dickinson and Dajuan Harris and incoming transfers AJ Storr (Wisconsin) and Rylan Griffen (Alabama) appears talented enough to win the whole thing. – GP
3. Will Flagg match the hype at Duke? You might have to go back to Anthony Davis in 2011 or even Greg Oden in 2006 to identify the last time a high school prospect entered college with as much hype as Flagg. The 6-foot-9 forward was the consensus top-ranked prospect in the Class of 2024 and is now projected to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. He won't score like Kevin Durant or Michael Beasley scored as freshmen, but he will impact winning in so many different ways for a true title contender that it's not hard to imagine Flagg — who won't turn 18 until four days before Christmas — eventually becoming the youngest Wooden Award winner in history. – GP
4. Can Mark Sears lead Alabama to its first national title after taking the program to its first Final Four? Sears went on one of the best runs through the NCAA Tournament in modern history last season while leading Alabama to its first ever Final Four. He averaged 24.2 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.6 assists in the Crimson Tide's historic postseason run that was highlighted by an 89-87 victory over North Carolina and ended by UConn. Understandably, Sears entered the 2024 NBA Draft. But with no first-round guarantees, and a nice NIL package on hold for him at Alabama, he, also understandably, opted to return for a fifth season of college basketball, one that could result in Sears leading Alabama to its first national championship.The Crimson Tide are the favorite in the SEC and No. 2 in the Top 25 And 1. Few people are running their programs better right now than Alabama's Nate Oats. – GP
5. What's Year 1 at Arkansas look like for John Calipari? John Calipari, under immense pressure at Kentucky after another disappointing flameout in the NCAA Tournament, sensibly jumped at the opportunity to improve his family's quality of life and replace Eric Musselman at Arkansas. It's sad that it came to that. But, once it came to that, Calipari was smart to relocate. Unsurprisingly, he remade the Razorbacks in a matter of months and created what should be one of the sport's best rosters. Teams with this few returning players often aren't good, I know. But Kentucky was great in Year 1 under Calipari and, I think, Arkansas will be very good too. – GP
WHO WE AR pic.twitter.com/0KRU0srz3y
— Arkansas Razorbacks Men’s Basketball 🐗 (@RazorbackMBB) October 25, 2024
6. What's Year 1 at Kentucky look like for Mark Pope? Calipari leaving for Arkansas opened one of the best jobs in the sport. Mark Pope wasn't the first choice. He might not have been the third choice. But, seven months into this thing, he feels like the right choice. His personality works. The fanbase has rallied behind him. He's a gifted tactician committed to a fun style of play. Simply put, count me among those who believe Pope will prove to be a good hire. My prediction is that he'll make the NCAA Tournament, and win at least one game in it, this season. – GP
7. What's Year 1 at Louisville look like for Pat Kelsey? No proud program needed a coaching change more than Louisville. As was the case at Kentucky, Pat Kelsey was not the school's first choice to replace Kenny Payne. But a testament to the idea that his hiring has the program headed in the right direction is the fact that the Cardinals finished last season ranked 185th at KenPom.com but will start this season 64th. That's still not where Louisville's program should ever be, obviously. But it's way better than where it's been since the school made what will go down as one of the worst big hires in college basketball history. – GP
8. Can former Kentucky/Louisville coach Rick Pitino get St. John's to the NCAA Tournament in Year 2? History, not to mention the roster, suggests St. John's is headed to the NCAA Tournament. This is Year 2 for Rick Pitino. And Year 2 is usually good for the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame Coach. In Year 2 at Providence, he took the Friars to the Final Four. In Year 2 at Kentucky, he won the SEC. In Year 2 at Louisville, he won 25 games. In Year 2 at Iona, he went 17-3 in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. So what will Year 2 at St. John's bring? A trip to the NCAA Tournament, at least, I think. – GP
9. Will the Big 12 be the strongest and deepest conference ever? The Big 12 has been rated as the sport's best conference for three straight years, and in nine of the past 11 seasons, according to KenPom.com. So it's been super-strong, consistently, for a while — and now it just added Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado and Utah, which is why the Big 12 has a record five teams in the top 10 of the preseason AP poll with eight in the top 2, 12 in the top 70 and zero ranked 90th-or-lower at KenPom. In other words, there's real strength at the top, depth throughout and possibly no garbage at the bottom. Every road game for everybody should be challenging on some level. FYI: The record for the conference placing the most teams in the NCAA Tournament is 11. The Big 12 should make a run at that this season. – GP
10. Or will it be the SEC? Alabama, as previously noted, is largely considered the favorite in the SEC and a clear contender to win the national championship. After the Crimson Tide, reasonable minds can disagree on any number of projected orders — but one thing that seems clear is that the SEC should be just as deep as the Big 12, if not deeper. Does the SEC have as many potentially great teams as the Big 12? In my mind, no. But it should be noted that CBS Sports Bracketology Expert Jerry Palm has 11 SEC teams in his latest projection for the 2025 NCAA Tournament, which suggests the Big 12 and SEC could combine to place 20-plus schools in the Field of 68. – GP
11. Will Gonzaga win one last WCC title? Gonzaga has won at least a share of 26 West Coast Conference regular-season championships, including seven of the past eight, which serves as reminder that nobody has been running any league as well as the Zags have been running this one. But it'll all be over after this season with the program set to join the new-look Pac-12, meaning this will be the Zags' final chance to add another WCC title. Barring a surprise, yes, they should do it. Led by Graham Ike, who averaged 16.5 points and 7.4 rebounds last season, Gonzaga is sixth in the preseason AP poll; no other WCC team is even in the top 30 at KenPom. So as long as things go as planned, Gonzaga coach Mark Few should win what would be his 23rd WCC regular-season title, 20th WCC Tournament title and extend his personal streak of NCAA Tournament appearances to 25. – GP
12. How will Purdue handle things after the loss of Zach Edey? Purdue will look different without Edey but should still be really good even though the two-time Wooden Award winner is now starting in the NBA for the Memphis Grizzlies. That Braden Smith-Fletcher Loyer backcourt that's won two straight Big Ten titles is back, and most are expecting a notable jump from Trey Kaufman-Renn, the 6-9 forward who could go from a role player to an all-conference performer. If that happens, odds are it'll go hand-in-hand with the Boilermakers winning a third consecutive Big Ten championship under Matt Painter. – GP
13. How often will NBA scouts be in Piscataway, New Jersey? The list of five-star prospects and projected lottery picks who have enrolled at Rutgers over the years is short. Piscataway is not Lexington, Kentucky. But Rutgers coach Steve Pikiell has two such players on campus this season — namely Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper, the prospects ranked second and third in the Class of 2024, behind only Flagg, according to 247Sports. In this era of college basketball, it's harder to win with freshmen than it's been for much of the past couple of decades. But I'm still a believer in talent, regardless of age, and that's why I have Rutgers ranked 23rd in the preseason Top 25 And 1. It should be a fun season inside Jersey Mike's Arena, formerly known as the RAC. – GP
14. Dan Hurley spent the entire offseason as the king of college basketball, but will that change him? The Hurley family is basketball royalty. Bob Hurley Sr. is in the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame, and we now know that Dan will one day join him. But for the first time in his life, it's Dan who's by far the most accomplished and lauded of anyone. He was publicly courted by the Los Angeles Lakers and still didn't see the need to leave college basketball. Hurley's gone through a few metamorphoses from his time as a high school coach to his domination at UConn. No one's applying more pressure to UConn's quest for a three-peat than he is. How does this impact his comportment? Hurley has thrived with an underdog mentality for the majority of his life. That can no longer apply. Now that he's the king, will Hurley change his act at all? Does he need to? And how will this affect UConn's next five months? — Matt Norlander
15. Big East looking for bounce-back season.Two things can be true at once: The top of the Big East is nearly as good as any other conference. But the league sent only three teams to the Big Dance last season, tying an all-time low, and that was embarrassing for the only basketball-first power-conference in the sport. Look for the conference to send at LEAST four teams to the 2025 NCAAs, with as many as six on the table. I went deeper into this topic after attending Big East media day a couple weeks back; you can read that column here. — MN
16 Which preseason AP Top 25 teams fall short of the NCAAs? It's a lock to happen. This trend goes back decades, but here are the teams in just the past four seasons to be ranked heading into November that ultimately failed to qualify for the Big Dance.
- 2023:24: Miami (13), Arkansas (14), USC (21), Villanova (22)
- 2022-23: North Carolina (1), Villanova (16), Oregon (21), Michigan (22), Dayton (24), Texas Tech (25)
- 2021-22: Oregon (13), Florida State (20), Maryland (21), St. Bonaventure (23), Virginia (25)
- 2020-21: Duke (9), Kentucky (10), Arizona State (18)
It's hard to envision now, but we will see teams fall flat. If you had to pick at least three — with at least one in the top 15 — which would you go with? My nominees would be Texas A&M (13), Ole Miss (24) and Rutgers (25). You can view the preseason AP Top 25 here. — MN
17. Will we see a late-stage resurgence for Tom Izzo or is he the next Tony Bennett-type retirement? The Michigan State Spartans, which were famous for nearly two decades of making a Final Four at least once every four years, haven't advanced past the Sweet 16 since 2019. MSU's seeding in the four most recent NCAA Tournaments: 9, 7, 7, 11 (First Four). The program's hovered around .500 in the BIg Ten in that span, while Izzo has continued to speak out about the direction of college basketball. A lot of what he takes issue with is similar to what drove Tony Bennett and Jay Wright into early retirement. Izzo is much older than those guys (he'll turn 70 during this season) but he's also a Hall of Fame coach who means a lot to college basketball. I don't think he retires before 2026 at the earliest, but another just-OK season will start to turn the screws. Let's see if MSU can get back into that top-10 conversation that it was a part of for so many years. — MN
18.This year's Maui Invitational is typically loaded and it might be the last field of its kind. I'm headed to Maui later this month to cover one of the best events in all of sports, something I've waited literally decades to do. Bucket list stuff. The field is headlined by Connecticut, North Carolina, Auburn, Iowa State and Michigan State. Memphis, Dayton and Colorado will also be participating. It's possible seven out of eight teams in this thing wind up making the 2025 NCAAs. It's similarly possible that the Final Four winds up having one or two of these schools in five months. Due to the quickly changing landscape of November scheduling and what schools/coaches are looking for, plus the costs associated with traveling to the middle of the Pacific has become an enhanced burden in the era of NIL money gathering. I want Maui to continue to thrive, but in looking at the fields for 2025 and 2026 that have already been announced, there's understandable concern that this year could be the last great field for a long time. — MN
19. Block off Saturday, Dec. 14 to do nothing but watch college basketball. It's the best nonconference day of the season, and that's by design. The only FBS football game played in the United States that day is Army-Navy (on CBS!). So it's college basketball's time to shine. Look at this insane slate. Every one of these games features both ranked in the top 25 of the AP poll or top 45 of KenPom as of Monday:
• Gonzaga vs. UConn (at Madison Square Garden)
• Tennessee at Illinois
• Creighton at Alabama
• Marquette at Dayton
• UCLA vs. Arizona (in Phoenix)
• Xavier at Cincinnati
• Auburn vs. Ohio State (in Atlanta)
• Texas A&M at Purdue
• Saint Mary's vs. Boise State (in Idaho Falls, Idaho)
That doesn't even include three rivalry games: Louisville-Kentucky, Georgetown-Syracuse and Seton Hall-Rutgers. As we get closer, more big games will emerge. An unbelievable Saturday that's six weeks away. — MN
20. Creighton's Ryan Kalkbrenner is going for history, and is a tempting NPOY dark horse. I picked the Bluejay big man to be No. 2 in the country in our list of the Top 100 And 1 players. He's won three straight defensive player of the year awards in the Big East. If he wins a fourth, he'll match Patrick Ewing as the only players to ever pull that off. He probably can be the best defender in the nation, and in playing the centerpiece for Creighton, the Bluejays again should be among the better programs in college basketball. Kalkbrenner's probably the best player in the sport who is overlooked for how valuable he is. That ends in this his final season of college. — MN
21. The final COVID year means one last season of 23- and 24-year-olds ruling the game. The aforementioned Kalkbrenner is one of many players using up a fifth and final season of COVID bonus-year eligibility. This rule was put into place for all NCAA athletes after the 2020-21 calendar year saw thousands of game cancellations. By keeping the sport older, college basketball has been better. But it is time to go back to typical eligibility clocks. So, in addition to Kalkbrenner, let's enjoy these COVID seniors, as they're likely to be among the most important players over the next five months: Mark Sears, RJ Davis, Hunter Dickinson, Johni Broome, Caleb Love, Kadary Richmond, Great Osobor, Eric Dixon, Ryan Nembhard, Coleman Hawkins, Ace Baldwin Jr. and many, many more. — MN
22. Which hot-seat coaches survive the season? Parrish penned the annual preseason hot-seat list. He put UCF's Johnny Dawkins, Oklahoma's Porter Moser, Villanova's Kyle Neptune, Indiana's Mike Woodson and Virginia Tech's Mike Young on watch. The biggest candidate not included on that appetizer-sized list is Arizona State's Bobby Hurley. Penny Hardaway also can't afford to have a sideways season. For some of these guys, they're going to win enough to keep their jobs. In fact, after a record-setting coaching carousel that included nearly 70 jobs this past offseason, I don't think we'll have more than 50 jobs overall switch in 2025, and among power-conference programs, I think the number is definitely under 10. — MN
23. Let's see Robbie Avila hit a new level of fame at Saint Louis.The Billikens are starting anew with Josh Schertz, who did wonders at Indiana State (66-40) in three years' time. Avila and teammate Isaiah Swope followed Schertz to the Atlantic 10. The spectacle-wearing hooper is a magnet for attention due to his crafty shooting, terrific passing and unusual body type. Which is to say: He's not a physical specimen, yet he often does what he wants, when he wants, on the court. He's the latest example of why college basketball is irresistibly entertaining to millions of people. And after becoming one of the best mid-major guys in college hoops last season, I hope he flirts with All-America status in his new surroundings. — MN
24. Does NC State have any carryover? What the Wolfpack did in March/April amounted to the most statistically improbable Final Four run ever. From trailing putrid Louisville in the first half of the first game of the ACC tourney to winning nine straight (which had never been done before) and making history in reaching the Final Four. DJ Burns, you are for the ages. But Burns is no longer there, and NC State was picked eighth in an 18-team ACC. Here at CBS, we collectively voted State to finish ninth. I'd love to see this program come out and overshoot expectations again, but it's going to be hard after losing a lot. That run will never be forgotten in Raleigh, but it would look even better if State managed to follow it up with a third consecutive NCAA appearance. — MN
25. Wake Forest is about to end its NCAA Tournament drought. The Demon Deacons have drifted in irrelevancy for much of the past 15 years. The school hasn't reached the first round of the Big Dance since 2010, Dino Gaudio's final season. All of that ends this season. With All-American candidate Hunter Sallis controlling the offense, this is my dark horse ACC champ/Final Four team. I'll be stunned if Wake Forest makes the NCAAs with anything worse than a No. 6 seed, and think a No. 3 is entirely on the table. Steve Forbes' program has its biggest collection of talent AND veteran experience since he got there. In fact, Wake probably hasn't had a team this well-rounded since 2008-09, when Ish Smith, Jeff Teague, Al-Farouq Aminu and James Johnson were all in black and gold. — MN
26. The NCAA Tournament selection process is about to undergo very good and very major changes. One of the more important headlines of the offseason landed in July, when the NCAA announced it was adding BartTorvik.com's predictive metrics to its team sheet, in addition to a metric you might not be familiar with called Wins Above Bubble (WAB). Read this story for more, but in short: These additions will help the committee to better understand résumés and could wind up benefiting mid-majors, as WAB is void of bias against slanted scheduling in favor of the power conferences. The fact these changes are going into place in the same season we are seeing 16- and 18-team superconferences fascinates me. We'll have an entirely new seeding and selection dynamic in 2025. And hopefully 2025 isn't our last 68-team NCAA Tournament. Expansion talk remains possible, as the selection committee continues to explore whether to stay at 68, expand to 72 or bloat to 76. It's possible we get an answer on this before the end of the year, but I don't expect to get a decision on this until 2025. — MN
27. Is UCLA a Final Four contender? In our CBS Sports Final Four Expert Picks, UCLA was my outside-the-box selection to reach the final weekend of the college basketball season. UCLA coach Mick Cronin had his worst season at the helm of the program last season, and this year will be different. This is one of Cronin's deepest rosters he has assembled, and it all starts with the backcourt of Dylan Andrews and Sebastian Mack. USC transfer Kobe Johnson is a legit candidate to win Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, and he should help anchor that unit that will be among the best in the conference. Basketball in Southern California will be under a microscope, which brings me to my next point about UCLA's crosstown rival. — CS
28. Does the Muss Bus have wheels at USC? USC made a splash this offseason when the program hired Arkansas' Eric Musselman to replace former coach Andy Enfield. USC's roster will look significantly different than last season, which ties into Musselman's philosophy of using the transfer portal to build out/sure up his respective roster. The two names to watch for USC this season are Xavier transfer Desmond Claude and former Northern Colorado star Saint Thomas. USC could be a sleeper in the new-look Big Ten. — CS
29. Arizona's Jaden Bradley is a breakout player to watch. Earlier this week, I detailed eight players who could have a breakout season and become the next household name. Among them were Duke's Caleb Foster, North Carolina's Elliot Cadeau, Ohio State's Aaron Bradshaw and Arizona's Jaden Bradley. Bradley is my favorite potential breakout candidate because his role will increase significantly with Kylan Boswell gone. Bradley will get his chance to start and become Tommy Lloyd's full-time point guard, which is the perfect recipe for a potential breakout season. Bradley is exceptional at getting to the rim and is an efficient (and low-volume) 3-point shooter. He should produce some highlight-level plays and average double-digit points for an Arizona team looking to make noise in the new-look Big 12. — CS
30. VJ Edgecombe could become the highest NBA Draft pick in Baylor history. Edgecombe is my second favorite player in this class. He shined this summer while playing for the Bahamian National Team and held his own against older and more experienced competition. He has a quick first step and is explosive in getting to the rim. Baylor coach Scott Drew has a strong track record of developing blue-chip prospects in recent years, and Edgecombe might be the best draft prospect in program history. Former Baylor standout Ekpe Udoh was drafted No. 6 overall in the 2010 NBA Draft. There's a strong possibility Edgecombe will surpass that and become the highest-drafted player in Baylor history. — CS
31. Arizona State goes all-in on 2024 recruiting class. Kentucky and Arizona's losses turned into Arizona State's gain on the recruiting trail. Five-star Jayden Quaintance — the No. 9 overall player in the 2024 recruiting cycle by 247Sports — backed out of his pledge to Kentucky after Calipari left for Arkansas and committed to Bobby Hurley and the Sun Devils shortly after to become the highest-ranked signee in program history. But Hurley and company didn't stop there, as they landed four-star guard Joson Sanon after he decommitted from in-state rival Arizona. ASU finished with the No. 7 recruiting class in the country, and those two marquee additions will help the program keep up in the arms race that is the Big 12. — CS
32. Alabama has plenty of impactful first-year players. The talk of the town has been about Duke's top-ranked recruiting class — and for good reason — but Alabama's No. 2-ranked class isn't far behind. Nate Oats and company landed five-star forward Derrion Reid, four-star Aiden Sherrell, four-star guard Labaron Philon and four-star forward Naas Cunningham to go along with a loaded transfer portal haul. Reid is expected to start — at least for now — while Philon could work his way into the starting lineup for the first month and a half of the season while USF transfer Chris Youngblood rehabs back from injury. Philon was formerly signed with Kansas before flipping his commitment to Alabama late in the cycle. He could emerge as an under-the-radar star for a team with national title aspirations. — CS
33. Michigan can make noise with Dusty May in Year 1. The coaching carousel was spinning this offseason and one of the best moves came when Michigan hired May away from FAU to replace Juwan Howard. May is a proven winner who elevated FAU into a Final Four-caliber program in his six-season stint with the team. Michigan finished a dreadful 8-24 overall (3-17 in Big Ten play) in Howard's final season. May is in a great position to turn the Wolverines back into a Big Ten contender because of what he did in the transfer portal. Michigan added Ohio State's Roddy Gayle Jr., Yale's Danny Wolf, Auburn's Tre Donaldson, Alabama's Sam Walters, and his former player at FAU, Vladislav Goldin, and added four-star guard Justin Pippen, the son of NBA legend Scottie Pippen via high school recruiting. This roster should be able to get back to the NCAA Tournament. — CS
34. Ohio State is due for a bounce-back season. For a good chunk of Big Ten play this past winter, Ohio State and Michigan were neck-and-neck at the bottom of the conference standings. Then, Ohio State fired Chris Holtmann and threw the interim tag on assistant coach Jake Diebler, who went 8-3 in his 11 games as the acting head coach. Ohio State passed on making an external hire and instead removed the interim tag from Diebler's title. The Buckeyes are betting on Diebler to turn the program around after missing out on the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive season. It won't be surprising to see Ohio State and Michigan finish in the top seven of the conference standings by the end of the season. — CS
35. Will Missouri surpass its SEC win total from last season? Simply put, last season was dreadful for Dennis Gates at Missouri. The Tigers went 0-18 (yes, you read that right) in SEC play and finished 8-24 overall after reaching the second round of the NCAA Tournament less than a year prior. Missouri was active in the transfer portal this offseason and landed former Duke standout Mark Mitchell and Iowa guard Tony Perkins to go along with the No. 5 high school recruiting class. Even with the SEC adding Texas and Oklahoma to the fold, it would be shocking if Missouri doesn't exceed its conference win total by a large margin this time. — CS
36. Flagg is Duke's 'Maine Event' but there's another lottery talent on the roster. By now, you are well aware of who Flagg is, but what about his fellow newcomer Kon Knueppel? Knueppel has received a ton of buzz in the months leading up to the season because of his ability to shoot the basketball at a high level. Knueppel was Duke's fourth-highest-ranked recruit behind Flagg, Khaman Maluach, and Isaiah Evans but should be in contention to start. Knueppel will be one of the best shooters in the country and could play himself into a top-20 pick — similar to what former Duke star Jared McCain did during his lone collegiate season. Knueppel dropped 19 points in only 21 minutes in Duke's exhibition game against Arizona State. Leave him open from beyond the arc at your own risk. — CS
37. South Carolina's Collin Murray-Boyles is another potential lottery pick this summer. One of the best sophomores in the sport is Murray-Boyles — a potential lottery pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. The southpaw saw his role increase around the time of SEC play starting last season — highlighted by a 31-point outburst in a win over Vanderbilt. Murray-Boyles had an impressive stretch throughout February/beginning of March and recorded double-digit points in 10 of 11 contests. Murray-Boyles is a sneaky All-American pick this season. — CS
38. Mountain West Player of the Year race will be intriguing. Three players from the Mountain West (Boise State's Tyson Degenhart, New Mexico's Donovan Dent, and UNLV's Dedan Thomas Jr.) were voted to the CBS Sports Top 100 and 1 Player preseason list. Those three are in a tier of their own to win conference POTY. New Mexico and Boise State reached the NCAA Tournament last season, while UNLV missed out after going 21-13. My preseason pick would be Degenhart, but Dent/Thomas will be consensus top 50 players by next spring. — CS
39. Big Ten title drought approaches 25 years. My bold prediction for the season was that the Big Ten title drought would end. The last time a team from the Big Ten (Michigan State) won a national title was 2000. Purdue came one game close to ending that drought this past spring but lost to the juggernaut that is UConn. I picked UCLA to reach the final weekend of the college basketball season because Cronin has a roster capable of making a deep tournament run. The Big Ten is wide open, so there's a strong possibility that someone other than UCLA will represent the conference and go to the Final Four (and win a title). The biggest question is ... who will that be, and if not this season, when will the drought end? — CS
40. Can Chris Beard make a leap in Year 2 at Ole Miss? Beard has made a career out of quickly turning around college basketball programs. Things were no different last season in Year 1 for Beard at Ole Miss, as the Rebels improved from 12 wins to 20 under his direction. Now in his second season, the Rebels appear to have the talent needed to make a run at the Big Dance. Navigating a loaded SEC won't be easy, but Beard pulled off a similar turnaround in the Big 12 with Texas Tech and got the Red Raiders to the Elite Eight in his second season there back in 2018. — David Cobb
41. What happens to Tennessee after Dalton Knecht? Tennessee found lightning in a bottle last season with Knecht, a Northern Colorado transfer who won SEC Player of the Year and led the Volunteers to the Elite Eight before he was selected by the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round of the NBA Draft. Knecht single handedly raised the offensive ceiling for the Vols. Now that he's gone, will they revert to struggling offensively again? With Rick Barnes at the helm, Tennessee is sure to be salty defensively again. But the shooting and scoring are likely to take a hit without Knecht. — DC
42. Penny Hardaway may be feeling the heat. It was a tumultuous offseason for Memphis coach Penny Hardaway, who is entering Year 7 with just one NCAA Tournament victory. The Tigers flipped almost their entire roster, got a new athletic director and then revamped their coaching staff on the eve of the season. Oh, and there was an anonymous letter alleging potential NCAA violations. Memphis has another talented team capable of competing for the AAC title. But patience may be running thin with Hardaway, despite the fact that the Tigers have won at least 20 games in every season under his direction. — DC
43. Can Porter Moser get it going? Landing Moser from Loyola (Chicago) looked like a slam-dunk hire for Oklahoma after Lon Kruger retired following the 2020–21 season. But three seasons into Moser's tenure, the Sooners have yet to reach the NCAA Tournament. They were left barely on the wrong side of the bubble on Selection Sunday last season but are now undergoing significant roster turnover as they enter the SEC. It looks like a critical Year 4 for Moser, who will need substantive contributions from a group of veteran transfers. — DC
44. Rutgers has two NBA Draft lottery picks. Rutgers has two of the top-three prospects from the Class of 2024 on its roster in Bailey and Harper. Yes, we're talking about the Rutgers Scarlet Knights. Ninth-year coach Steve Pikiell has worked wonders in turning Rutgers into a competitive Big Ten program. Now, he faces the challenge of molding an NCAA Tournament team out of a group centered around Bailey and Harper. Regardless of how it goes, the Scarlet Knights and their diaper dandies will be one of college basketball's top curiosities. — DC
45. There is a new NIT alternative. The NIT has changed its selection criteria yet again amid the arrival of a postseason alternative for teams left out of the NCAA Tournament. The College Basketball Crown event, launched by Fox Sports, begins this season. It's a 16-team event, held in Las Vegas, that will award automatic bids to the top two non-NCAA Tournament teams from the Big Ten, Big 12 and Big East. From there, the rest of the bracket will be filled out by a committee. — DC
46. Can Indiana make its first Sweet 16 in a decade? Indiana is coming off a disappointing 19-14 (10-10 Big Ten) season that ended with the Hoosiers left out of the Big Dance. But fourth-year coach Mike Woodson has assembled an excellent 2024-25 roster that should be well-positioned to compete within a seemingly wide open conference. Transfer guards Myles Rice (Washington State) and Kanaan Carlyle (Stanford) should finally give the Hoosiers the backcourt help they need to maximize the front court talent that has been part of the program for years. — DC
47. Tobin Anderson's turnover at Iona. Anderson, the architect of Fairleigh Dickinson's stunning 2023 NCAA Tournament upset of Purdue, is now in his second season at Iona. Remarkably, in his three seasons as a Division I coach, he's yet to coach a single scholarship player in consecutive seasons. After a 16-17 debut campaign with the Gaels, he flipped his entire roster for the 2024-25 campaign. Yet, expectations remain high for one of the MAAC's strongest programs. Iona was picked to finish third in the conference, and it would be foolish to sleep on the possibility of Anderson returning to the Big Dance with a reloaded roster that is equipped to execute his high-powered attack. — DC
48. Kansas needs a bounce-back. Mighty Kansas has failed to reach the Sweet 16 in consecutive seasons. The Jayhawks finished fifth in the Big 12 last season, which is foreign territory for a program that has run the league for nearly all of coach Bill Self's 22-year tenure. The Jayhawks have an excellent blend of returning talent that includes Dickinson and Harris, the seasoned floor general. Self also brought in an elite transfer class to bolster the ranks of a team that struggled with depth last season. AP voters pegged the Jayhawks as the preseason No. 1 team. But after losing 11 games for the first time since the 1988-89 season, the Jayhawks have something to prove. — DC
49. Iowa State has serious potential. Iowa State is enjoying a golden era of athletics success with its football program operating in the Big 12's upper tier and its basketball program thriving under fourth-year coach T.J. Otzelberger. The former ISU assistant and UNLV head coach inherited a 2-win team and has taken it to three straight NCAA Tournaments. The Cyclones return four double-digit scorers from a team that finished No. 1 in defensive efficiency, per KenPom. Understandably, expectations are through the roof for a program that hasn't reached the Final Four since 1944. — DC
50. Houston is back for more. Houston left the dregs of the AAC for the top conference of college basketball last season and didn't miss a beat. The Cougars finished 32-5 (15-3 Big 12) and won the Big 12 championship outright by two games. If not for an injury to star point guard Jamal Shead, Houston would likely have ventured farther than the Sweet 16. But with excellent continuity and arguably the grittiest, toughest DNA of any team in the country, the Cougars are equipped for greatness this season. A national title is about the only thing lacking from coach Kelvin Sampson's resume, and this team has the necessary ingredients to change that. — DC
51. Don't look now, but Doug Gottlieb is a coach now. Gottlieb is best known these days as a sports media personality. But the former Oklahoma State point guard is trying his hand at coaching this season at Green Bay. Oh, and he's continuing on with his daily radio show at Fox Sports as well. It's an interesting arrangement. As Matt Norlander wrote in May: "It's an outside the box hire and sure to draw a lot of attention, if not some skepticism. Gottlieb is well-known across basketball and has connections going back decades, but he is the rare person hired to run a D-I program despite never previously working on a college bench." — DC
52. North Carolina enters life without Armndo Bacot. Bacot patrolled the paint at North Carolina for five seasons, ending his storied career as the program's all-time leader in rebounds and double-doubles. His 2,347 points are second in program history. Navigating life without him may be a challenge for the Tar Heels, who appear to have plenty of perimeter firepower but some questions when it comes to interior heft. Bacot was a staple for the Tar Heels amid the program's coaching transition from Roy Williams to Hubert Davis. How the preseason No. 9 team copes without him is an interesting dynamic to watch. But having fifth-year guard RJ Davis, a first-team All American, will surely help. — DC
53. Just how good will Flagg be, really? Cade Cunningham, Chet Holmgren, RJ Barrett and Marvin Bagley – all former No. 1 recruits – were all productive and very good college players. But there's a difference between being very good and being great. And Flagg, given his credentials and expectations, is expected to be the latter. Nobody would be surprised if he averaged 18 points and 10 boards per game and was a borderline All-American. That's probably the most likely outcome. But there's a world in which he enters college basketball as the best player in the sport with an impact similar to how Zion Williamson was in his one season at Duke. — Kyle Boone
54. How will Howard deal with private equity controversy? In early August and in the dead of the college hoops offseason, Howard's head coach reportedly tried selling a stake of the men's basketball program in a first-of-its-kind deal to private equity investors in an effort to secure his program's financial future. Yes: I am serious. University leaders said they did not vet any negotiations and it seems as if any potential on that front went nowhere. But that type of transaction – and the friction it probably caused within leadership – is pretty tough to just pretend like it did not happen. They're the favorites to win the MEAC this season so we should have a pretty good spot to evaluate the team and any potential fallout from it. — KB
55. What's next for Bucky Ball and Samford? Samford and fifth-year head coach Bucky McMillan made their first NCAA Tournament appearance last season in 24 years with a roster that was among the smallest in the sport and played among the fastest in the sport in a system now affectionately labeled as "Bucky Ball." What's next for McMillan, the former high school coach whose profile has risen to new heights? The Bulldogs should be considered favorites in the SoCon this season – though with some new faces in the crowd. He takes them back to the NCAAs this year, and we're probably looking at a coach whose next stop is at the power conference level. But first things first: Bucky Ball is bound to make some noise this season. — KB
56. First-year international standouts everywhere. Despite Flagg, Bailey and Harper's domination of interest among first-year college players, there's an international zest in the new pool of players this year that may be too impactful to ignore. Flagg's fellow Duke teammate Khaman Maluach is one, and two Illinois signees – Tomislav Ivisic and Kasparas Jakucionis – are for my money two others worth watching. Some big prospects who may not yet be household names but could work their way there very soon. — KB
57. Who takes the mantle as best big in college hoops? Edey: gone. Donovan Clingan: gone. Same for Bacot. So who takes their rightful place at the throne as college basketball's best big man? The list of contenders is a long one. Kansas' Dickinson, Indiana's Oumar Ballo and Creighton's Kalkbrenner are all familiar names with fantastic production profiles who have the tools and are in situations to become the best big this season. — KB
58. Eyes on BYU and Cougars coach Kevin Young. The biggest story related to BYU this offseason was Kentucky's plucking of Pope. But the most impactful in the short-term – and under the radar as maybe one of the best hires of the offseason – was the Cougs tabbing Kevin Young to replace him. Young has deep roots in Utah, has a wealth of experience in the NBA, and is expected to bring a modernized system with him that will help BYU remain competitive in the toughest league in America. With Egor Demin the face of a roster overhaul, this team will be exciting to watch grow under Young in the years to come. — KB
59. Sons of stars take center stage. Do you want to feel old? Like, really, really old? Well try this on for size: Scottie Pippen's youngest son, Jason Richardson's eldest son and Billy Richmond's son – and his namesake, Billy Richmond – are all freshmen in college basketball this season. They join the likes of Jizzle James (Edgerrin James' son), Jace Howard (Juwan Howard's son) and Ashton Hardaway (Penny Hardaway's son) among sons who are already in the sport. Now take off your reading glasses, touch up those gray beards with some Just For Men and keep scrolling before your 7 p.m. bedtime, old-timer. — KB
60. Former five-stars in new places. A change of scenery is in store for a number of big names whose past profiles once suggested future stardom. Aaron Bradshaw (Kentucky to Ohio State), DJ Wagner (Kentucky to Arkansas), Omaha Biliew (Iowa State to Wake Forest) and Aden Holloway (Auburn to Alabama) are just a handful of the names who were once ranked as five-stars and who find themselves in new situations this season. It's hard for transfers to find footing immediately, and especially at such a young age, but they're all young with NBA-like traits who could flourish in new homes. — KB
61. Jeremy Roach finds new home in Waco. Once considered a lifer at blueblood Duke, Roach and the Blue Devils parted ways this offseason, leading Roach to find a new home at Baylor. The Bears needed a lead guard to stabilize their team and got one of the best to do the job. A former All-ACC performer, he and the Bears seem a perfect match on paper in a system that has allowed lesser-talented guards to thrive and put up gaudy stats. He could be one of the best players on a loaded Bears roster – and one of the most impactful transfers in the entire sport. — KB
62. South Florida playing with heavy heart. A tragedy befell South Florida last month as coach Amir Abdur-Rahim died unexpectedly due to complications that arose during a medical procedure. USF has named Ben Fletcher as interim coach and plans to continue with its regular season as planned, but they will do so understandably with heavy hearts. The Bulls won the AAC last season in Abdur-Rahim's first with the program and their arrow moving forward was pointing directly upwards before the tragedy. They'll have many people – fans of Abdur-Rahim, fans of college hoops and just strangers – rooting for them this season as they deal with a heartbreaking void. — KB
63. Will Wade no longer an unknown on the bayou. Most expected McNeese last season to be competitive in Wade's first year, but no one quite saw 30 wins and a dominant run in the Southland coming. Now, though, the Cowboys aren't sneaking up on anyone. Everyone expects them to dominate the Southland. Thirty wins is very much in the realm of outcomes. How will Wade and the Cowboys handle the targets on their backs this season? — KB
64. Sampson and Sampson's best chance at a title together? At 69 years old and with his son the former successor of the Houston kingdom, how long will Kelvin Sampson enjoy the twilight of his career before walking away? The answer to that only he knows; and to be sure, absolutely no one is rooting for him to do so. But he and his son, Kellen, have formed a killer duo together building the Cougars into a contender – and this year might be their best chance to go out on top. They've had some spectacular teams in the last few years and made several deep NCAA Tournament runs, including a trip to the Final Four in 2021, but they may not again have a team this deep, this talented and this well-positioned to claim a title. At least not together. How great a story would it be for the old man and his chosen successor to cut down the nets on the first Monday night next April in San Antonio? — KB
65. Guard depth problems in the past for Kansas. Injuries and a short bench kept Kansas – last year's preseason No. 1 – from reaching its potential last season. But that should not be the case in 2024-25. Guard depth in particular has been fully restored for the Jayhawks with AJ Storr, Zeke Mayo, Rylan Griffen and several other transfer additions. What was a definite weakness a year ago looks like a definite strength. Add that with Dickinson, Harris Jr. and KJ Adams – and you've got a team that has the pieces to back up its credentials as the preseason No. 1 once again. — KB
66. How does Virginia play after Bennett's abrupt retirement? No team in the power conference structure ran with a slower tempo the last 10 seasons than did Virginia under Bennett. That led to way more good than bad – they won a national championship, after all – but it was hardly an aesthetically pleasing and modernized system we see in the sport now. Will Bennett's abrupt retirement change the Cavaliers' ways? Or will the elevation of long-time Bennett assistant Ron Sanchez be more of the same? It's hard to expect wholesale changes given the retirement's timing coming so soon to the start of the season, but how UVA plays this season and how it will morph post-Bennett is among the more fascinating subplots of the sport. — KB
67. Rivals Auburn, Alabama are the top dogs in SEC. For as good as Alabama and Auburn have been at various points the last couple decades, they've never finished at the top of the standings in men's college basketball. That's expected to change this year. Sears is back for an Alabama team that made it to the Final Four, and Johni Broome is back for an Auburn team that won 27 games and looked and played like a top-10 team for stretches at the end of last season. — KB
68. Can Grand Canyon build off its 30-win season after making it to the second round last season? My bet for the team to start the season unranked and most likely to make it to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament: Grand Canyon. Coming off a 30-5 season, the Lopes and coach Bryce Drew bring back a top-50 national talent in Tyon Grant-Foster along with four of the other five leading scorers from last year's team. It's hard to have continuity in college basketball and even harder to have it for a team that was successful. Grand Canyon has all the looks of a sleeper with serious upside. — KB
