Duke will open the 2026-27 college basketball season at the top of the KenPom rankings, giving Jon Scheyer’s team an early preseason jolt and putting the Blue Devils ahead of a loaded field that includes Florida, Houston, Illinois and Arizona.
The initial ratings, released before the November 2 start of the regular season, place those five programs at the top of the board. Duke sits at No. 1, with Florida at No.
2, Houston at No. 3, Illinois at No. 4 and Arizona at No.
That top group is followed by Iowa State at No. 6, Michigan State at No.
7, Kansas at No. 8, Alabama at No. 9 and Texas at No.
The rankings also point to how strongly several conferences are positioned entering the season. The Big 12 has Houston, Arizona, Iowa State and Kansas all inside the top eight. The SEC can claim Florida, Alabama and Texas in the top ten, with more teams not far behind.
KenPom’s model is built on projected efficiency, not just brand names, which is part of what makes the preseason list worth watching when rosters have changed so much. It is meant to measure how teams are expected to perform, not simply where they rank in a poll.
One of the first games to watch comes November 2 in Las Vegas, where Gonzaga and Purdue will meet in an opening-night matchup that already stands out. Gonzaga begins the season at No. 14, while Purdue comes in at No. 24.
The Bulldogs finished last season 31-4 and are projected to have another offense that ranks among the nation’s best. Gonzaga opens seventh nationally in offensive efficiency. Purdue gets the chance to make a quick statement against a respected opponent right away.
UConn also enters with a strong preseason profile at No. 11 after reaching the national championship game last season. The Huskies are projected to be elite defensively, ranking sixth in adjusted defensive efficiency.
Kentucky starts at No. 26, just outside the top 25, setting up a different kind of preseason outlook for a program whose expectations rarely dip.
The numbers will shift once the season begins. Transfers, injuries, development and coaching adjustments always change the picture. For now, though, Duke owns the statistical edge, and the Blue Devils open as KenPom’s preseason favorite.
In Other News...
Arizona Begins Sorting Out A New-Look Team With Pressure Still There
Tuesdays exhibition slate brings a familiar one for UConn fans, with Syracuse back on the schedule at Mohegan Sun Arena as both programs use the preseason to sort out rotations and roles. It also fits into a broader night of tuneups around the country, with Arizona starting its exhibition schedule against San Francisco and other programs getting their first real look at new combinations before the games count.
For UConn, these early games are less about the final score than about learning what this team looks like when the pace picks up and the pressure starts to matter. Syracuse is in a similar spot after a coaching change, and the renewed rivalry adds a little extra edge to what should be a useful measuring-stick night for both sides. [Read more 🡒]
UConn Has One Big Scoring Question Entering 2026-27
UConn still looks built to contend in 2026-27, even with some roster turnover, because the core around Silas Demary Jr. and Braylon Mullins gives the Huskies a strong base to work from. Add in transfer help from Nikolas Khamenia and Najai Hines up front, plus freshmen Egor Amosov, Colben Landrew and Junior County giving the bench more depth, and the overall talent level still projects as top-15 caliber.
The bigger issue is where the points are going to come from after the loss of starting guard Solo Ball, whose absence leaves a real gap in the backcourt scoring mix. UConn has pieces, but the unanswered question is whether the Huskies have enough proven shot-making to replace what Ball brought, or whether someone else in the rotation will have to make a major leap for the offense to stay at the level the rest of the roster suggests. [Read more 🡒]
UConn Gets Its First Real Test With A Very Different Roster
The first real look at UConns reshaped roster comes Friday night at Mohegan Sun Arena, where the Huskies will meet Syracuse in an exhibition that should say plenty about where Dan Hurleys team stands entering the season. It will air on NBC Sports Boston, and it also marks Hurleys first game against Syracuse since 2018, back when the Orange were still under Jim Boeheim and before Gerry McNamara took over the program.
UConn will have to navigate the opener without Braylon Mullins, who is out with an undisclosed injury, so the spotlight shifts to Silas Demary Jr. and a batch of newcomers who are set to make their debuts. For a roster built with transfers and freshmen as much as returning pieces, this is less about polishing the final details than getting an early read on how quickly the new faces can fit into Hurleys system. [Read more 🡒]