Florida opens men's college basketball season ranked No. 1 in AP Top 25
The gist
Florida tops the AP Top 25 with 1,461 points and 47 first-place votes, ahead of Duke and Illinois.
Opening night played out amid court orders blocking the NCAA's new eligibility rules.
How it unfolded
- Oct 19, 2026AP Top 25 lists Florida No. 1 with 1,461 points and 47 first-place votes, ahead of Duke (1,411, 10 first-place votes) and Illinois (1,342, 2). UConn is No. 4 and Arizona No. 5.
- Nov 2, 2026The AP hub page shows the same top-20 order, with USC No. 21, UCLA No. 22, Kentucky No. 23, Vanderbilt No. 24 and BYU No. 25. CBS Sports' Top 25 And 1 instead has UCLA No. 21, Alabama No. 22, USC No. 23 and Missouri No. 24.
- Nov 2, 2026The season tips off with dozens of players competing after winning court orders against the NCAA's new eligibility rules. No. 13 St. John's beats Monmouth 78-63, No. 15 Gonzaga beats Purdue 78-72, and No. 14 Miami loses 77-67 to top-ranked Florida.
Key terms
- AP Top 25
- A weekly ranking of the top 25 American college teams in football or basketball, voted on by sportswriters and broadcasters.
- injunctions
- A court order requiring a party to do or stop doing a specific act.
Source: Wikipedia