Until the Pac-12 picks up enough teams to qualify as a basketball conference that will receive an automatic qualification into the college basketball tournament, March Madness now has 31 automatic qualifiers and 37 at-large bids. The remaining four power conferences also have a lot of new dynamics to consider for men’s hoops.
With Oregon, USC, UCLA and Washington entering the Big Ten, for example, that basically brings in one perennial national contender (Oregon) and two other fairly regular tournament teams (USC and UCLA) into a conference that was already packed with quality basketball. The SEC added Texas and Oklahoma; adding the Longhorns to the SEC basically meant that Kentucky and Alabama now have a third legitimate contender for conference honors in what is still a football-heavy conference.
The ACC added SMU, Stanford and Cal – none of whom are likely threats to the likes of Duke, Virginia, and North Carolina in terms of hegemony. However, the addition of Andy Enfield as SMU’s coach brings in a talent from USC and could push the Mustangs closer to contention in the next few seasons. The Big 12 added Colorado, Utah, Arizona, and Arizona State. Of those four, Arizona is the only big name in college basketball, and the Wildcats join a conference that already has some stout teams, such as Kansas, Baylor, Texas Tech, West Virginia, and Iowa State.
Early Impressions of the 2024-25 College Basketball Season
Let’s take a look at how some of the top contenders in men’s college hoops are coming across as we approach the start of the 2024-25 season, so you can start formulating an online betting strategy.
POLL ALERT: Kansas tops AP Top 25 preseason men's basketball poll ahead of Alabama, defending champion UConn; SEC leads way with 9 teams in poll.
— AP Top 25 (@AP_Top25) October 14, 2024
Full poll: https://t.co/ZJG5mgWrsa pic.twitter.com/aAABleXK3s
NCAAB Kansas Jayhawks
Kansas sits atop the AP Top 25 preseason college basketball rankings once again. At some point, the press will catch up with the rest of the world and understand that, while Kansas is a great program with a rich history, declaring them to be better than, say, UConn or Alabama because they are the Jayhawks is not going to pay off. Last year, they finished 23-11 and got bounced out of the Big Dance in the Round of 32 by fifth-seeded Gonzaga.
They do see North Carolina on November 8 in an early test, and they have a couple of transfers slated to enter the starting lineup, including Zeke Mayo, who put up 18.8 points per game at South Dakota State, and A.J. Store, who scored 16.8 points per game at Wisconsin. They join Dajuan Harris Jr (8.5), K.J. Adams Jr (12.6) and Hunter Dickinson (17.9) in that projected starting five.
^College Basketball Alabama Crimson Tide
Alabama followed the leadership of coach Nate Oats all the way to the Final Four, where they lost to one-seed UConn, finishing with a 25-12 record. Aden Holloway (7.3 points per game) transferred across the state from Auburn, and Clifford Omoruyi (10.4) comes down from Rutgers to join Grant Nelson (11.9), Latrell Wrightsell Jr (8.9) and Mark Sears (21.5) in what should be a powerful starting five. Their biggest early test comes on November 26 in a holiday tournament against the Houston Cougars.
^NCAAB UConn Huskies
UConn is back-to-back defending national champions after their 37-3 mark a year ago. Liam McNeeley, ranked #9 in the ESPN 100, is back in the starting lineup, along with Alex Karaban (13.3 points per game), Samson Johnson (5.4) and Hassan Diarra (6.1). Aidan Mahaney (13.9) transferred from St. Mary’s (CA) to join the Huskies. Their first test won’t come until early December when they face the Baylor Bears.
^College Basketball Houston Cougars
Houston made it to the Sweet 16, where fourth-seeded Duke ended their season with a 32-5 mark. It is true that several key injuries likely kept the Cougars from advancing farther into the tournament, and it’s also true that moving from the AAC to the Big 12 did not expose the Cougars as pretenders, like some sports betting writers, including me, thought that it would. Milos Uzan (9.0 points per game) transferred in from Oklahoma to join L.J. Cryer (15.5), Ja’Vier Francis (6.0), J’Wan Roberts (9.5) and Emanuel Sharp (12.6) in the starting lineup. That Houston-Alabama game a couple days before Thanksgiving should make for some excellent television.
^NCAAB Iowa State Cyclones
Iowa State has high hopes this year after their 29-8 slate last year and their trip to the Sweet 16, where the Fighting Illini, seeded third, ended their run. Their earliest tough test is a date with Auburn on the Monday before Thanksgiving. Dishon Jackson (11.4 points per game) transferred in from Charlotte to join a starting lineup that will include Milan Momcilovic (10.9), Keshon Gilbert (13.7), Curtis Jones (11.0) and Tamin Lipsey (12.4). The Big 12 is a gauntlet, and while Ames is a tough place to play, the Cyclones need to add some signature road wins to stay in the AP top 10.
^College Basketball Gonzaga Bulldogs
Gonzaga will join the Pac-12 in basketball, but for now they stay in the West Coast Conference. They take on Baylor in an intriguing November 4 matchup, fairly early for two powerhouses to tussle, and they also see Kentucky on December 7. Given how forgiving WCC play can be, the Bulldogs need to load up on non-conference challenges so they can see how the Big Dance will feel at the end of the season. Michael Ajayi transferred in from Pepperdine, where he put up 17.2 points per game last year. He will likely join Graham Ike (16.5), Ben Gregg (9.0), Nolan Hickman (14.0) and Ryan Nembhard (12.6) in the starting lineup.
^NCAAB Duke Blue Devils
Duke put together a nice run in March Madness last year, rolling to the Elite 8, where they became one of several victims of the juggernaut known as N.C. State, who entered as an 11-seed before rolling all the way to the Final Four. Duke didn’t ravage the transfer portal like some of the other programs, perhaps because they already had the #1 player in the ESPN 100 (Cooper Flagg) and the #18 player (Kon Knueppel) on campus. They will join five-star recruit Khaman Maluach, Caleb Foster (7.7 points per game last year) and Tyrese Proctor (10.5) in the starting lineup. Duke’s first tough test will be Kentucky when they meet on November 12.
^College Basketball Baylor Bears
Baylor finished 24-11 last year but didn’t get to the second weekend of March Madness after getting upset by sixth-seeded Clemson in the round of 32. They open with a tough slate, beginning with Gonzaga in their first game and then meeting Arkansas five days later. The Bears brought in Jeremy Roach and his 14.0 points per game from Duke and Norchad Omier (17.0) from Miami; they will make up the starting lineup along with Langston Love (11.0), Jayden Nunn (10.5) and V.J. Edgecombe (#3 in the ESPN 100).
^NCAAB North Carolina Tar Heels
North Carolina rolled to a 29-8 record but saw their season end in the Sweet 16 thanks to fourth-seeded Alabama. They start with a likely laugher against Elon but face Kansas four days later in a stout early test. Belmont lost Cade Tyson and his 16.2 points per game through the transfer portal to the Tar Heels, who will add him to a starting lineup that will also include Jalen Washington (3.9), Elliot Cadeau (7.3), RJ Davis (21.2), and Drake Powell (#14 in the ESPN 100).
^College Basketball Arizona Wildcats
Arizona was another one of sixth-seeded Clemson’s March Madness victims last year, falling to them in the Sweet 16 to end a 27-9 season. They will see Duke on November 22 as their toughest non-conference game. Trey Townsend transferred in from Oakland (17.3 points per game) and will join Jaden Bradley (7.0), Caleb Love (18.0), K.J. Lewis (6.1) and Motiejus Krivas (5.4) in the starting lineup.
^The average KenPom ranking for each Power Conference:
— College Basketball Report (@CBKReport) October 14, 2024
SEC – 37.50
Big 12 – 41.75
Big Ten – 42.56
Big East – 54.18
ACC – 65.61
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