College Basketball Top 25 Rankings for 2/18/2026

1. Michigan

The buzzsaw that is the Michigan Wolverines has a huge week awaiting them, traveling to Purdue and then playing Duke on a neutral floor. This is the week where Michigan will either show its dominance or show its vulnerability. The play of Yaxel Lendeborg will be huge, as he can be a matchup nightmare for both of these teams.

2. Duke

The Blue Devils have been unbeaten in Cameron Indoor this season, but the NCAA Tournament isn’t played in Cameron Indoor (for good reason, it’s not very big or easy to get to). I really want to see statement games from Cameron Boozer against top competition before I pick this team to win a National Championship.

3. Houston

The Cougars have 3 losses by a combined margin of 10 points. They simply could not buy a 3-point basket in the second half against Iowa State, and one more make would have resulted in a win for the Cougars. I wonder if the same problem is going to persist with this team through the NCAA Tournament.

4. Arizona

Kansas and Texas Tech were able to give the Wildcats their first two losses of the season in a span of 5 days. They both kind of showed the blueprint for beating Arizona – shut down their interior-focused offense and force them to shoot and make 3-pointers. The good news for Tommy Lloyd is that very few teams in Division I are equipped to do so. The injury to Koa Peat will go a long way in how this season finishes.

5. Florida

Everyone was so quick to write Florida off after 4 early non-conference losses – but they didn’t write back. The Gators have been absolutely bludgeoning SEC competition to the tune of 5 straight wins, only one of which was closer than 19 points, and the guard play of Boogie Fland and Xaivian Lee gives me enough confidence to pick this team to go far in March.

6. Iowa State

Right after I doubted them, Iowa State responded with two of its biggest wins of the season, picking off Kansas and Houston at home. The experience of Tamin Lipsey, Joshua Jefferson, and Nate Heise has shown up in these two wins, and they’re going to be a tough out in the NCAA Tournament.

7. UConn

Like Molly Hatchet, UConn was flirtin’ with disaster this past weekend, narrowly escaping Georgetown with a 4-point victory. Tarris Reed, who has been instrumental to the Huskies’ success this season, has now been called out by his coach. Let’s see how he responds this week.

8. Illinois

Keaton Wagler has been on an absolute tear, but I think we’re starting to see a blueprint for defending him. He lacks the high-end athleticism as some of the other top freshmen in the class. Now, we also have the return to the lineup of Kylan Boswell that also throws a wrench into how this team will operate, but may increase their ceiling in March.

9. Purdue

The Boilermakers are starting to heat back up, winners of their last four, including a road OT victory over Nebraska and road demolition of Iowa. This team will go as far as Braden Smith can take them, but getting an extra scoring punch of Fletcher Loyer and Trey Kaufman-Renn will help go a long way.

10. Texas Tech

The ranking may seem high for Texas Tech’s overall resume, but this team has high-end wins that no other team in the country can compete with. They’ve literally beaten Duke, Houston, and Arizona, three teams in my top-4. They also boast my vote for National Player of the Year, JT Toppin.

11. Gonzaga

Maybe Mark Few’s team just needed a loss to kick it into high gear, as they have been absolutely rolling since their loss to Portland. With Braden Huff still out, Graham Ike has upped his game even more, tallying 21 and 15 in the most recent win over Santa Clara.

12. Michigan State

The loss to Wisconsin showcased one of my concerns with this Michigan State team – if another team has a really hot shooting night, they can struggle to keep up. When Wisconsin hit 43% from 3, Michigan State did not have the offensive firepower to keep up. Developing Kur Teng into their new shooting guard with the injury to Divine Ugochukwu will be something to monitor as the season goes on.

13. Kansas

I don’t quite know what to make of this Kansas team. And of Darryn Peterson. But what I do know is that no one-seed or two-seed will want them to be in their bracket come Selection Sunday, because they have the high-end ceiling to beat anyone on any given night.

14. Virginia

Time just keeps going by, and Virginia just keeps on winning. Granted, none of the wins are all that impressive in a vacuum, but the nightly consistency in year one of the Ryan Odom era is what impresses me the most with this team.

15. St. John’s

The Red Storm withstood one of the most egregious fouls in the history of college basketball and a few ejections in their win over Providence on Saturday. The biggest development of this team is that they may have finally found their starting point guard – Dylan Darling has been electric in the last two wins.

16. Vanderbilt

What impresses me the most about this Vanderbilt team is their ability to learn from and mask their weaknesses. We know that Vanderbilt is a small team, with only one offensive creator (Tyler Tanner), and yet they’ve been able to beat bigger opponents with elite defenses, like Auburn and Texas A&M.

17. Saint Louis

The Billikens are rolling through the Atlantic Ten. They have reached the point where they are a lock for an NCAA Tournament bid, even if they don’t win the A10 tournament, which will be something that all bubble teams will have to pay attention to come Conference Tournament week.

18. Nebraska

A little bit of regression was to be expected after the dream 20-0 start to the season. But still, the Cornhuskers only have three losses, all to top-10 opponents. Getting Rienk Mast back from injury/illness will only help them out the next time they have to play a top-tier opponent.

19. Louisville

Simply put, this team can absolutely bury you if it’s a hot shooting night for them. Only three teams in the country take 3-pointers at a higher rate, and only 80 teams shoot them at a higher percentage. It’s all systems go now that Mikel Brown is back in the lineup and 100% healthy.

20. Arkansas

This season may boast the best freshman class of all time in college basketball. One of the more under-the-radar freshmen is Arkansas’ Darius Acuff Jr. For some reason, he’s not talked about on the same level as a Kingston Flemings or Keaton Wagler, but he’s going to have a chance to prove his worth this March.

21. Kentucky

I can’t really knock Kentucky too much for losing to Florida in Gainesville. It was a potential Denzel Aberdeen revenge game, and he scored 19 points, but it was on 8-21 shooting. Not exactly efficient. The Wildcats will need an efficient Aberdeen (and Otega Oweh) if they want to go far in March.

22. Tennessee

Nate Ament. Nate Ament. Nate Ament. The freshman almost single-handedly powered Tennessee’s run of 6 wins in 7 games, and is now living up to the lofty expectations that were placed on him after his dominance of weak non-conference competition.

23. Texas

Sean Miller has gotten this team to turn the corner, and they will be someone that no top seed will want to play in the NCAA Tournament. Matas Vokietaitis is a physical presence who draws fouls at an almost unprecedented rate, and getting opposing frontcourts in foul trouble goes a long way in winning basketball games.

24. Alabama

This team has had to deal with a LOT this season. Granted, they brought some of it upon themselves with the Charles Bediako situation, but they’ve dealt with an insanely difficult schedule (2nd-toughest in the country) while dealing with a myriad of injuries and never knowing who will be in the lineup. Last time out, it was Taylor Bol Bowen who was out, and London Jemison who admirably filled in during a win over South Carolina.

25. BYU

I am very concerned about the Cougars. Their second-leading scorer, and one of the nation’s best 3-point scorers, Richie Saunders, is out for the season. His absence will change the entire gravity of BYU’s offense, but it will funnel more usage and shots to AJ Dybantsa and Rob Wright. Dybantsa will have the ultimate chance to showcase his talents – if this team doesn’t fall off and goes on a run, it will be because of him.

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