Gator bites and elite freshmen debuts: Five observations from men's college basketball opening night

The 2025-26 men's college basketball season got underway on Monday, and it didn't disappoint. There were upsets among ranked teams, elite performances, nail-biting games, surprising results and more.

Leading the charge were stellar debuts for a range of five-star freshmen, along with the defending national champions going down.

Five observations from opening day in men's college basketball

Freshmen phenoms

Five-star prospects in the 2025 class played at an ultra-high level during their collegiate debuts. Kansas freshman guard Darryn Peterson poured in 21 points in just 22 minutes. BYU freshman small forward AJ Dybantsa had 21 points and six rebounds as the Cougars knocked off Villanova. Tennessee freshman power forward Nate Ament tallied 18 points and nine boards against Mercer. North Carolina freshman power forward Caleb Wilson scored 22 points in 25 minutes against Central Arkansas.

Arizona Wildcats chomp on Florida Gators

Southeastern Conference powerhouse Florida, which won the 2025 NCAA Tournament, fell in its season opener, albeit to a quality opponent. No. 13 Arizona knocked off No. 3 Florida, 93-87. For the Wildcats, five-star freshman power forward Koa Peat turned heads with 30 points, seven boards, five assists, three steals and one block. There's no shame in the Gators losing to a top-15 team, although Monday was not the 2025-26 beginning that Florida had envisioned.

Auburn HC Steven Pearl survives in debut

Pearl's first game as the head coach of the No. 20 Auburn Tigers was, well, interesting. Playing at home against Bethune-Cookman, Auburn escaped with a 95-90 victory in overtime. However, the Tigers should have won in regulation. They led 81-78 in the game's waning seconds, but Auburn fouled on a Bethune-Cookman shot attempt from around half-court right before the final buzzer sounded. Bethune-Cookman's Arterio Morris made all three free throws to send the contest into overtime, but Auburn triumphed in the extra session. The Tigers, by the way, have won 61 consecutive games against non-conference foes.

Gonzaga's Tyon Grant-Foster starts strong

The graduate student wing late last month was granted a preliminary injunction by a judge that is allowing him to play for the Bulldogs in 2025-26 after the NCAA had previously denied his appeal for an eligibility waiver. In an easy home victory for No. 21 Gonzaga on Monday, Grant-Foster had 15 points and five rebounds in 21 minutes.

Orange crush

Adrian Autry is in his third season as Syracuse's head coach, and he likely has to make the NCAA Tournament (following a four-year absence for the program) to retain his job. In 2024-25, Syracuse went 14-19 overall, and the Orange was awful on defense and in the turnover department. Syracuse also struggled to put away inferior opponents. In the team's 2025-26 opener at the JMA Wireless Dome against Binghamton, the Orange played well defensively, only committed five turnovers and crushed the Bearcats, 85-47. It was an encouraging early sign for Syracuse.