College basketball is back. These November games are great way to start season

College basketball is back.

The 2026-27 men’s basketball season tipped off Sunday, Nov. 1 with Notre Dame coming from behind to defeat Villanova in the Eternal City Tip-Off in Rome thanks to a 3-pointer from Logan Duncomb with just over a minute to go. The Fighting Irish capitalized on the Wildcats’ 20 turnovers, turning those into 20 points.

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The season now officially tips off in the United States on Monday with a loaded schedule, highlighted by a matchup between No. 12 Gonzaga and No. 24 Purdue in Las Vegas. Later in the week, Dan Hurley’s UConn Huskies will get an early opportunity for revenge when they face No. 20 Michigan in a rematch of last season’s national championship game.

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This list excludes the multi-team events that take place around or during Feast Week, including Players Era, Battle 4 Atlantis and Maui Invitational. This list also excludes nonconference matchups set to take place in December. That means, matchups like Alabama vs. Houston in the Jimmy V Classic on Dec. 8, some of the ACC/SEC Challenges (like Duke-Florida and North Carolina-Arkansas), St. John’s vs. Arizona at Madison Square Garden and Louisville vs. Kentucky were all omitted from the list.

With that, here’s some of the best nonconference matchups in November that college basketball fans should look out for:

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Men’s college basketball preseason Top 25 rankings for 2026-27

25 — Brigham Young Cougars (23-12 in 2025-26, lost in first round of NCAA Tournament)

(William Purnell, Imagn Images via Reuters Connect)

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Men’s college basketball preseason Top 25 rankings for 2026-27

25 — Brigham Young Cougars (23-12 in 2025-26, lost in first round of NCAA Tournament)

(William Purnell, Imagn Images via Reuters Connect)

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Men’s college basketball preseason Top 25 rankings for 2026-27

24 — Purdue Boilermakers (30-9 in 2025-26, lost in Elite Eight of NCAA Tournament)

(Michael Hickey, Getty Images)

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