College Basketball

“It’s not to our advantage to be ranked where we’re ranked and have one returning player.” In the midst of significantly heightened expectations for the No. 7 Texas Longhorns in the 2026-27 season, head coach Sean Miller’s statement last Monday put into perspective how much growth will be necessary during the non-conference season. Advertisement Heading into next Saturday’s season opener …

After blowing out Belmont and Tennessee in Cameron, we knew Kansas in Allen Fieldhouse would be a very different matter, and it was. Kansas was in that game the entire way. But Duke left with a 90-84 victory. A lot of that was down to a great game from junior big man Patrick Ngongba, who finished with 28 points, 10 …

EVANSVILLE — Indiana basketball defeated Western Kentucky 79-74 in their final exhibition of the preseason Sunday night at the Ford Center. Senior guard Bryce Lindsay led the Hoosiers with 20 points on 6-of-11 shooting, his second straight 20-point game. Fifth-year senior forward Sam Alexis had 15 on 6-of-7 shooting. Western Kentucky junior guard Teagan Moore led all scorers with 29 …

Duke used an 11-0 run over a span of close to four minutes late in the second half to pull away from Kansas, 90-84, in the Blue Devils’ final exhibition. The two blue-blood programs traded blows for much of the game, with Jon Scheyer’s squad taking a 12-point lead at 8:29 in the first half. The Jayhawks answered, ending the …

Northwestern men’s basketball coach Chris Collins answers questions from reporters after Sunday’s 94-59 exhibition loss to No. 18 Iowa State The Northwestern Wildcats capped their preseason schedule with a 94-59 exhibition loss vs. the No. 18 Iowa State Cyclones at Welsh-Ryan Arena on Sunday. Advertisement NU finished its exhibition slate 0-2, following last week’s loss to Illinois State in Normal. …

Michigan State’s offensive struggles continued in its final exhibition game, as the No. 6 Spartans fell 86-79 to Marquette. After starting slowly and trailing by 12 at halftime, Michigan State battled back with an 11-0 run in the second half but couldn’t overcome a late three-point barrage from the Golden Eagles. Jasiah Jervis led the Spartans with 19 points, while …

No. 18 Iowa State took an early lead and never looked back in a one-sided 94-59 win over Northwestern on Sunday afternoon. The Wildcats’ home loss follows another preseason loss to Illinois State In a rematch of NU’s 80-72 exhibition loss to the Cyclones last year, the Wildcats struggled to respond to ISU’s smothering defense and red-hot shooting. Northwestern never …

Duke used massive games from Patrick Ngongba and John Blackwell, along with two big runs in the second half, to take down Kansas, 90-84, in the Blue Devils’ final exhibition game of the preseason. Here is what Duke head coach Jon Scheyer had to say after the win: Advertisement Opening statement This was everything we could have asked for and …

The Ohio State men’s basketball team had its final pre-season tune-up of the fall Sunday afternoon in Columbus, taking on the Butler Bulldogs in front of a smattering of scarlet-clad fans. It was a special day for the Ohio State basketball family and the Diebler family, with program legend Jon Diebler returning to the Schott, 15 years after he wrapped …

GRAND RAPIDS − Michigan basketball writer Tony Garcia offers three observations from the Wolverines’ 83-66 loss to Houston in its final exhibition, the Battleground 2K26, at Van Andel Arena on Sunday, Oct. 25. 1. Michigan may lives and die by the 3 Mike Boynton Jr. said the Wolverines were going to take even more 3s than last season. That said, …

Florida basketball continues to pile up preseason praise. College basketball insider Jon Rothstein placed the Gators at No. 1 in his preseason Rothstein 45 rankings for the 2026-27 season, ahead of Duke, Illinois, UConn and Michigan State. Advertisement Florida’s projected starting five features Boogie Fland and Denzel Aberdeen in the backcourt, with Thomas Haugh, Alex Condon and Rueben Chinyelu completing …

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Arkansas entered its exhibition against Gonzaga with questions about how its frontcourt would hold up against a physical opponent. The Razorbacks showed encouraging signs Saturday, particularly from Miikka Muurinen and Cooper Bowser, but their 76-72 win over the No. 15 Bulldogs also revealed areas that need improvement before the regular season. Arkansas limited Gonzaga to 35.5% shooting …

The St. John’s Red Storm have won their first two exhibition games of the year, defeating the Drexel Dragons 81-52 before a marathon, quadruple-overtime game against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights, 104-99. In their final tuneup of the preseason, the Red Storm will be hosting the Texas Longhorns at Madison Square Garden. This is an important game for St. John’s because …

FAYETTEVILLE – Highly touted freshman guard Jordan Smith Jr. played well during Arkansas’ four-game foreign tour in the Bahamas, but the Washington, D.C., native was held in check in Arkansas 76-72 exhibition win over No. 15 Gonzaga on Saturday. But Arkansas fans are just happy Smith is okay after he went down with just over 13 minutes to go in …

The Marquette men’s basketball team gets its toughest test of the exhibition season against Michigan State, which is ranked No. 6 in the preseason poll, on Oct. 25 at Fiserv Forum. Follow along for live updates from the game: Advertisement Freshman Alex Egbuonu helps Marquette lead at halftime, 43-31 MU freshman Alex Alex Egbuonu was a surprise off the bench …

Shortly after Purdue walked off the court at Mackey Arena following its 55-52 exhibition win over UIC on Saturday, coach Katie Gearlds and her staff received some big news. The Boilermakers landed a commitment from heavily recruited 2027 guard Ava Womack. A 5-foot-10 guard out of Lancaster, Texas, announced her decision on Saturday, posting to her Instagram account. She simply …

Michigan State basketball is playing their final exhibition game of the season against Marquette. The Spartans and Golden Eagles are currently in action from Milwaukee. This exhibition game will be the final tuneup before the regular season tips off on November 2 for both teams. Advertisement This game will be available to watch via streaming on YouTube, but also follow …

EVANSVILLE — Indiana basketball closes its preseason playing in front of its fans in the southern part of the state against Western Kentucky. It took a while for the Hoosiers to gel in their opener, but have looked strong since. Second-year IU coach Darian DeVries has seen his team beat Butler and North Carolina in successive Sunday’s. Advertisement The Hilltoppers …

We are just two exhibition games into the season, but it already feels like Illinois basketball has played a gauntlet. The Illini are coming off a game against Baylor where the Bears were thrashing us through the first half, but Illinois stormed back and made it a game. It was an exciting finish despite the result being a loss. Advertisement …

The North Carolina Tar Heels’ activity in the transfer portal this offseason was polarizing, as the timing of Michael Malone’s arrival complicated matters. Because Malone’s hire coincided with the transfer portal window opening, North Carolina was operating on a much different timeline than other programs around the country. One of the first players the Tar Heels pursued was Utah transfer …

Arkansas basketball’s late-October game against Gonzaga didn’t count in the standings. It didn’t carry NCAA Tournament pressure. It didn’t reshape any bracketology projections. It gave John Calipari and his staff a first idea of what to work on. There’s really good news to share after the 76-72 win over Gonzaga: The mistakes Arkansas made can be easily fixed. Let’s start …

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – When Arkansas needed an offensive spark against Gonzaga, Billy Richmond III provided it. The junior guard led the Razorbacks with 17 points, seven rebounds and five assists in a 76-72 exhibition victory over No. 15 Gonzaga on Saturday at Bud Walton Arena. Richmond scored 12 of his points in the second half, helping Arkansas turn an early …

No. 6 Michigan State has one more opportunity to test the waters against a live opponent before the games start counting. The Spartans have played two of their three exhibition games this year. MSU first beat Incarnate Word 89-59 back on Nov. 2 and fell to No. 4 UConn 78-70 this past Tuesday. Both of those games were at the …

The Kansas Jayhawks will play another game on Sunday with one of their biggest preseason tests, hosting the Duke Blue Devils at Allen Fieldhouse in the State Farm Blue Blood Classic. Kansas, ranked No. 17 nationally, will welcome No. 2 Duke to Lawrence for a noon Central time tipoff. The matchup will air on ESPN and give the Jayhawks an …

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Duke coach Jon Scheyer was still in his crib in the family home in Northbrook, Illinois, when the Blue Devils last stepped foot in Allen Fieldhouse. It was a late-February day in 1988, and they were preparing for a regular-season game against Kansas. In a back-and-forth showdown between storied programs, Duke escaped the Phog with a …