Men’s Basketball AP Poll: Kansas outlasts UNC to stay No. 1, while Houston and Baylor fall

The 2024-25 men’s college basketball season is officially underway and the top of the sport is still largely holding strong – starting with top-ranked Kansas after its big win over North Carolina on Friday night.

Here’s everything you missed from the opening week of the season, plus the latest Associated Press men’s basketball poll.

Kansas outlasts UNC and remains No. 1

The Jayhawks nearly blew a 20-point lead in a rare matchup at home against North Carolina, but they have lived up to their second straight No. 1 finish to start the season.

Kansas held out late at Allen Fieldhouse, beating the Tar Heels 92-89 and improving to 2-0 on the year entering Friday night. The Jayhawks put up 20 points in the first half and more than lived up to their ranking as the best team in the country. They shot better than 55% from the field in the first 20 minutes, and both Hunter Dickinson and KJ Adams dominated the court early.

While the Tar Heels rallied in the second half and took the lead on a Jalen Washington layup with just under two minutes to play, Kansas finished the job. Dickinson responded with a go-ahead after the transfer. Zeke Mayo tied the score with a jumper of his own, giving Kansas the three-point win in just the 13th game between the two programs. The win was also Bill Self’s 590th of his tenure at Kansas, giving Phog Allen the most win in program history.

Of course, the win kept Kansas at No. 1 in this week’s poll, which helped keep the top three spots in the rankings unchanged. North Carolina fell one spot to No. 10.

The Jayhawks will face Michigan State next Tuesday and face Big 12 Cooper Flagg and No. 12 before play begins next month. 6 Duke and No. 14 Creighton got. North Carolina’s lineup is easier, but it will host No. 2 Alabama next month.

Although it’s still early and North Carolina appears more than ready to compete with Duke in the ACC, the Jayhawks have established themselves as the first team to beat.

Auburn stuns Houston after plane crash

After struggling to even get to Houston, Bruce Pearl and Auburn pulled off their first big upset win of the season on Saturday.

The Tigers defeated Houston 74-69 in a Saturday night contest at the Toyota Center, thanks to 21 points from Tahaad Pettiford. Johni Broome scored 20 points, including 16 in the second half, and nine rebounds in the Tigers’ win.

However, the biggest news about this surprising win came a day before the game was even played. The plane carrying the Auburn team to Houston actually had to turn around and return to Alabama after an incident among the players on board. Pearl did not address the incident after the game, but Jahki Howard and Ja’Heim Hudson – reportedly the two players involved – did not travel. There were reports of screaming and players hitting each other in the face, but no punches were thrown during the flight. The team took a second flight to Houston later that evening and made it in time before the game was decided.

Despite the chaotic journey, Auburn still secured the win, jumping to No. 5 in this week’s poll. Houston fell four spots to No. 8.

Gonzaga was the other program originally ranked in the top 10, picking up two big wins from the first week of the season. The Bulldogs completely outscored Baylor 101-63 in their season opener last week before hanging on late Sunday to beat Arizona State 88-80. Gonzaga moved up to No. 4 in the latest poll, while Baylor fell four spots to No. 12.

Purdue’s Jacobsen is out for the season

Purdue star Daniel Jacobsen’s season is over.

Jacobsen was sidelined for the remainder of the season after breaking his leg on Sunday, head coach Matt Painter announced. The freshman missed Friday’s win over Northern Kentucky after colliding with a Northern defender in the lane in the first minute of the game. He will now undergo surgery in the coming days.

Jacobsen, a 7-foot-4 center, was a Rivals.com three-star recruit out of high school. He will now take a medical redshirt this season.

After beating both Northern Kentucky and Texas A&M Corpus-Cristi last week, Purdue moved up to No. 13 in this week’s poll. The Boilermakers will face Yale on Monday night before hosting No. 2 Alabama on Friday.

Todd Golden is still coaching for Florida

While he is under investigation following a Title IX complaint, Florida coach Todd Golden continues to lead the Gators.

Golden was accused of sexual harassment, sexual exploitation, stalking and cyberstalking by several women, including Florida students, earlier this fall. The allegations were first reported Friday by Florida’s student newspaper, The Alligator.

Florida confirmed in a statement Sunday that Golden’s “status as UF men’s basketball coach has not changed” and that he will lead the team in the Gators’ game against Grambling State on Monday night. Florida sits at No. 20 this week after two solid wins to start the year.

Games to watch this week

* Neutral site game

Tuesday, November 12th

Michigan State at No. 1 Kansas | 6:30 p.m. ET | ESPN*

No. 6 Duke at No. 19 Kentucky | 9pm ET | ESPN*

Friday, November 15th

No. 2 Alabama at No. 13 Purdue | 7pm ET | peacock

No. 15 Marquette at Maryland | 8pm ET | FS1

No. 9 Arizona at Wisconsin | 9pm ET | peacock

Saturday November 16th

South Carolina at No. 16 Indiana | 3pm ET | peacock

AP Top 25

The complete Associated Press men’s basketball poll as of November 11, 2024.

1. Kansas (2-0)

2. Alabama (2-0)

3. UConn (2-0)

4. Gonzaga (2-0)

5. Auburn (2-0)

6. Duke (2-0)

7. Iowa State (2-0)

8.Houston (1-1)

9. Arizona (2-0)

10. North Carolina (1-1)

11. Tennessee (2-0)

12. Baylor (1-1)

13. Purdue (2-0)

14. Creighton (2-0)

15. Marquette (2-0)

16.Indiana (2-0)

17.Cincinnati (2-0)

18. Arkansas (1-1)

19. Kentucky (2-0)

20. Florida (2-0)

21. Ohio State (1-0)

22. St. John’s (2-0)

23. Texas A&M (1-1)

24. Rutgers (1-0)

25. Ole Miss (2-0)

Others receiving votes: Illinois 144, Texas Tech 102, Wake Forest 84, Xavier 78, Texas 51, Michigan St. 41, BYU 26, Kansas St. 24, UCF 20, Mississippi St. 15, New Mexico 15, Oregon 14, North Florida 14, Miami 14, Clemson 13, VCU 12, Memphis 8, Wisconsin 6, Grand Canyon 6, Providence 4, Maryland 3, Austin Peay 2, Arizona St 2, South Dakota St. 1, Michigan 1, Columbia 1, Dayton 1