Auburn is No. 1 in the CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings for the 13th consecutive morning and will likely also remain No. 1 in the Associated Press Top 25 poll for the second straight week when it updates Monday.
But keep an eye on Duke.
While Auburn's best player, Johni Broome, remains sidelined with an ankle injury suffered nine days ago, Duke's best player, Cooper Flagg, has emerged as the favorite to become the youngest Wooden Award winner in history. Also true: Duke and Auburn are now co-favorites to win the 2025 NCAA Tournament at +500, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.
It's inarguable, at this point, that Auburn has the sport's best body of work — a 17-1 record highlighted by a 10-1 mark inside Quadrant 1. The Tigers deserve their No. 1 ranking. But if they were to lose Saturday to Tennessee while Duke extends its winning streak to 13 games via a victory at Wake Forest on the same day, the Blue Devils and Tigers would then both be 17-2 through 19 contests, and, given that Duke already owns a win over Auburn and is already ahead of the Tigers in some computers, I would expect Duke to then move to No. 1 under that scenario.
For now, though, it's Auburn at No. 1 and Duke at No. 2 in Monday morning's updated Top 25 And 1 — and I don't see any reason that will change until at least Sunday morning considering neither Auburn nor Duke play again until Saturday.
Anyway ...
Did you look at Monday's schedule?
There are no ranked teams in action. So we're all pretty freed up to watch the College Football Playoff Championship game between Ohio State and Notre Dame. The Buckeyes are listed as 8.5-point favorites. On Sunday's episode of the Eye On College Basketball Podcast, I picked Ohio State.
But I stink at picking games. So you should probably take the Irish.
Either way, enjoy it! Without the 12-team playoff, this matchup wouldn't even be possible. So, regardless of who wins, I'm mostly just rooting for a fun and compelling game that leaves no silly people any room to try to suggest the old way was a better way.
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Top 25 And 1 rankings
Rk | Teams | Chg | Rcrd | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Tahaad Pettiford finished with 24 points and two steals in Saturday's 70-68 win at Georgia. The Tigers' next game is Saturday against Tennessee. | -- | 23-2 |
| 2 |  | Cooper Flagg finished with 28 points and five rebounds in Saturday's 88-63 win at Boston College. The Blue Devils' next game is Saturday at Wake Forest. | -- | 23-3 |
| 3 |  | Curtis Jones finished with four turnovers and zero assists in Saturday's 64-57 loss at West Virginia. The Cyclones' next game is Tuesday against UCF. | -- | 20-5 |
| 4 |  | Grant Nelson finished with 25 points and 11 rebounds in Saturday's 102-97 win at Kentucky. The Crimson Tide's next game is Tuesday against Vanderbilt. | -- | 21-4 |
| 5 |  | Alijah Martin finished with 22 points and six rebounds in Saturday's 84-60 win over Texas. The Gators' next game is Wednesday at South Carolina. | -- | 22-3 |
| 6 |  | Jordan Gainey was 1 of 6 from the field in Saturday's 76-75 loss at Vanderbilt. The Vols' next game is Tuesday against Mississippi State. | -- | 21-5 |
| 7 |  | Andrew Carr was 1 of 4 from the field in Saturday's 102-97 loss to Alabama. The Wildcats' next game is Saturday at Vanderbilt. | -- | 17-8 |
| 8 |  | Chase Ross was 1 of 5 from the field in Saturday's 59-57 win at Marquette. The Golden Eagles' next game is Tuesday at Seton Hall. | -- | 19-6 |
| 9 |  | Tre Holloman finished with 17 points and two rebounds in Sunday's 80-78 win over Illinois. The Spartans' next game is Saturday at Rutgers. | -- | 20-5 |
| 10 |  | Riley Kugel finished with 21 points and two steals in Saturday's 84-81 overtime win over Ole Miss. The Bulldogs' next game is Tuesday at Tennessee. | -- | 18-7 |
| 11 |  | Trey Kaufman-Renn finished with 23 points and 11 rebounds in Saturday's 65-58 win at Oregon. The Boilermakers' next game is Tuesday against Ohio State. | -- | 19-7 |
| 12 |  | Hunter Dickinson finished with 25 points and eight rebounds in Saturday's 84-74 win over Kansas State. The Jayhawks' next game is Wednesday at TCU. | -- | 17-8 |
| 13 |  | Jackson Shelstad was 4 of 12 from the field in Saturday's 65-58 loss to Purdue. The Ducks' next game is Tuesday against Washington. | -- | 18-8 |
| 14 |  | Sean Pedulla was 3 of 12 from 3-point range in Saturday's 84-81 overtime loss at Mississippi State. The Rebels' next game is Wednesday against Texas A&M. | -- | 19-7 |
| 15 |  | Kasparas Jakucionis was 1 of 3 from the field in Sunday's 80-78 loss at Michigan State. The Illini's next game is Thursday against Maryland. | -- | 17-9 |
| 16 |  | Zhuric Phelps finished with 13 points and six assists in Saturday's 68-57 win over LSU. The Aggies' next game is Wednesday at Ole Miss. | -- | 20-5 |
| 17 |  | PJ Haggerty finished with 18 points and eight rebounds in Sunday's 77-68 win at Charlotte. The Tigers' next game is Thursday against Wichita State. | -- | 21-5 |
| 18 |  | J'Wan Roberts finished with 21 points and nine rebounds in Saturday's 69-68 win at UCF. The Cougars' next game is Wednesday against Utah. | -- | 21-4 |
| 19 |  | Vladislav Goldin finished with 31 points and eight rebounds in Sunday's 80-76 overtime win over Northwestern. The Wolverines' next game is Friday at Purdue. | -- | 20-5 |
| 20 |  | John Blackwell finished with 28 points and five rebounds in Saturday's 84-69 win at USC. The Badgers' next game is Tuesday at UCLA. | -- | 20-5 |
| 21 |  | Mark Mitchell finished with 17 points and five rebounds in Saturday's 83-65 win over Arkansas. The Tigers' next game is Tuesday at Texas. | -- | 19-6 |
| 22 |  | Alex Karaban was 3-of-12 from the field in Saturday's 68-63 loss to Creighton. The Huskies' next game is Tuesday against Butler. | -- | 17-8 |
| 23 |  | Silas Demary Jr. was 3 of 10 from the field in Saturday's 70-68 loss to Auburn. The Bulldogs' next game is Wednesday at Arkansas. | -- | 16-10 |
| 24 |  | RJ Luis Jr. finished with 24 points and eight rebounds in Saturday's 79-51 win at St. John's. The Red Storm's next game is Wednesday against Xavier. | -- | 22-4 |
| 25 |  | Javon Small finished with 27 points and seven rebounds in Saturday's 64-57 win over Iowa State. The Mountaineers' next game is Tuesday against Arizona State. | -- | 15-10 |
| 26 |  | Reyne Smith finished with 19 points and four rebounds in Saturday's 81-67 win over Virginia. The Cardinals' next game is Tuesday at SMU. | -- | 20-6 |
