Initial NET rankings for 2024-25 college basketball season revealed

The initial NET rankings for the 2024-2025 college basketball season were dropped on Monday, giving fans a quick and early look at some of the best teams in the country.

The NCAA Evaluation Tool (NET) replaced the RPI as the premier tool to rank college basketball programs, debuting a few years ago.

The SEC landed 5 teams in the Top 25 of the initial NET rankings, 4 of which are in the top 10. Tennessee and Auburn lead the country at No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, with Florida coming in at No. 6 and Kentucky at No. 8. Alabama rounds out the SEC’s representatives at No. 13.

The story with this latest ranking, at least in the SEC, is Tennessee over Auburn for the No. 1 spot. The Vols have impressive wins over Louisville and Baylor so far this season, but Auburn has downed the likes of Houston, North Carolina and Iowa State, with another opportunity to add to its resume upcoming against Duke. Coming from a Tennessee graduate, UT over AU is a surprising development.

Florida has been very impressive to start the year, but the Gators haven’t played competition similar to Auburn and Tennessee thus far. However, the Gators are a perfect 8-0 with good wins over Wichita State, Florida State and Wake Forest. They’ll have a further chance to prove themselves on Dec. 17 against North Carolina.

As for Alabama, the Tide have split their top-tier matchups. Alabama has downed Houston and Illinois, but fallen to Oregon and Purdue.

Here’s a full look at the NET Top 25:

1. Tennessee
2. Auburn
3. Gonzaga
4. Duke
5. Pitt
6. Florida
7. Marquette
8. Kentucky
9. Kansas
10. Illinois
11. Cincinnati
12. Ohio State
13. Alabama
14. Utah State
15. Oregon
16. UCLA
17. Wisconsin
18. Clemson
19. Iowa State
20. Houston
21. Purdue
22. Baylor
23. Maryland
24. UC Irvine
25. St. Mary’s

Ethan Stone

Ethan Stone is a Tennessee graduate and loves all things college football and college basketball. Firm believer in fouling while up 3.