KenPom college basketball rankings: Initial 2024-25 projections revealed for all 16 SEC squads
This one’s for you, college basketball nerds.
Ken Pomeroy’s 2024-25 college basketball preseason rankings were unveiled late Sunday night, projecting the rankings of all Division I basketball programs from No. 1 Houston to No. 364 Mississippi Valley State.
The SEC grades out as the best conference in America this season according to KenPom, just ahead of the Big 12. Six teams start the year within his top 25 and the lowest ranked team – Vanderbilt – sits at 96. The SEC is one of just 3 conferences that has all members ranked within the top 100, joining the Big Ten and Big 12.
Here’s a look at the preseason rankings for all 16 SEC teams:
- Auburn: No. 3
- Alabama: No. 4
- Tennessee: No. 13
- Texas A&M: No. 16
- Texas: No. 18
- Arkansas: No. 25
- Florida: No. 28
- Mississippi State: No. 32
- Oklahoma: No. 40
- Kentucky: No. 42
- Ole Miss: No. 47
- LSU: No. 51
- Mizzou: No. 53
- South Carolina: No. 65
- Georgia: No. 67
- Vanderbilt: No. 96
So, what stands out?
Well, the top 3 is no surprise. The Tigers, Crimson Tide and Volunteers have been widely considered the best teams in the conference heading into the new season. Auburn returns Johni Broom, Chad Baker-Mazara and Denver Jones to a lineup that should start 5 seniors/redshirt seniors. Auburn’s not going anywhere, folks.
Texas A&M at No. 16 isn’t too surprising either given who the Aggies return – Wade Taylor, Henry Coleman, Andersson Garcia, the list goes on.
The most surprising placings on this list may be Texas. I’m personally higher on the Longhorns than most, but I really expected them to come in around the mid-low 30s or so. There’s an awful lot of turnover for Rodney Terry and Co. heading into a new conference, and the Longhorns frontcourt has the potential to fall apart behind Kadin Shedrick.
Here are the full rankings for the 2024-25 season.
It’s easy to understand Mizzou initially being in the #50’s based on last season, but they’re gonna finish the year much higher than 50-something.