Fridays eventually become mostly uninteresting days as every college basketball season progresses. But for now, the final weekday still provides some good stuff, and the best of the best on this Friday is a showdown between the school that won the 2022 NCAA Tournament (Kansas) and the school that won the 2023 NCAA Tournament (UConn).
It's Jayhawks vs. Huskies inside Allen Fieldhouse. The two historically strong programs will enter at No. 4 (Kansas) and No. 6 (UConn) in Friday morning's updated CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings, where Purdue remains No. 1 for the 10th consecutive day.
"[UConn has} all of the pieces," said Kansas coach Bill Self, whose Jayhawks are 6-1 with the lone loss coming to Marquette. "They've got perimeter shooting … and they've got size and they've got length and they've got experience and toughness. I mean, they're a complete team. They could win [the national championship] again."
They certainly could.
The Huskies' streak of 24 consecutive non-league wins by double digits will be in jeopardy here considering they're 2.5-point underdogs on the road. Regardless, again, Self is correct when he suggests UConn is good enough to become the first back-to-back national champion since Florida in 2006 and 2007. Dan Hurley's team is great defensively, even better offensively and being led by All-American candidate Tristen Newton, a 6-foot-5 point guard who is averaging 15.6 points, 8.1 rebounds and 6.9 assists in 31.1 minutes per game. His counterpart will be Kansas standout Dajuan Harris, which means this non-league contest will feature the starting point guards for the past two national champions.
Tip is scheduled for 9 p.m. ET on ESPN2.
Top 25 And 1 rankings
Rk | Teams | Chg | Rcrd | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Braden Smith finished with 19 points and 10 assists in Tuesday's 99-67 win over Texas Southern. The Boilermakers' next game is Friday at Northwestern. | -- | 34-5 |
| 2 |  | Tyler Kolek finished with 16 points and three assists in Tuesday's 93-56 win over Southern. The Golden Eagles' next game is Saturday at Wisconsin. | -- | 27-10 |
| 3 |  | Caleb Love finished with 17 points and four assists in Thursday's 74-68 win over Michigan State. The Wildcats' next game is Saturday against Colgate. | -- | 27-9 |
| 4 |  | Hunter Dickinson finished with 25 points and 13 rebounds in Tuesday's 71-63 win over Eastern Illinois. The Jayhawks' next game is Friday against UConn. | -- | 23-11 |
| 5 |  | LJ Cryer finished with 24 points and four rebounds in Friday's 79-44 win over Montana. The Cougars' next game is Friday at Xavier. | -- | 32-5 |
| 6 |  | Donovan Clingan finished with 29 points and seven rebounds in Monday's 84-64 win over New Hampshire. The Huskies' next game is Friday at Kansas. | -- | 37-3 |
| 7 |  | Reed Sheppard finished with 21 points and three steals in Tuesday's 95-73 win over Miami. The Wildcats' next game is Saturday against UNC Wilmington. | -- | 23-10 |
| 8 |  | Langston Love finished with 23 points in Tuesday's 108-70 win over Nicholls. The Bears' next game is Saturday against Northwestern State. | -- | 24-11 |
| 9 |  | Ryan Nembhard finished with 22 points and five assists in Tuesday's 81-65 win over Cal State Bakersfield. The Zags' next game is Saturday against USC. | -- | 27-8 |
| 10 |  | Jared McCain was 1-of-7 from the field in Wednesday's 80-75 loss at Arkansas. The Blue Devils' next game is Saturday at Georgia Tech. | -- | 27-9 |
| 11 |  | Isaiah Stevens finished with 20 points and 11 assists in Wednesday's 88-83 win over Colorado. The Rams' next game is Saturday against Washington. | -- | 25-11 |
| 12 |  | Alijah Martin finished with 20 points and six rebounds in Thursday's 83-58 win over Liberty. The Owls' next game is Saturday against Charleston. | -- | 25-9 |
| 13 |  | Max Abmas finished with 26 points and six assists in Thursday's 77-58 win over Texas State. The Longhorns' next game is Wednesday at Marquette. | -- | 21-13 |
| 14 |  | Armando Bacot finished with 22 points and 11 rebounds in Wednesday's 100-92 win over Tennessee. The Tar Heels' next game is Saturday against Florida State. | -- | 29-8 |
| 15 |  | Jordan Gainey was 1-of-9 from 3-point range in Wednesday's 100-92 loss at North Carolina. The Vols' next game is Tuesday against George Mason. | -- | 27-9 |
| 16 |  | Wade Taylor IV was 2-of-10 from the field in Wednesday's 59-47 loss at Virginia. The Aggies' next game is Wednesday against DePaul. | -- | 21-15 |
| 17 |  | Nijel Pack was 1-of-6 from the field in Tuesday's 95-73 loss at Kentucky. The Hurricanes' next game is Saturday against Notre Dame. | -- | 15-17 |
| 18 |  | Baylor Scheierman finished with 21 points and eight rebounds in Thursday's 79-65 win at Oklahoma State. The Bluejays' next game is Sunday at Nebraska. | -- | 25-10 |
| 19 |  | Johni Broome finished with 30 points and 13 rebounds in Wednesday's 74-57 win over Virginia Tech. The Tigers' next game is Sunday against Appalachian State. | -- | 27-8 |
| 20 |  | Jaden Akins finished with 14 points and six rebounds in Tuesday's 86-55 win over Georgia Southern. The Spartans' next game is Tuesday at Nebraska. | -- | 20-15 |
| 21 |  | Terrence Shannon finished with 19 points and two rebounds in Friday's 84-52 win over Western Illinois. The Illini's next game is Saturday against Rutgers. | -- | 29-9 |
| 22 |  | Otega Oweh finished with 20 points and four rebounds in Thursday's 107-86 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff. The Sooners' next game is Tuesday against Providence. | -- | 20-12 |
| 23 |  | TJ Bamba was 0-of-5 from the field in Wednesday's 78-65 loss to Saint Joseph's. The Wildcats' next game is Tuesday at Kansas State. | -- | 18-16 |
| 24 |  | Jaykwon Walton was 1-of-9 from the field in Friday's 79-63 loss to Villanova. The Tigers' next game is Saturday at Ole Miss. | -- | 22-10 |
| 25 |  | Jaxson Robinson finished with 23 points and four rebounds in Friday's 95-86 win over NC State. The Cougars' next game is Friday against Fresno State. | -- | 23-11 |
| 26 |  | Dylan Andrews finished with 17 points and five assists in Thursday's 66-65 win over UC Riverside. The Bruins' next game is Dec. 9 at Villanova. | -- | 16-17 |
