College basketball rankings: Nebraska's incredible start could lead to first win in NCAA Tournament game
After defeating Ohio State, the Cornhuskers are 15-0 and No. 9 in Tuesday's updated Top 25 And 1 rankings
By
Gary Parrish
•
1 min read
We are living in a country where Indiana's football program is ranked No. 1 and favored to win the national championship. That's crazy. Similarly nutty, Nebraska's men's basketball program is undefeated and ranked in the top 10 for the first time since 1966.
As my colleague Tom Fornelli posted on X, it's like a 90s funhouse mirror these days -- not to mention evidence that, in this era of college athletics, the right coach with the right resources can win big anywhere at the power-conference level.
What you've been doesn't really matter anymore. Hire the right coach, give the right coach the right resources and good things should follow. That's the lesson of Curt Cignetti at Indiana, a traditional basketball power that's never done much in football until now. It's also the story of Fred Hoiberg at Nebraska, a traditional football power that's never won a game in the NCAA Tournament but is still one of six undefeated teams left in the sport this season thanks to Monday night's 72-69 victory at Ohio State that improved the Cornhuskers to 15-0.
Did it take Hoiberg longer than expected to get it going at Nebraska?
Yeah, I guess. But who cares?
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He's clearly got it going now. And with every Quad-1 win -- Nebraska is up to four, by the way -- it's becoming increasingly clear that the Cornhuskers should have the type of seed in the NCAA Tournament that makes them favorites in the first round, making it likely they'll be positioned to win a game in that event for what would be, again, the first time in school history.
Nebraska is No. 9 in Tuesday morning's updated CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings, where Michigan remains No. 1 for the 28th consecutive day. Next up for the Cornhuskers is Saturday's game at Indiana. A victory there will extend the program's winning streak to 20 games because, remember, Nebraska closed last season by winning four straight in the inaugural College Basketball Crown Tournament.
Top 25 And 1 rankings
Biggest Movers
Rk | Teams | Chg | Rcrd | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Morez Johnson Jr. finished with 29 points and six rebounds in Friday's 96-66 win over USC. The Wolverines' next game is Tuesday at Penn State. | -- | 14-0 |
| 2 |  | Tobe Awaka finished with 18 points and 12 rebounds in Saturday's 97-78 win at Utah. The Wildcats' next game is Wednesday against Kansas State. | -- | 14-0 |
| 3 |  | Milan Momcilovic finished with 26 points and three rebounds in Friday's 80-59 win over West Virginia. The Cyclones' next game is Wednesday at Baylor. | -- | 14-0 |
| 4 |  | Solo Ball finished with 17 points and eight rebounds in Sunday's 73-57 win over Marquette. The Huskies' next game is Wednesday at Providence. | -- | 14-1 |
| 5 |  | AJ Dybantsa finished with 24 points and eight rebounds in Saturday's 83-73 win at Kansas State. The Cougars' next game is Wednesday against Arizona State. | -- | 13-1 |
| 6 |  | Fletcher Loyer finished with 20 points and five rebounds in Saturday's 89-73 win at Wisconsin. The Boilermakers' next game is Wednesday against Washington. | -- | 13-1 |
| 7 |  | Graham Ike finished with 16 points and seven rebounds in Sunday's 82-47 win over Loyola Marymount. The Zags' next game is Thursday against Santa Clara. | -- | 16-1 |
| 8 |  | Isaiah Evans finished with 28 points and three rebounds in Saturday's 91-87 win at Florida State. The Blue Devils' next game is Tuesday at Louisville. | -- | 14-1 |
| 9 |  | Braden Frager finished with 15 points and six rebounds in Monday's 72-69 win at Ohio State. The Cornhuskers' next game is Saturday at Indiana. | -- | 15-0 |
| 10 |  | Coen Carr finished with 18 points and six rebounds in Monday's 80-51 win over USC. The Spartans' next game is Thursday against Northwestern. | -- | 13-2 |
| 11 |  | Kingston Flemings finished with 19 points and five steals in Saturday's 67-60 win at Cincinnati. The Cougars' next game is Tuesday against Texas Tech. | -- | 14-1 |
| 12 |  | Tyler Tanner finished with 19 points and 14 assists in Saturday's 83-71 win at South Carolina. The Commodores' next game is Wednesday against Alabama. | -- | 14-0 |
| 13 |  | Aden Holloway finished with 26 points and five assists in Saturday's 89-74 win over Kentucky. The Crimson Tide's next game is Wednesday at Vanderbilt. | -- | 11-3 |
| 14 |  | Darius Acuff Jr. finished with 29 points and four assists in Saturday's 86-75 win over Tennessee. The Razorbacks' next game is Wednesday at Ole Miss. | -- | 11-3 |
| 15 |  | Kylan Boswell finished with 18 points and four rebounds in Saturday's 73-65 win at Penn State. The Illini's next game is Thursday against Rutgers. | -- | 11-3 |
| 16 |  | JT Toppin finished with 23 points and 14 rebounds in Saturday's 102-80 win over Oklahoma State. The Red Raiders' next game is Tuesday at Houston. | -- | 11-4 |
| 17 |  | Bennett Stirtz finished with 27 points and five assists in Saturday's 74-61 win over UCLA. The Hawkeyes' next game is Tuesday at Minnesota. | -- | 12-3 |
| 18 |  | Bryce Lindsay finished with 18 points and two assists in Saturday's 85-67 win at Butler. The Wildcats' next game is Wednesday against Creighton. | -- | 12-2 |
| 19 |  | Riley Kugel finished with 19 points and three rebounds in Saturday's 81-75 win over Kansas. The Knights' next game is Tuesday at Oklahoma State. | -- | 12-2 |
| 20 |  | Boopie Miller finished with 27 points and 12 assists in Saturday's 97-83 win over North Carolina. The Mustangs' next game is Wednesday at Clemson. | -- | 12-2 |
| 21 |  | Henri Veesaar missed seven of the 11 shots he attempted in Saturday's 97-83 loss at SMU. The Tar Heels' next game is Saturday against Wake Forest. | -- | 13-2 |
| 22 |  | Tre White missed nine of the 13 shots he attempted in Saturday's 81-75 loss at UCF. The Jayhawks' next game is Tuesday against TCU. | -- | 11-4 |
| 23 |  | Ja'Kobi Gillespie missed 10 of the 15 shots he attempted in Saturday's 86-75 loss at Arkansas. The Vols' next game is Tuesday against Texas. | -- | 11-4 |
| 24 |  | Ryan Conwell missed 15 of the 21 shots he attempted in Friday's 80-76 loss at Stanford. The Cardinals' next game is Tuesday against Duke. | -- | 11-4 |
| 25 |  | Denzel Aberdeen missed six of the seven shots he attempted in Saturday's 89-74 loss at Alabama. The Wildcats' next game is Wednesday against Missouri. | -- | 9-5 |
| 26 |  | Jeremiah Wilkinson finished with 31 points and six rebounds in Saturday's 104-100 overtime win over Auburn. The Bulldogs' next game is Tuesday at Florida. | -- | 13-2 |
