It’s officially November, leaving us moments away from the start of the 2025-26 college basketball season. We’ve concluded the preseason portion of the schedule, which included some notable results. Of course, the games don’t count, but among the contests that were open to fans and media, there still were things important enough to discuss.
Here are my 10 biggest takeaways from the preseason.
1. A clear “Big 3” of elite freshmen
Last season featured a good group of freshmen, headlined by National Player of the Year and eventual No. 1 NBA Draft pick Cooper Flagg. This time around, there isn’t a clear consensus as to which newcomer is the top freshman in college basketball, and it’s still up in the air after three incoming five-stars enjoyed incredible debuts.
BYU’s 6-foot-9 freshman forward AJ Dybantsa dropped 30 points against Nebraska, while 6-foot-6 freshman guard Darryn Peterson went for 24 points in a single half for Kansas. The most impressive individual performance came from 6-foot-9 freshman forward Cameron Boozer, who posted 24 points and 23 rebounds in a win over a ranked Tennessee squad.
While there are other freshmen worthy of praise this season, this trio has emerged not only as potential top picks in the 2026 NBA Draft but in the National Player of the Year race.
2. Other notable standout freshmen
With “covid year” seniors gone, the opportunities for freshmen to have larger roles out of the gate have greatly increased. Besides the three mentioned above, a number of first-year players stood out in exhibition games:
- Mikel Brown, 6-foot-5 guard, Louisville: 28 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists against Bucknell
- Eli Ellis, 6-foot guard, South Carolina: 23 points off the bench against NC State
- Caleb Wilson, 6-foot-10 forward, North Carolina: 22 points, 10 rebounds, 3 blocks vs BYU
- Darius Adams, 6-foot-5 guard, Maryland: 19 points, 7 rebounds, played all 40 minutes vs. UMBC
- Hannes Steinbach, 6-foot-11 forward, Washington: 24 points, 16 rebounds against UNLV
- Nate Ament, 6-foot-10 forward, Tennessee: 14 points, 10 rebounds vs. Duke
- Meleek Thomas, 6-foot-5 guard, Arkansas: 23 points, 7 rebounds against Memphis
3. Yaxel Lendeborg a National POY candidate
If we’re talking about All-American and Player of the Year candidates, one who’s on the shortlist is Lendeborg, a 6-foot-9 senior forward who transferred to Michigan from UAB. In two preseason games, the former All-AAC star has put up 31 points and 12 rebounds against Cincinnati, along with 25 points and 10 rebounds versus St. John’s, which has one of the better defensive frontcourts on paper. Lendeborg put up great stats at UAB, and he already looks like the next great big man for coach Dusty May.
4. St. John’s point-guard situation still undecided
St. John’s lost 96-94 to Lendeborg and Michigan in one of the best preseason matchups. The Red Storm frontcourt was led by Preseason Big East Player of the Year Zuby Ejiofor, a 6-foot-9 senior, while 6-foot-8 senior Dillon Mitchell and 6-foot-7 senior Bryce Hopkins also played well. It was the guards who collectively struggled, both with shooting and ball distribution. The top backcourt performance came from 6-foot-1 junior guard Dylan Darling, who came off the bench with 7 points and 2 assists in 31 minutes. We’ll see if Darling ends up starting at some point in the regular season, but questions about the team’s point-guard play remain.
5. Georgetown can win without Thomas Sorber
Another Big East storyline to watch is how the Hoyas’ frontcourt looks without Sorber, a star freshman from a year ago who was ultimately selected in the first round of the NBA Draft by Oklahoma City. Will Georgetown take a step back, or can Ed Cooley finally get the program back into the NCAA Tournament?
The Hoyas got a great sign last week, notching an 84-70 win over a Kentucky squad that beat Purdue, the preseason No. 1 team, earlier in the month. Vincent Iwuchukwu, a 7-foot-1 senior transfer from St. John’s, was a bright spot with 14 points in 23 minutes off the bench. If the Hoyas frontcourt can give consistent production, they could be a breakout team to watch.
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6. Concern with Oscar Cluff
Cluff was one of the top transfers to change teams this offseason, with Purdue landing the 6-foot-11 senior center who averaged 17.6 points and 12.3 rebounds per game at South Dakota State last year. The preseason No. 1 team is hoping Cluff will add rebounding and physicality in the frontcourt, which could be the missing piece in the Boilermakers’ bid for a national title. However, here are the early results for Cluff in the preseason:
- 2 points, 3 rebounds, 3 turnovers in 16 minutes vs. UIndy
- 1 point, 5 rebounds in 22 minutes vs. Kentucky
Yes, it’s the preseason, and it’s way too early to be overly concerned with Cluff. However, he was clearly outplayed by 7-foot-4 redshirt freshman center Daniel Jacobsen, who produced 19 points and 15 rebounds against the same opponents. Jacobsen played just two games in 2024-25 before a season-ending foot injury, but he was the starter to open the year. Could coach Matt Painter eventually put Jacobsen back atop the depth chart, above the prized offseason pickup?
7. Memphis frontcourt issues against high-majors
Memphis faced Arkansas and Auburn in the last week of the preseason, and outside the first 13 minutes, when they built an 11-point lead on Arkansas, the Tigers were completely outplayed, losing by a combined 53 points while giving up 99.5 points per game. What really stood out was how much the new-look frontcourt was outplayed by their SEC counterparts, with only 6-foot-8 junior Ohio State transfer Aaron Bradshaw looking competitive against them.
The good news? The Tigers won’t have to deal with these kinds of athletes in American play. The bad news? The chances of Memphis getting the nonconference wins needed to be an at-large contender could be slim.
8. Mixed bag for ACC’s “middle”
Compared to other power conferences, the ACC has questionable depth when it comes to postseason contenders. Duke and Louisville look like Final Four threats, while a revamped North Carolina could and should be better this year, but who else might be in the NCAA Tournament mix? Here are some notable results from the rest of the conference.
- DePaul 69, Notre Dame 62
- Alabama 109, Florida State 105 (OT)
- Pitt 81, Providence 74
- NC State 88, South Carolina 86
- SMU 86, Oklahoma State 71
- Duquesne 83, Virginia Tech 81
- Virginia 75, Villanova 72
A positive sign is that Pitt and Florida State, two teams picked towards the bottom tier, are showing signs of competitiveness. We’ll see if that translates to the regular season and whether the 18-team league can get some signature wins in November.
9. Cameron Carr confirms breakout opportunity at Baylor
Another notable result was Indiana’s 76-74 win over Baylor. The Hoosiers were paced by 28 points from 6-foot-4 senior guard Lamar Wilkerson, but Baylor stayed in the game thanks to 6-foot-6 sophomore wing Cameron Carr, who led the team with 18 points and 9 rebounds in 35 minutes.
After leaving Tennessee midway through last season, Carr has flown under the radar at Baylor. But between his preseason showing and Baylor’s participation in the FISU World University Games this summer, it’s clear the sophomore wing will have a significant role in the offense.
10. Cade Tyson ready for bounce-back season
First-year head coach Niko Medved and Minnesota were picked 16th out of 18 in the Big Ten preseason poll. For any hope to get out of the basement, the Gophers need someone on the roster to play at an all-league level — and they might have it in 6-foot-7 senior forward Cade Tyson.
After a disappointing year at North Carolina, Tyson transferred over to Minnesota and so far has looked like the team’s preseason MVP. In two wins over North Dakota and North Dakota State, Tyson combined to produce 54 points, shooting 9 of 13 from three-point range. We’ll have to see how he looks against teams outside of the Summit League, but at the very least, the Gophers have their go-to scoring option ahead of opening night.
