ClutchPoints’ Men’s College Basketball Power Rankings: Duke extends unbeaten streak to seven

Some of the top men’s college basketball teams have been tested against top 25 teams on a regular basis already, while others are still fluffing their record with easy wins against small programs. Because of that, opinions are all over the board on how teams rank against their peers. So, here is ClutchPoints’ top 25 teams after three weeks of action.

25. Georgetown

Georgetown is 5-0 and off to an impressive start. KJ Lewis is combining impressive scoring (17.2 points per game) with pesky defense (2.8 steals per game).

24. Auburn

Auburn’s only loss of the season came at the hands of Houston when they were ranked No. 1 in the nation. Keyshawn Hall is playing for his fourth collegiate team, and he is averaging 22.2 points per game with the Tigers.

23. Indiana

Without a blemish on its record, Indiana jumps into the top 25. The Hoosiers can prove they belong by besting Kansas State, a team that just fell out of the power rankings. After an injury-riddled season at West Virginia, Tucker DeVries is reminding fans just how great he is.

22. Texas Tech

While JT Toppin is great, he can’t do it all on his own. The lack of help on Texas Tech’s roster has resulted in two early losses, one of which came in embarrassing fashion to Purdue. The team lost by 30 points to the No. 1-ranked team in the AP Poll.

21. St. John’s

Despite having a talented transfer portal class, St John’s hasn’t been able to figure things out at the top level yet. The Red Storm have lost both of their ranked matchups, and while they do have six players averaging double-digit scoring marks, nobody has stepped up as the top option. The offense is incredible, but they need to show that they can beat other premier teams.

20. Kentucky

Kentucky already has losses to Louisville and Michigan State, and it wasn’t overly competitive in either of those games. It also has three wins of 40-plus points. The Wildcats are streaky. If they put it all together on a more consistent basis, they could still be one of the best teams in the nation.

19. UCLA

UCLA responded to a loss against Arizona by doing whatever it wanted against inferior competition. The Bruins outscored Sacramento State and Presbyterian by 71 points combined. Donovan Dent was still underwhelming in those games, though. He has been a disappointment since transferring from New Mexico so far.

18. Arkansas

Arkansas has games against Duke and Louisville coming up, which could make or break its ranking here. The freshmen have been good so far, but the Razorbacks will need more from D.J. Wagner and Karter Knox if they are to compete with those aforementioned teams.

17. NC State

NC State’s loss to Seton Hall puts them on fraud watch. The defeat wasn’t enough to drop it down the power rankings yet, but another bad game could be devastating. The team’s defeat was directly correlated to a below-average performance from Darrion Williams. When the Texas Tech transfer thrives, NC State might be close to unbeatable, but the Wolfpack are vulnerable when he struggles.

16. North Carolina

UNC is a blue-blood team that is always relevant, yet it was somewhat underrated coming into the year. Thus far, the Tar Heels have proven they are just as good as ever. A game against the next team in these power rankings will prove if the Tar Heels are for real or not. Caleb Wilson has been one of the best freshmen in the nation this year during a season in which there are a bunch of highly touted prospects.

15. Michigan State

Michigan State dominates on the glass, gives effort on defense, and the Spartans are knocking down 3-point shots. The team doesn’t have a bona fide star, but it has depth and is well coached. Tom Izzo’s club won by nearly 20 against Kentucky, and a win in its upcoming matchup against UNC would be enough to catapult it inside the top 10.

14. Iowa State

Iowa State had impressive wins against St. John’s and Creighton on back-to-back days in Las Vegas. That is no easy feat, which is why the Cyclones shoot up these rankings. Iowa State’s big three of Joshua Jefferson, Tamin Lipsey, and Milan Momcilovic is one of the best trios in the nation. Lipsey was hurt in their last game, but that shouldn’t take away from this torrid start.

13. Tennessee

Tennessee hasn’t played any teams of note yet, but it hasn’t had a close game, either. The Volunteers have been dominant each night in which they’ve laced their shoes up. Ja’Kobi Gillespie and Nate Ament have been two of the best scorers in the entire nation.

12. Alabama

Alabama has been put through the gauntlet to start the season. Four of the Tide’s five games have come against ranked opponents. On one end of the spectrum, the team beat Illinois and St. John’s when they were both ranked inside of the AP top 10. On the other hand, Alabama has also lost to Purdue and Gonzaga. This team’s offense is elite, so it can beat anybody on any given night. However, it might be too streaky to make a deep run come March.

11. Louisville

Everybody knew Mikel Brown Jr. would come in and score the rock for Louisville. That has been evident, as he is averaging 18.3 points per game. What makes the freshman so great and what is skyrocketing his draft stock is that he has been arguably even better as a facilitator. Brown is just one of many great guards on this team, so Louisville really knows how to share the basketball.

10. Florida

Florida has bounced back since its opening game loss to Arizona. The team hasn’t been as great in its championship defense as expected, but there have been some great moments. Notably, Rueben Chinyelu had a 20-rebound double-double in the same game where Alex Condon had a 20-point double-double. That had never happened by teammates in SEC history.

9. Michigan

Michigan had a statement victory over SDSU on night one at the Players Era Festival. The Aztecs crept into the final spot in the top 25 of ClutchPoints’ last power rankings, and then Michigan made a fool of them by winning 94-54. Yaxel Lendeborg is one of the best players in college basketball, but he is far from the only player producing in Ann Arbor.

8. Illinois

Illinois falls a few spots after dropping a game to Alabama. The Illini still have a sky-high ceiling, though. Andrej Stojakovic has taken the next step in his development, and David Mirkovic, Zvonimir Ivisic, and Tomislav Ivisic provide tons of size, the latter of whom just returned after missing a few games. Considering the injury problems it has already faced, it is impressive that Illinois is 6-1.

7. BYU

BYU showed that it can compete with anybody when it only narrowly lost to UConn. The Cougars proved that they are for real when they dominated Wisconsin. They beat the then-ranked Badgers by 28 points. AJ Dybantsa is playing like the No. 1 overall pick, but Richie Saunders has been arguably even better.

6. UConn

UConn has a number of players who can stuff the stat sheet. That was evident when Silas Demary dropped a triple-double. The Huskies did lose to Arizona, but they are massive threats this season. This team has tons of shooting, and it will be even scarier with Tarris Reed returning from an ankle injury.

5. Gonzaga

Gonzaga has been quite impressive over the last week. Two Mondays ago, the Bulldogs beat Southern Utah 122-50. The 72-point win was the largest against a Division I opponent in program history. They followed that up with a ranked win over an Alabama team that was previously giving fellow top-10 teams problems.

4. Houston

Houston’s defense is as advertised. The Cougars have held their opponents to sub-60 points four times already. The freshmen, Kingston Flemings and Chris Cenac, have fit right in with the veterans on the roster. Kelvin Sampson’s club is 6-0, but its resume is just a little less impressive than the teams ahead of it in these rankings. It faced adversity in its most recent game, as it took an overtime period to best Syracuse.

3. Arizona

Arizona has arguably had the best start to the season in the nation, which has allowed it to go from 11 to six to three in the power rankings. It already has three wins against top 15 teams, which included beating the reigning champion Florida Gators in the first game of the season and a grind-it-out victory over UCLA. Most recently, the Wildcats knocked down UConn. Arizona is already battle-tested, and it’ll have even more opportunities to improve its resume in the coming weeks.

2. Purdue

Purdue is still atop the AP Poll, but it falls a spot in the ClutchPoints power rankings. This is because Braden Smith, while still a Player of the Year candidate, has been vastly too inefficient as a scorer. Smith is only hitting 39.3% of his shots, which has resulted in him being third in scoring on his own team with 14.3 points per game.

Scoring isn’t even Smith’s best attribute, as he thrives most in playmaking for his teammates. The Boilermakers may need a little more from him going forward if they are to truly be the best team in the nation, though.

1. Duke

Duke is tied for the nation lead in wins with seven. This team had loads of potential coming into the season, but considering its youth, it wasn’t a guarantee that it would lead to wins. The Blue Devils’ roster is loaded with future NBA Draft picks, as six players were selected in the first round of ClutchPoints’ most recent 2026 NBA Mock Draft.

That includes four freshmen, Cameron Boozer, Cayden Boozer, Nikolas Khamenia, and Dame Sarr, as well as two sophomores who didn’t play much last year in Patrick Ngongba and Isaiah Evans. The surplus of talent is paying off with a team that seems unbeatable. The Blue Devils might not have the experience as some of the other top teams, but their pure talent level could certainly lead to a championship.

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