The AP Top 25 men's basketball poll was released Monday, another signal that the start of the 2026-27 college basketball season is around the corner. Unsurprisingly, Florida earned the No. 1 spot in the poll after receiving 47 of 59 possible first-place votes. The Gators are the favorites to win the 2027 national title after returning four starters from a team that earned a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament last season.
Duke, Illinois, UConn and Arizona rounded out the top five of the preseason rankings.
This year's Top 25 poll was significantly harder to fill out than in previous seasons, as many teams are still awaiting word on whether one or more of their players will be granted a fifth year of eligibility. For Kansas, news dropped just hours before the first poll of the season, revealing that former Purdue star Trey Kaufman-Renn would be joining the program.
Kaufman-Renn is hoping to be granted a sixth year of eligibility to play during the 2026-27 season. His new teammates at Kansas -- Melvin Council Jr. and Tre White -- are seeking a fifth year of eligibility. If all three players are cleared, the Jayhawks are a top 10 team in the sport.
With the first AP poll of the season out, let's dive into the overrated and underrated teams, which are headlined by the reigning national champions and Kansas.
Overrated: Michigan
AP Top 25 ranking: No. 16
In our AP poll predictions, I had Michigan slotted at No. 17. Heading into the season, Michigan's roster is somewhere in the 20s. Last season, I predicted Michigan to win the Big Ten because of the talent on the roster and how good a coach Dusty May is/was at the college level.
With May now off to the NBA, and questions about the roster looming -- in part because of Brandon McCoy Jr. being out of the season and the eligibility status of Roddy Gayle Jr. in question -- I'm expecting Michigan to take a step back this season. Even if Gayle is ruled eligible, Michigan will finish behind USC and UCLA -- two teams ranked behind them in the poll -- in the final Big Ten standings.
Underrated: Kansas
AP Top 25 ranking: No. 17
News broke quite literally hours before the AP poll came out that Kaufman-Renn would be joining Kansas' roster. There are still major questions about whether TKR will ultimately be ruled eligible to play, but on paper (as of today!), Kansas is a top 10 team.
A frontcourt of Kaufman-Renn and Tyran Stokes is very intriguing. Add that duo with White, Council, and five-star guard Taylen Kinney, and you have a roster that is better on paper than last season, which featured five-star guard Darryn Peterson, the No. 2 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. Retirement questions have been looming around Bill Self for the last few years, so it makes sense for the Jayhawks to go all-in to at least try and get Kaufman-Renn eligible. Self deserves one final run before calling it a career on his terms.
Overrated: Virginia
AP Top 25 ranking: No. 9
The one team within the top 10 that is overrated is the Virginia Cavaliers. In our preseason predictions, I had the Cavaliers projected to slot No. 10 in the first poll of the season, which wasn't far off from what the voters thought.
I wrote this in our ACC preseason prediction post, but Virginia is the fourth-best team in the ACC behind Duke, Miami and Louisville. If I had a ballot to fill out, I would've slotted Miami somewhere in the 8-10 range and Louisville not far behind, with Virginia landing somewhere in the early teens.
Underrated: Kentucky
AP Top 25 ranking: No. 23
Where Kentucky was slotted in the AP poll was something I was keeping a close eye on. I had Kentucky projected to be ranked No. 21 in our predictions, which isn't far off from what voters did.
After being arguably the most disappointing team in college basketball that underachieved with a high-priced roster, this will be a bounce-back year for Mark Pope and company. The addition of former Iowa State star Milan Momcilovic and the potential Year 2 jump from Malachi Moreno will make Kentucky "underrated" in a loaded SEC this season. The key storyline to monitor is how Alex Wilkins and Zoom Diallo operate in the backcourt. CBS Sports' Matt Norlander reported that Wilkins will be the point guard running the transition offense, while junior point guard Diallo will run the sets in the halfcourt. If it works, it will pay off big time.
Underrated: Miami
AP Top 25 ranking: No. 14
Miami is the team I thought would land in the top 10 of the preseason AP poll. Instead, the Hurricanes will begin the season ranked No. 14, with a chance to improve their ranking significantly during the opening week if they can upset in-state foe Florida.
Miami is the second-best team in the ACC. The fact that they're slotted below Louisville and Virginia is surprising. However, that projection also hinges on whether Malik Reneau, Miami's leading scorer from last season, is granted a fifth year. Even if he isn't, getting back Shelton Henderson and adding Acaden Lewis and Somto Cyril via the transfer portal makes this roster better than last season.
Underrated: Texas Tech
AP Top 25 ranking: No. 19
If you told me today that Donovan Atwell, Darrion Williams and Jamichael Stillwell will all be granted a fifth year of eligibility, I would comfortably have Texas Tech as a top 10 team in college basketball. While it's not surprising that Texas Tech is ranked this low (they were No. 23 in our projections for that reason alone), this is a team that can win the Big 12 at full strength.
Williams played a significant role in Texas Tech reaching the Elite Eight and being minutes away from knocking off eventual national champion Florida in 2025. Atwell is one of the best shooters in college basketball. Momcilovic is the only returner in the sport who knocked down more 3-pointers last season. And you can't forget about JT Toppin, who is working his way back from a torn ACL suffered late last season. When Toppin is healthy, he is arguably the best player in college basketball. Texas Tech will significantly outperform its preseason ranking if everyone is eligible.
