Some of these college basketball exhibitions sure don't feel fake. Not when Auburn and Alabama start brawling in a game that supposedly doesn't count. Not when a jam-packed Allen Fieldhouse student section is chanting profanities at ex-Kansas big man Flory Bidunga, who transferred to Louisville. Not when Tennessee's Rick Barnes is apologizing to Duke coach Jon Scheyer after getting bulldozed for not putting up a better fight. Not when All-American point guards like Michigan State's Jeremy Fears Jr. and UConn's Silas Demary Jr. are playing north of 31 minutes.

The tenor around these exhibitions has changed, with numerous coaches mixing in some experimentation to go along with the natural competitive juices that rise up in razor-tight games against highly-ranked teams.

Of course, context is key to evaluating all of these. Some exhibition scores will age poorly. Others will prove to be prophetic. 

Let's dive into the top takeaways from the handful of top 25 exhibitions that were on center stage this week.

No. 2 Duke 103, No. 8 Tennessee 64

What might be real: Duke's Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje and Patrick Ngongba might comprise the best front court in college basketball. The duo tallied 24 points, 11 rebounds and five blocks in just 39 combined minutes of action during Duke's 103-64 beatdown of the Volunteers. Just from a sheer size perspective, this is a daunting tandem to deal with. Ngongba is 6-foot-11, 250 pounds, while Boumtje Boumtje is 7-foot-2 and 250 pounds. That's a lot of length and tonnage for any opponent to handle, and it was an obvious factor in Duke's dominant win over Tennessee. What's scary is how versatile Boumtje Boumtje is. He alternates between looking like a big wing and then physically imposing his will. Florida (Rueben Chinyelu/Alex Condon) and Texas (David Punch/Matas Vokietaitis) are among those who will have something to say about it, but Duke might have lost Cam Boozer to the draft without missing a beat in the frontcourt.

What definitely isn't real: Tennessee won't be this bad offensively. The Volunteers hit just 4 of 18 from 3-point range against Duke after going 4 of 26 from beyond the arc in an exhibition loss to Xavier. That's 18.2% over two games from a roster built to avoid the sort of prolonged offensive lulls that have dragged Tennessee down at times under Rick Barnes. Belmont transfer Tyler Lundblade — a premier 3-point shooter — did not play in either exhibition due to injury. His arrival in the rotation will help correct the perimeter shooting woes. So will the installation of the full playbook and a manageable opening stretch against Wofford, Radford, and Tennessee State. The Volunteers are an overhauled team with a bunch of dudes who will need to be taught defense. But they won't need to be taught how to shoot the ball better than they shot it against Xavier and Duke.

Final word: Tennessee conducted this grand roster shift toward gifted scorers under the assumption that Barnes can get anyone to play defense. It might fail spectacularly. It's been nearly five years since someone scored as many points against the Volunteers as Duke did. Then again, Duke looks deep and awesome. If we are casting lots based on exhibition results, Duke should unequivocally be No. 1 over Florida. -- David Cobb

No. 11 Louisville 89, No. 17 Kansas 83

What might be real: Obinna Ekezie Jr. changes the calculus for Louisville. The 7-foot-2 center showed up big-time at Allen Fieldhouse, draining four 3-pointers and chipping in some real rim protection and rebounding potential in Louisville's 89-83 win. Ekezie looked way ahead of schedule, and his body has packed on grown-man weight. He changes the floor-mapping for Louisville. Now, Pat Kelsey can shift Flory Bidunga to the 4 in some jumbo lineups. He won't hit four triples every game, but now defenses have to respect it. That's extra space for Seth Trimble, Adrian Wooley or Karter Knox to turn the corner and get downhill. Freshmen who are way better than expected change the ceiling conversation. 

What definitely isn't real: Jackson Shelstad was pitched as Louisville's next answer at point guard in the offseason, but that does not seem like the role that Louisville's staff envisions for the Oregon transfer. Combo guard Seth Trimble handled much more creation responsibilities, shifting Shelstad into a "go score" role. Shelstad got it rolling with his knockdown pull-up jumper over and over again. Shelstad has always been a score-first guard, and Louisville seems intent on letting him tap that button repeatedly while Trimble adopts more of the traditional set-the-table creator. It wasn't perfect, but it has potential. 

Final word: So many questions remain about Kansas. We'll get more solutions when it plays Duke on Sunday, presumably with Trey Kaufman-Renn making his KU debut. What a sight that will be after five years in Purdue's black and gold. No. 1 recruit Tyran Stokes' playmaking will continue to be at the epicenter of the pitch for Kansas. He's so big and physical, so when you mix in the sharp playmaking, it makes the freshman forward a really tough cover. Kansas just has a lot to figure out around Stokes. Will TKR primarily play the 4? Or does Bill Self envision him at the 5 long-term? Maybe a little of this, a little of that? Kansas' offensive potential is very high with Kaufman-Renn at the 5, but the defensive outlook is much weaker. There's a lot of role definition to be figured out here.

Such is the cost of doing business for adding a former All-American hopeful to the roster in late October. The craziest college basketball offseason marches on. -- Isaac Trotter

No. 4 UConn 78, No.  6 Michigan State 70

What might be real: UConn's three biggest offseason acquisitions look like hits. Beefy freshman wing Colben Landrew was so solid. He deposited 13 points on 11 shots with a nice mix of shrewd cuts, voracious offensive rebounding, bully-ball drives and spot-up triples. Big man Najai Hines put Syracuse into a torture chamber in the first exhibition, so even though he got into foul trouble against MSU, it's still clear as day that the big fella is going to be a two-way menace. Duke transfer Nik Khamenia also looked terrific. He splashed two 3-pointers and finished with 19 points, six rebounds and two assists against the Spartans. Khamenia does some of the Alex Karaban stuff as a sharp cutter who can make some movement 3s, but he's also got more on-ball juice and creativity. Khamenia is a better ball-handler than Karaban. That adds yet another dimension to this UConn attack.

What definitely isn't real: Michigan State didn't shoot well from downtown (3-20), but the Spartans trotted out some interesting second-half lineups with real shooting potential. One lineup in particular is fascinating: Jeremy Fears Jr. at point guard, prized freshman sniper Jasiah Jervis at the 2-spot, Jordan Scott sliding down to the 3, Coen Carr at the 4 and talented freshman big man Ethan Taylor at the 5. That's real length and athleticism inside paired with two shot-makers like Scott and Jervis with an elite point guard at the sticks. More please.

Final word: Michigan State has a lot of depth it can sort through in the frontcourt, but it doesn't have a dude yet. Charlotte transfer Anton Bonke is a mountain of a man (7-2, 266 pounds), but it looked like everything was going way too fast. Taylor, a top-50 freshman via 247Sports, is rapidly improving and could overtake Bonke for the starting center job eventually. Taylor's ability to put it on the deck for a drive to the cup and a nifty right-handed layup showed his athleticism and ball skills, but it's little stuff like defense, rebounding, boxing out and mastering the scouting report that Taylor has to ace before earning the job. -- Trotter

Auburn 87, Alabama 85

What might be real: Alabama's got a couple of SEC-ready freshmen in Qayden Samuels and Tarris Bouie. The duo combined for 34 points in Alabama's heated 87-85 exhibition win over Auburn. Samuels, a guard, won't get up 19 shots during any real games once Crimson Tide star Aden Holloway returns from suspension. But he did against Auburn, displaying a quick trigger and a lot of self-belief while inefficiently reaching 20 points. Crimson Tide fans are going to love watching Bouie, a rangy 6-6 wing who plays hard and does a little bit of everything. He totaled 14 points, seven rebounds, two blocks and two steals against Auburn. 

What definitely isn't real: Auburn's crunch time lineup is typically going to look much different than it did against Alabama. After star guard Tahaad Pettiford fouled out with 3:04 remaining, Auburn's offense wilted. The Tigers missed their final four field goal attempts while struggling offensively without their point guard. They also played without potential starting power forward Owen Freeman and without Lithuanian wing Mantas Rubstavicius, who will be one of Auburn's best players if he gets cleared for eligibility in the courtroom. Additionally, 7-foot-1 freshman Bukky Oboye fouled out with nearly eight minutes remaining, which further limited coach Steven Pearl's lineup optionality.

Final word: This environment looked more like late February than late October. In a tight game against a heated rival that felt like it should have counted, Alabama sophomore star Amari Allen rose to the occasion. Allen, a projected top-10 pick in the 2027 NBA Draft, scored 18 of his 23 points in the second half and displayed the sort of takeover ability that suggests he's in for a special sophomore season. -- Cobb

Quick hits

  • The first impression of UCLA 17-year-old freshman phenom Nikola Kusturica was a positive one. The high-energy forward was all over the floor, diving for loose balls, ripping down offensive rebounds and causing havoc from the jump in UCLA's romp over Cal Baptist. Kusturica finished with 10 points, eight rebounds, six assists, five steals and two blocks.
  • Want to track more exhibitions? Here's what's in the holster for this weekend. Kentucky-Texas Tech, Miami-Vanderbilt, Missouri-Kansas State and Baylor-Illinois are Friday's top exhibition games. Arkansas-Gonzaga will headline Saturday's exhibition slate. Sunday is a doozy. Kansas-Duke (1 p.m. ET, ESPN), St. John's-Texas (Noon ET, ESPN+), Marquette-Michigan State (1 p.m. ET, YouTube) and Michigan-Houston (1 p.m. ET, Big Ten+) will take center stage. We'll have more takeaways on Monday. 
Add CBS Sports on Google