There are 50 days until the NCAA tournament bracket is set on Selection Sunday.

We’ve learned a lot in the 80-plus days since the 2025-26 college basketball season tipped off, especially as conference play has hit high gear. Freshmen are dominating. Scoring is at a historically high pace. Nebraska and Miami (Ohio) are among the final three unbeatens. And that’s just scratching the surface.

Whether you’re just tuning in or enjoy the bird’s-eye view, ESPN’s Jeff Borzello and Myron Medcalf quickly break down the eight biggest storylines shaping the season so far below.

The biggest surprises so far

Indiana, the losingest program in college football history entering the 2025 season, just won the national championship. A miraculous run could be brewing in college basketball, too.

Undefeated Nebraska has orchestrated one of the top turnarounds in recent history. Miami (Ohio) hasn’t lost, either. Clemson is off to a surprising start in ACC play (6-0). And in his first season, Kevin Willard has made Villanova a top-tier offensive and defensive team in the Big East.

Vanderbilt is in this conversation, too. Before the Commodores’ current three-game losing streak, they had won 16 games in a row. Tyler Tanner (17.1 PPG, 39% from 3) is a projected first-round NBA draft pick in ESPN’s latest mock. And like Vanderbilt, which was picked 11th in the preseason SEC poll, neither Georgia (14th) nor Virginia (fifth) was picked to finish in the top tier of its respective preseason conference poll — yet both have emerged as early contenders for league titles as a result of surprising starts. — Myron Medcalf

play

Miami (OH) stays perfect after Luke Skaljac forces OT with acrobatic layup

Luke Skaljac hits an off-balance layup in the closing seconds as Miami (OH) forces overtime and ultimately beats Kent State.

The biggest disappointments so far

A number of teams and players have unexpectedly disappointed.

Donovan Dent was one of the top available transfers in the portal after winning Mountain West Player of the Year last season. Yet he has struggled at UCLA, shooting just 17% from 3 for the bubble team.

Kentucky is on a winning streak right now, but the Wildcats don’t look like the national contenders they were supposed to be after reportedly spending $20 million on their current roster. The same goes for Oregon, which already had a disappointing roster before recent injuries continued to derail its season.

In the Big 12, Baylor boasts two projected lottery picks, and yet the Bears still managed to kick off league play with a 1-5 record. Tennessee can’t seem to find its footing, either, despite having five-star freshman and projected lottery pick Nate Ament in the fold. A top-three defensive team in SEC play for the past five years, the Vols are currently ranked eighth.

A chunk of the Big East — see: Marquette, Providence and Georgetown, especially — is struggling to meet preseason expectations, too.

All of that said, Memphis might be at the top of this list: The Tigers are just 9-9 on the season, following the best season of Penny Hardaway’s tenure in 2024-25 (29-6). — Medcalf

Scoring is on the rise

A confluence of factors — NBA prospects returning to school, a historically strong freshman class, top Europeans coming to college — has led to an enormous amount of talent in the sport and some of the most explosive offense in decades. Entering last weekend, Division I teams were averaging 77.2 points per game this season; that would be the highest number for a single season since 1971-72, when teams put up 77.7 points per game.

On a similar note, teams entered last weekend shooting 45.4% from the field. That would be the highest collective field goal percentage since teams shot 45.7% in 1991-92.

Only one team finished last season averaging better than 90 points per game (Alabama at 90.7 PPG). There are 15 teams right now hitting that threshold.

From an efficiency standpoint, there’s been an upward swing, too. There are 11 teams currently with an adjusted offensive rating of 125.0 or better at KenPom, compared with just five last season. — Jeff Borzello

play

Highlight: No. 20 Arkansas’ offense shines at home in win over No. 15 Vandy

Six Razorbacks reach double-digits as they shoot 57.8% and 40.9% from three to knock off the Commodores, 93-68.

Star players managing injuries

When he’s on the floor, Kansas star freshman Darryn Peterson is among the elite players in college basketball. The potential No. 1 NBA draft pick would rank in the top 10 in the country in scoring, averaging 22.2 points per game — if he had played enough games to qualify, that is. Peterson entered the week with just nine games under his belt, having missed seven with a hamstring injury in November and December, and another two right before Christmas after apparently reaggravating the injury. He has played all six games in January, although not with a full allotment of minutes. And now he is contending with a sprained ankle, putting his status for the immediate future in doubt.

Peterson isn’t the only projected lottery pick to have missed time with injuries and also have a vague timeline for return. Louisville‘s Mikel Brown Jr. hasn’t played since the Cardinals’ Dec. 13 game against Memphis, missing the past nine matchups with a lower back injury. Head coach Pat Kelsey admitted last week that, although he expects Brown to return at some point this season, he doesn’t know when that will be.

Meanwhile, Kentucky’s Jayden Quaintance missed the first 11 games of the season while recovering from a torn ACL he suffered last February. He returned on Dec. 20 and was outstanding against St. John’s before scoring just 10 points over his next three contests and then being ruled out for Kentucky’s past three games. — Borzello

More former pros in college ranks

Has anyone checked on Tom Izzo? He and other power brokers in the game sounded the alarm in October after two G League players (Thierry Darlan and London Johnson) were cleared to play college basketball, a first-of-its-kind move by the NCAA. Then, James Nnaji — the 31st pick in the 2023 NBA draft who played only in summer league and EuroLeague games but never an official NBA contest — was cleared to compete for Baylor in late December. He had never played college basketball, so his case rivaled that of the former international pros who have been allowed to play Division I basketball with the exception of his draft status.

On Wednesday, an Alabama judge gave former Crimson Tide standout Charles Bediako — who had signed a two-way contract with the San Antonio Spurs after going undrafted in 2023 — a temporary restraining order allowing him to return to play college basketball for the following 10 days. Prior to Bediako’s case, no player who had actually played in the college and professional ranks had been given an opportunity to return to college. His Tuesday hearing for a preliminary injunction to play the rest of the season, if successful, could open the floodgates for other young two-way and NBA players to make their case for NCAA eligibility. — Medcalf

The strongest freshman class in recent memory

The recruiting class of 2025 had been circled by college coaches and NBA scouts for multiple years — and these freshmen have collectively exceeded all expectations.

Kansas’ Darryn Peterson, BYU’s AJ Dybantsa and Duke’s Cameron Boozer entered the 2025-26 season as the three big names in the class; they’ve become three of the best players in college basketball, with Boozer and Dybantsa running 1 and 2 in most National Player of the Year discussions. But it’s about more than just those three.

play

Cam Boozer leads Duke to a comeback win vs. Louisville

Cam Boozer drops 27 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals in Duke’s comeback win over Louisville.

Nine freshmen were named to the Wooden Award midseason top 25 watchlist, with Arkansas’ Darius Acuff Jr., Tennessee’s Nate Ament, Louisville’s Mikel Brown Jr., Houston’s Kingston Flemings, Arizona’s Koa Peat and North Carolina’s Caleb Wilson all finding their way onto the list.

That doesn’t even include UConn’s Braylon Mullins or Arizona’s Brayden Burries, who are starting for the top two teams in the country. Or breakout stars Keaton Wagler of Illinois and Ebuka Okorie of Stanford. Nor does it include the former European pros who are classified as freshmen, such as Virginia’s Thijs De Ridder and Washington’s Hannes Steinbach. — Borzello

Strength of high-major conferences

The 2025-26 season is anchored by a deep field of contenders in the nation’s top leagues. The Big Ten has 10 teams ranked in the top 40 on KenPom, including top-15 Michigan, Michigan State, Purdue, Nebraska and Illinois.

The Big 12’s claim to fame this year is its star power: AJ Dybantsa (BYU), Joshua Jefferson (Iowa State), Darryn Peterson (Kansas), Kingston Flemings (Houston), JT Toppin and Christian Anderson (Texas Tech), and Koa Peat (Arizona) are all capable of leading their respective teams to the Final Four — and earning national accolades, too.

The ACC has also demanded respect in a bounce-back season. Duke is Duke, of course. And North Carolina, Clemson and Virginia have added to the depth of the league with strong overall starts.

Having said that, the SEC remains KenPom’s top-ranked conference a year after its record 14 NCAA tournament bids. It might not match that number again, but reigning national champion Florida is shaping up to defend its title. Alabama’s defense is still phenomenal. Kentucky is improving. John Calipari might have the best point guard in the country at Arkansas. And Vanderbilt already has six top-50 KenPom wins. — Medcalf

Big lineups are dominating

It wasn’t long ago that three-guard lineups were the preferred setup for high-level teams — think Villanova’s perimeter-oriented championship teams in 2015 and 2017, or Baylor’s 2021 title team that started four players 6-foot-5 or shorter. According to KenPom’s average height metric, only four NCAA tournament teams were in the top 20 in height in 2021.

This season, the top three teams in average height are ranked in the AP poll. Six other top-25 teams aren’t far behind.

Just look at the top four teams in this week’s AP poll. Arizona’s eight-man rotation features six players 6-6 or taller. UConn doesn’t start anyone shorter than 6-4. Michigan starts three players 6-9 or taller. Duke is No. 2 in average height and doesn’t have a single player in its nine-man rotation shorter than 6-4.

The NBA has valued positional size more and more, and unsurprisingly, college basketball is following suit. — Borzello

Tottenham Hotspur have entered talks with Liverpool over a potential deal for defender Andy Robertson, sources told ESPN.

The left-back, who joined Liverpool from Hull City in 2017, is out of contract at the end of the season.

Earlier this month, Robertson admitted he was unsure where his long-term future lies and sources told ESPN that Tottenham have now made an approach to sign the 31-year-old, though no agreement has yet been reached.

Robertson has slipped down the pecking order for Liverpool this season following the £40 million ($54.1m) signing of Milos Kerkez in the summer, though sources told ESPN any move this month would have to be right for both the player and club.

Spurs’ interest in Robertson comes amid the club’s drive to add more experience and leadership to Thomas Frank’s misfiring team who sit 14th in the Premier League table.

“I’m a player who wants to play,” Robertson said earlier this month. “I’ve got five months left and we need to see what the option is to stay or if there’s options to go and things like that.

“I need to sit down with my family and decide. After a stressful summer, I’m just trying to enjoy being a part of it and being a Liverpool player.

“I wanted to qualify for the World Cup and thankfully, we’ve managed to do that. I need to see what myself and my family wants going forward.”

– Incoming Liverpool transfers unlikely in January – Arne Slot
– If Liverpool want to be successful, all roads lead through Szoboszlai
– Tottenham boss Thomas Frank quells Micky van de Ven exit talk

Frank’s difficult start to life at Spurs as been hindered by a lengthy injury list that includes key first-team players such as Dejan Kulusevski and James Maddison, while the broken ankle suffered by Ben Davies has added to the Dane’s issues.

Destiny Udogie has been the team’s first-choice left-back since his arrival in 2023 but repeated muscular injuries have often made him unavailable for selection and Djed Spence has often deputised in the Italian’s place.

Should Robertson’s move to Spurs be completed, he would become the second left-back through the door at Hotspur Way during the January transfer window after Souza’s arrival from Santos in a €15 million deal on Thursday.

Robertson has made 363 appearances for Liverpool, winning a number of major honours including two Premier League titles and the Champions League in 2019.

The Saudi Pro League has big plans to sign Liverpool‘s Mohamed Salah and Real Madrid‘s Vinícius Júnior, while Arsenal and Chelsea have held talks about a potential move for Atlético Madrid striker Julián Álvarez. Join us for the latest transfer news and rumors from around the globe.

Transfers home page | Men’s winter grades | Women’s grades

TRANSFERS TO WATCH

TRENDING RUMORS

– The Saudi Pro League (SPL) wants to focus on signing Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah and Real Madrid winger Vinícius Júnior this summer, according to The Daily Telegraph. Meanwhile, TalkSPORT claims they have plans to bring in 50 “peak-age foreign players” and a host of older players as well. The report names Salah and Vinicius Jr. as well as Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski, and Manchester United midfielders Bruno Fernandes and Casemiro. Al Ittihad could be one club in particular that is set for a major revamp with star players N’Golo Kanté, Fabinho and Karim Benzema potentially leaving.

– Arsenal and Chelsea have held talks about a potential move for Atletico Madrid striker Julián Álvarez, according to TEAMtalk, with the 25-year-old growing increasingly frustrated by life at the Metropolitano Stadium. Alvarez’s preferred option would be to join Barcelona, and the Catalan club admire him, but their financial situation would complicate any potential deal. Paris Saint-Germain also like the Argentina international and are aware of his situation, while if Alvarez were to consider a move to the Premier League it would only be for a club based in London.

– Chelsea are considering a move to sign Juventus midfielder Douglas Luiz on loan for the rest of the season, says The Athletic. Luiz, 27, is currently on loan at Nottingham Forest and, despite not being a regular starter at the City Ground, the Brazil international is viewed as a player who can add quality and depth to the Chelsea midfield. Luiz’s loan at Forest includes a conditional obligation to sign him permanently based on a set number of appearances and a €30 million option if that number isn’t hit.

– Following Manchester United’s announcement that Casemiro will leave Old Trafford when his contract expires this summer, The Daily Mail has reported that LA Galaxy is one of the clubs to have shown an interest in signing the midfielder. The 33-year-old reportedly has interest from the Saudi Pro League, Brazilian Serie A and MLS, but his preference is to remain in Brazil, according to ESPN Brasil. Sources have also told ESPN that Nottingham Forest’s Elliot Anderson, Crystal Palace‘s Adam Wharton and Brighton & Hove Albion‘s Carlos Baleba are three of United’s options to replace him.

– Liverpool see Crystal Palace midfielder Adam Wharton as an option for the summer transfer window if he becomes available, according to The Daily Mail. The 21-year-old could be the Eagles’ next big departure, after captain Marc Guéhi‘s £20 million move to Manchester City and the fact sources have told ESPN that star striker Jean-Philippe Mateta wants to leave. Even so, Liverpool will face competition from Real Madrid, Man United and a host of other top clubs for Wharton and will have to meet a valuation of around £80 million.

DONE DEALS

To follow…

EXPERT TAKE

play

Why is Erling Haaland struggling to score for Man City?

The ESPN ‘FC TV’ crew breakdown the reasons why Erling Haaland is struggling to score for Manchester City.

OTHER RUMORS

– Corinthians defender Iago Machado, 16, is being tracked by Arsenal. (Globo)

– A final decision regarding Manchester United striker Joshua Zirkzee is expected soon, with Roma among the clubs still wanting to sign the 24-year-old on loan. (Florian Plettenberg)

– Internazionale see Tottenham Hotspur goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario as the perfect replacement for Yann Sommer. (Gazzetta dello Sport)

– Fenerbahce have given the green light for Juventus to sign Youssef En-Nesyri on loan with an option to make the deal permanent. The package is worth €25 million plus bonuses and Juve are now in advanced talks with the striker. (Nicolo Schira)

– Juve haven’t given up on Jean-Philippe Mateta but have informed Crystal Palace that they won’t offer above €33 million for the striker. The proposal is a loan with an obligation to make the deal permanent if they qualify for the Champions League. (Nicolo Schira)

– PSV Eindhoven are reluctant to let winger Ivan Perisic join Internazionale, but the Nerazzurri‘s chances of completing a deal could improve if PSV don’t reach the Champions League playoffs. (Gazzetta dello Sport)

– Roma have made an offer to sign Al Shabab winger Yannick Carrasco on loan with an option to make the deal permanent. The 32-year-old would like to return to Europe but his wages could be an issue. (Gazzetta dello Sport)

– Bayer Leverkusen want to replace goalkeeper Mark Flekken, and the options being considered are Manchester City pair James Trafford and Stefan Ortega, plus Chelsea’s Filip Jorgensen. (Kicker)

– Crvena Zvezda midfielder Vasilije Kostov, 17, is being tracked by Arsenal in addition to receiving interest from Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund. (Mirror)

– Barcelona have finalized a deal for 18-year-old Al Ahly striker Hamza Abdelkarim, with it being a loan with the option to sign him for up to €3m while that figure could rise to €5m due to performance-related bonuses. (Mundo Deportivo)

– Juventus view Sevilla full back Juanlu Sanchez as a back-up to Pierre Kalulu if the club are open to a loan with an option to make the deal permanent. (Sky Sports Italia)

– Toulouse have rejected Wolfsburg’s raised offer of €23 million to sign defender Charlie Cresswell as they want over €30 million. (Athletic)

– Roma, Nice and Marseille have asked for information about 18-year-old Chelsea full back Genesis Antwi. (TEAMtalk)

– Nottingham Forest have agreed a loan deal with Napoli for 6-foot-7 striker Lorenzo Lucca, which includes an option to make the deal permanent for around €40m. (Athletic)

– Cruzeiro winger Kaua Prates, 17, has reached an agreement in principle with Borussia Dortmund. (Nicolo Schira)