The 2026-27 college basketball season tips off with 20 of the preseason AP Top 25 teams in action on Monday, featuring two ranked-on-ranked showdowns. No. 5 Arizona meets No. 22 UCLA in Las Vegas at 10 p.m. ET on TNT, while No. 14 Miami visits No. 1 Florida in Tampa at 6 p.m. ET on ESPN.
Other notable neutral-site games include No. 15 Gonzaga versus Purdue in Las Vegas (7:30 p.m. ET, TNT), No. 18 Iowa State against Memphis in Sioux Falls (7 p.m. ET, FS1), and Ohio State facing No. 25 BYU in Salt Lake City (9 p.m. ET, FS1).
CBS Sports analysts project UCLA to cover as a 4.5-point underdog against Arizona, citing the Bruins' full roster versus Arizona's absence of forward RJ Godfrey. Miami is favored to cover a 5.5-point spread against Florida, while Memphis is expected to stay within a 13.5-point line against Iowa State. Gonzaga is picked to win by 4.5 points over Purdue, and BYU is projected to cover a 2.5-point spread against Ohio State.
Key freshmen debuts include Arizona's Caleb Holt and UCLA's Nikola Kusturica. Florida's frontcourt trio of Thomas Haugh, Rueben Chinyelu, and Alex Condon will test Miami's Malik Reneau and Somto Cyril. Iowa State will be without guard Killyan Toure (shoulder) but returns senior Tamin Lipsey. Gonzaga's big-man trio of Braden Huff, Massamba Diop, and Izan Almansa presents a mismatch against Purdue's lone serviceable big, Daniel Jacobsen.
