Basketball
With college basketball’s transfer portal now closed, ESPN has gone through the process of re-ranking the top-25 teams heading into the 2025-26 season. Sitting at the top of the new poll is Purdue, a team that many believe will contend for a national championship.
Purdue was more active in the transfer portal this season than in previous years, but coach Matt Painter and his staff still didn’t rely heavily on it to add to the roster. The Boilermakers landed former South Dakota State center Oscar Cluff and former North Florida wing Liam Murphy to address some areas of concern heading into next season.
The Boilers also lost four players to the portal this offseason, with Brian Waddell, Will Berg, Myles Colvin and Camden Heide all deciding to finish their careers elsewhere.
What propelled Purdue to the top of the list was not only the return of Big Ten Player of the Year Braden Smith, first-team All-Big Ten Trey Kaufman Renn and All-Big Ten honorable mention Fletcher Loyer, but also the addition of international star Omer Mayer.
The 6-foot-4 guard from Israel is considered one of the top international prospects in the 2025 recruiting class and will provide the Boilermakers with some important depth at the guard position.
ESPN’s Jeff Borzello updated his top-25 after the portal window closed earlier this week. He explained why he ranked Purdue as the No. 1 team in the country entering next season.
“There’s a chance Purdue has the preseason Wooden Award favorite and two All-Americans on its roster next season,” Borzello wrote. “Braden Smith will start the season as the best guard in the country after taking the next step in his development this past campaign, while Trey Kaufman-Renn is a dominant paint force.
“The addition of South Dakota State transfer Oscar Cluff should help inside, while a healthy Daniel Jacobsen could be poised for a breakout season. Landing Israeli guard Omer Mayer and North Florida transfer Liam Murphy adds needed depth.”
Purdue is coming off a year in which it finished with a 24-12 record and reached the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA Tournament. Despite a solid campaign, the Boilermakers fell short of their goals of winning a third consecutive Big Ten title and reaching a second straight Final Four.
With the roster that Painter has retained and assembled heading into next season, Purdue is also the betting favorite to claim the national championship, per FanDuel.
We’re several months away from the start of the 2025-26 college basketball season, but there’s already plenty of excitement about the upcoming year in West Lafayette.
ESPN college basketball top-10 (2025-26)
- Purdue Boilermakers
- Houston Cougars
- St. John’s Red Storm
- Texas Tech Red Raiders
- Louisville Cardinals
- UConn Huskies
- BYU Cougars
- Michigan Wolverines
- Arkansas Razorbacks
- Kentucky Wildcats
View the complete top-25 here.
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BERG COMMITS TO WICHITA STATE: Center Will Berg announced that he will be transferring to Wichita State to continue his college basketball career. He spent three seasons at Purdue. CLICK HERE
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