The NCAA dropped its first batch of NET rankings on Monday, and right on cue, college basketball fans did what they always do this time of year: freak out, argue, claim the formula is broken, and then keep refreshing anyway. And honestly, this year gave people even more ammunition than usual.
The headline is simple. Michigan sits at No. 1. Duke is right behind them. Purdue, Vanderbilt, and Gonzaga round out a top five that looks more like something cooked up in a data lab than on a basketball court. That is the beauty of the NET: you never quite know what you are going to get, especially in early December when résumé context is thin and efficiency numbers can fly off the rails.
For the Big Ten, it triggered a victory parade. Six teams landed inside the top twenty, including Michigan State at No. 10 and Indiana shockingly at No. 11. The conference has taken plenty of punches the last few years during tournament season, so for now, the league is proudly flexing its December muscles.
For everyone else, especially fans who still swear by the AP poll, the NET release probably felt like opening a box labeled “Fragile: May Contain Chaos.”
Michigan’s Rise Feels Real, Not Algorithm Magic
Let’s start at the top. Michigan being No. 1 is not a shock to anyone who watched the Wolverines rip apart the Players Era Championship in Las Vegas last week. A 40-point win over Gonzaga will do wonders for any spreadsheet. What the computers see is the same thing humans see: Michigan is playing like one of the most complete teams in the country. They have the efficiency profile of a veteran group, even though Dusty May is only in year two.
Duke at No. 2? Also justifiable. The Blue Devils are undefeated, balanced, and have handled their toughest tests with the kind of maturity that teams with NBA talent often struggle to find in November.
Purdue is Purdue. The Boilermakers live inside the top three of every metric from now until eternity.
Then things get weird.
Vanderbilt at No. 4 Might Be the Most NET Thing Ever
Nothing embodies early-season NET chaos quite like Vanderbilt popping in at No. 4. They were No. 24 in last week’s AP poll. They did not suddenly become 20 spots better. What they did do is hammer teams on their schedule, pile up scoring margin, and post outrageous offensive efficiency numbers. The NET grades all of that extremely well in December. Vandy fans are thrilled. Everyone else is double checking that this is not a football poll.
Gonzaga at No. 5 is also a head-tilter considering the meltdown they suffered at Michigan’s hands. But outside that outlier, the Zags have looked like a top ten team in every measurable category.
Indiana, LSU, and Yale Crash the Top 25 Without Apology
This is the part of the NET release where fans of certain programs begin searching for hidden cameras.
Indiana at No. 11. LSU at No. 19. Yale at No. 25.
None of those teams have a high-quality résumé. None have beaten anyone of national relevance. Their reward is the classic NET bump: huge scoring margins, respectable efficiency, and a schedule that has not yet been exposed.
Indiana’s ranking in particular feels like a quirk of the formula. The Hoosiers have feasted on the bottom quadrant of Division I, which tends to inflate efficiency. But you know what? Winning big every night still counts for something, and the NET acknowledges it even when the voters refuse to.
Who Got Dinged by the Algorithm?
The NET giveth and the NET taketh away.
Houston lands at No. 18 despite being No. 3 in last week’s AP poll. The Cougars have played a tough schedule but have not produced the same scoring margin as other elite teams. Florida drops into the 30s for the same reason. UCLA’s free fall to No. 76 is the loudest alarm siren, especially after losing to California.
The common thread is simple: elite teams playing close games will always look worse on paper this early in the season. Close wins make humans shrug. Computers do not shrug.
What Happens Next?
Nothing about this first NET release is permanent. The numbers update daily. Scoring margins stabilize. Strength of schedule shifts dramatically once conference play hits. Teams like Indiana and LSU will either validate their rankings or drift back toward the middle as competition stiffens.
But Michigan at No. 1? That feels legit. Duke breathing down their neck? Also legit.
As for Vanderbilt at No. 4 and Indiana at No. 11, the online trolls will be debating those all week. And honestly, that is half the fun.
Because in the end, the NET is not designed to predict the national champion today. It is built to sort resumes in March. Right now, it simply gives us something to yell about while the season finds its footing.
And college basketball never complains about that.