College Basketball Rankings: CBS Sports shakes up Top 25 and 1 after final Saturday of regular season

After today, the regular season will officially be over. On Sunday morning, CBS Sports’ Gary Parrish updated his college basketball Top 25 and 1 rankings.

For the first time this season, the Big Ten led the way in Parrish’s rankings with seven teams included. The SEC trailed closely behind with six programs represented in Parrish’s top 25 and 1.

With so many exciting outcomes to cover from Saturday, let’s waste no time getting into Parrish’s updated college basketball rankings.

1. Auburn Tigers

Previous Ranking: 1
Auburn has lost back-to-back games but is still the best team in the country in Parrish’s eyes. In fairness, the Tigers still boasts a nation-high 16 Quad 1 victories. For reference, the next closest team only has 11.

Although Auburn fell 93-91 to Alabama in overtime on Saturday, Tigers star Johni Broome put on a show. The National Player of the Year candidate erupted for 34 points, eight rebounds, three steals and five blocks while shooting 15-28 from the field.

2. Duke Blue Devils

Previous Ranking: 2
Duke hasn’t been able to surpass Auburn for the No. 1 spot in Parrish’s rankings but it’s no slouch. The Blue Devils are entering the ACC Tournament on an eight-game win streak, most recently securing the season sweep over rival North Carolina with an 82-69 victory.

In the win, freshman standout Cooper Flagg stuffed the stat sheet with 15 points, nine rebounds, six assists and four blocks. Fellow freshman Kon Kneuppel was also excellent, scoring a team-high 17 points.

3. Houston Cougars

Previous Ranking: 3
Houston pieced together a solid second-half effort to down Baylor 65-61 on Saturday. The Cougars shot 8-19 (42.1%) from beyond the arc in the win. LJ Cryer paved the way to victory for Houston, notching a team-high 23 points while knocking down six 3-pointers.

Alas, he was far from the only standout for the Cougars. Four Houston starters scored double figures and J’Wan Roberts posted an 11-point, 10-rebound double-double in the triumph.

4. Florida Gators

Previous Ranking: 4
Florida concluded its regular season on a high note Saturday with a comfortable 90-71 blowout win over Ole Miss. It was Senior Night for the Gators, and their veterans didn’t shy away from the spotlight.

Walter Clayton Jr. tallied game-highs of 23 points and eight assists. Meanwhile, Will Richard and Alijah Martin combined for 23 points and eight rebounds. The convincing victory will give the men’s basketball committee something to consider as they pick the four 1-seed in the NCAA Tournament.

5. Michigan State Spartans

Previous Ranking: 5
At the time of this report, Michigan State and Michigan are battling in the Breslin Center. While the game is far from over, Michigan State boasts a considerable lead. It’s no surprise after the Spartans defeated their in-state rival by 13 points just over two weeks ago.

Michigan State also strengthened its postseason résumé with a 91-84 victory over Iowa on Thursday. Four Michigan State players scored 14 or more points in the win. Nobody outplayed Jase Richardson, who racked up 22 points against the Hawkeyes.

6. Tennessee Volunteers

Previous Ranking: 6
Tennessee bounced back from a surprising loss against Ole Miss on Wednesday with a 75-65 win over South Carolina this weekend. The Volunteers’ defense proved deadly in the win, holding the Gamecocks to just 35.1% shooting from the field and 22.2% accuracy from deep.

Meanwhile, Tennessee looked like a well-oiled machine, recording 22 assists on its 30 made field goals. Of course, the Volunteers still have room for growth. They shot just 9-21 (42.9%) from the charity stripe in the win.

7. Alabama Crimson Tide

Previous Ranking: 7
It’s difficult to keep a team like Alabama down for long. After losing two consecutive games, the Crimson Tide pulled out their downward spiral on Saturday with a statement 93-91 triumph over No. 1 Auburn in overtime.

It was a taste of revenge for Alabama, which lost to the Tigers by nine points on Feb. 15. Grant Nelson collected a team-high 23 points in the win. All-American point guard Mark Sears only scored nine points but drained the buzzer-beating floater that gave Alabama the win.

8. St. John’s Red Storm

Previous Ranking: 8
Alabama wasn’t the only team celebrating a last-second shot on Saturday. St. John’s big man Zuby Ejiofor hit a buzzer-beating bunny to boost the Red Storm to an 86-84 victory over Marquette in overtime.

With the triumph, St. John’s matched a program record for regular-season wins. RJ Luis Jr. was a force for the Red Storm, posting a 28-point, 11-rebound double-double while shooting 10-19 from the floor.

9. Texas Tech Red Raiders

Previous Ranking: 10
On Saturday, Texas Tech strolled to an 85-57 win over Arizona State. Big 12 Player of the Year candidate JT Toppin racked up 25 points and 11 rebounds for his 14th double-double of the season.

Freshman Christian Anderson didn’t trail far behind, logging a career-high 21 points on 4-8 shooting from downtown. Texas Tech set a program record for conference wins this season.

10. Texas A&M Aggies

Previous Ranking: 11
After losing four straight games, Texas A&M is on a two-game win streak. On Saturday, the Aggies handily defeated LSU 66-52. Texas A&M’s defense was relentless, holding LSU to 30% shooting in the game.

Defense wasn’t the only area of the game Texas A&M’s grit came into play. The Aggies also hauled in twice as many offensive rebounds as LSU, resulting in Texas A&M scoring 17 second-chance points to the Tigers’ mere nine.

11. Iowa State (+1)
12. Wisconsin (-3)
13. Purdue
14. Maryland
15. Louisville
16. Michigan
17. Clemson
18. Kentucky (+2)
19. Saint Mary’s (+2)
20. Arizona (-2)
21. Marquette (-2)
22. Memphis
23. Oregon
24. BYU (+1)
25. Illinois (NR)
26. UCLA (NR)