The post 5 Non-Conference Men’s College Basketball Games To Watch This Season appeared com. Purdue players Fletcher Loyer (2), Trey Kaufman-Renn (4), C. J. Cox, (0) and Camden Heide head to the bench for a timeout during an NCAA college basketball game against Illinois, Friday, March 7, 2025, in Champaign, Ill. (AP Photo/Craig Pessman) Copyright On Monday, the men’s college basketball season begins with 20 of the teams in the Associated Press’s preseason top 25 in action. The schedule is highlighted by the Hall of Fame Series doubleheader at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. No. 3 Florida, the reigning national champion, plays No. 13 Arizona in the opener at 7 p. m. Eastern Time, followed by No. 8 BYU against Villanova in the nightcap. Both games are on TNT and TruTV. While most casual sports fans do not start paying close attention to college basketball until February or March, the early season games are important to programs that are looking to pad their resumes for the NCAA tournament and earn a high seed. As such, many top coaches in the past couple of years have begun scheduling more difficult non-conference games as a way to test their teams and help themselves come March. Event organizers have also put together matchups that catch the attention of fans and television executives. Below, we look at five marquee non-conference games in November and December: No. 1 Purdue At No. 15 Alabama On Nov. 13 Purdue is first in the Associated Press preseason poll for the first time in program history, and for good reason. The Boilermakers return first team All-American point guard Braden Smith and three other starters from last season’s team that advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament, where they lost by two points to Houston, the eventual national runner-up. Trey Kaufman-Renn, who averaged a team-high 20. 1 points.