Every other week at NCAA.com, the DII men’s basketball Power 10 rankings provide a view of the landscape of the upper echelon of the sport. It gives insight to the true contenders to make a push in the tournament and which teams may figure out how to dethrone Nova Southeastern from its current perch.
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But what about teams outside of that top 10? What about teams that aren’t in the DII men’s basketball championship on an annual basis, but thanks to fast starts, are looking like they may be this March?
The 2026 portion of the schedule is set to open, and with it, the heart of conference play. This is where teams tend to separate themselves; where the conference powerhouses show their might and why they make the tournament year in and year out. But can there be some surprises in the mix?
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Arkansas-Fort Smith
The Lions ended their 2025 portion of the schedule a perfect 11-0 and one of six remaining undefeated teams in DII men’s basketball through the first half. That is quite impressive when you consider they were a 12-16 a year ago… and 7-21 before that…and 12-16 before that… and, well, I think you get the point.
Last season, UAFS moved from the Lone Star to the MIAA, a conference where the current No. 1 team lies and other tournament powerhouses reside. As of Jan. 1, the Lions played the 198th-ranked (out of 298) strength of schedule, so they have been eased into the 2025-26 season in a sense. They are fourth in the MIAA in scoring (87.5 points per game) and third in scoring defense (64.4), so they have showed a very nice balance. Off to a 2-0 start in the conference, UAFS has yet to play Washburn (Feb. 12), a surprisingly good Central Missouri team (Feb. 14), or a red-hot Missouri Western (Feb. 19). You’ll notice those three games come in a row, and by Feb. 20, I think we’ll have a better idea if UAFS is heading back to its first DII tournament since 2018.
Cal State East Bay
The Pioneers are another team off to an undefeated 2025 start, sitting at 10-0 entering the second half of play. Considering they were an 11-17 team a year ago, this is certainly a surprising start. Cal State East Bay has not made the DII men’s basketball championship since 1988, and under current coach Bryan Rooney, the Pioneers were 70-70 prior to this season since he took over in 2017. Now, the Pioneers have reached No. 12 in the NABC rankings, the highest mark in program history.
Thus far, the Pioneers have played one of the easiest schedules in DII men’s basketball, a strength of schedule ranked 264 out of 298. They are 4-0 in the CCAA and did go into the holiday break with an impressive win over 2025 national runners-up Cal State Dominguez Hills. The Pioneers don’t score a ton of points, but they do have the CCAA’s best defense, allowing a mere 62.4 points per game. The CCAA has been the winner of the West Region four years in a row (Chico State in 2022, Cal State San Bernardino in 2022-23 and the Toros last year), and it has been a nice blend of new, surprising faces. While the Pioneers have a tough road ahead (their future opposition has a .536 winning percentage), anything can happen in the Wild West.
West Alabama
The surprising part of the Tigers’ start to the 2025 half of their schedule is not simply the 11-1 record, but the fact that they ended 2025 ranked No. 18, a spot that seems way too low for what West Alabama has accomplished. The Tigers, a 14-15 team a year ago, have built a nice resume and have done so against a strength of schedule sitting at .585, 71st in DII.
The Tigers have made the DII men’s basketball championship this decade, so it isn’t like they have come out of nowhere. However, they have seen two seasons in a row from the outside looking in, so this is a strong bounce back thus far. The Tigers have yet to play Alabama-Huntsville or Montevallo, two tournament teams from a year ago, and have two games remaining against each. There is a ton of meaningful basketball ahead of them. Still, this team has one of the best scoring defenses in DII — and the best in the GSC — and though they don’t score much, they have a starting five that spreads the ball and makes it hard to home in on one player. The South Region has been dominated by the SSC (Nova Southeastern in particular has made five of the last six DII Men’s Elite Eights), so a hard-fought season in the GSC may be all for naught. That said, the Tigers should be on your radar to be dancing in March.
UVA Wise
Do you know the last time that the Cavaliers made the DII men’s basketball tournament? Of course you don’t — because they never have. That can all change this year, as they are off to an impressive 10-3 start.
What makes their start so impressive? Quite a few things, actually. For one, they finished the 2025 half of the schedule seven games over .500 after playing the 35th-strongest schedule in DII, with an opponents’ winning percentage of .617. They also have wins against annual tournament hopefuls and nationally ranked teams like Florida Southern and Lenoir-Rhyne. The Cavs have also proven to have a very tough “Big Three” in Kam Roberts (16.3 points, 6.1 rebounds per game), Yoro Diallo (14.8/8.2) and Evan Ramsey (12.2/6.8). This squad unfortunately has a very tough road ahead with a remaining schedule of .578 SoS, but they have played well enough so far to think that program history is on the horizon.
Central Missouri
It has been more than a decade since the Mules have found their way to the tournament, but they are looking like they may break that streak right now. Not much was expected of Central Missouri this preseason, entering the year at No. 7 in both the MIAA coaches and media poll, but the Mules have shown they are a force to be reckoned with so far.
Central Missouri is 11-4, and some of its losses have been as impressive as its wins. How can a loss be impressive? One of the Mules’ losses came against Washburn, a game that the Mules took the seemingly unbeatable Ichabods to double overtime, holding them to only 78 points, but eventually running out of gas to lose 78-72. Another loss was to Lubbock Christian, a team that could not only win the stacked LSC but looks like early contenders to take the South Central. The Mules took them to the wire in a tight five-point loss. They also have big, resume-building wins against nationally ranked West Texas A&M and Fort Hays State. And they have done all this against a schedule equally as tough as UVA Wise, tied for 35th-toughest in DII. Add in a player like Lazerek Houston, who is a scoring machine that can take over a game when needed, and this team may surprise people come March.
