Jeff Borzello and Adam Finkelstein 3y

2021 men's college basketball recruiting class rankings: Gonzaga, LSU finishing strong

Men's College Basketball, Baylor Bears, Michigan Wolverines, Michigan State Spartans, Duke Blue Devils, Florida State Seminoles, Kentucky Wildcats, UConn Huskies, Dayton Flyers, Tennessee Volunteers, Stanford Cardinal, LSU Tigers, Gonzaga Bulldogs, UCLA Bruins, Kansas Jayhawks, Colorado Buffaloes, Nebraska Cornhuskers, Alabama Crimson Tide, Georgetown Hoyas, Marquette Golden Eagles, Indiana Hoosiers, Illinois Fighting Illini, NC State Wolfpack, Villanova Wildcats, Creighton Bluejays, Memphis Tigers

A mini-commitment spree over the weekend saw five-star guard Nolan Hickman commit to Gonzaga, elite scorer Jaden Hardy make his G League plans official and top-50 prospect Arthur Kaluma pledge to Creighton, essentially closing the book on the 2021 class. Only one ESPN 100 prospect, former Auburn commit Trey Alexander, remains available.

As a result, it felt like the perfect time to update our top 25 recruiting classes -- with rankings just about set in stone at this point in the cycle.

Michigan hangs on at No. 1 -- barely: It wasn't quite a wire-to-wire run at the top for Juwan Howard and the Wolverines, but once five-star prospects Caleb Houstan and Moussa Diabate picked Michigan back in the fall, they vaulted to the top of the rankings and never relinquished their No. 1 spot. While Houstan and Diabate could push for starting spots right away, top-50 guards Frankie Collins and Kobe Bufkin will also provide an immediate impact on the perimeter.

Gonzaga lands most five-stars: Gonzaga closed the gap to No. 1 after Hickman committed, but the depth of Michigan's class kept the Wolverines at the top. Mark Few's program still landed more five-star prospects than anyone else in the country -- a remarkable achievement for a program in the West Coast Conference. In fact, Gonzaga's dominance gave the WCC the second-most five-star prospects of any conference in the country. No. 1 prospect Chet Holmgren will be one of the biggest headliners in college basketball next season, while Hickman and Hunter Sallis could start immediately.

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