Week 10 Power Rankings
It's been a few weeks since I've updated the power rankings, but now that every team has played a few league games, it's a little bit easier to rank these teams. Some teams are starting to be more consistent whether that be in a good way (Miami) or a bad way (Georgia Tech), and there's still other teams where you have no idea what you're going to get out of them (UVA & Florida State). Even if the ACC isn't going to be super relevant nationally this year, it's already looking like it's going to be very competitive and exciting for the rest of the season. AND with a huge upset in Durham last night, we have a new number 1 and should have a 2nd team ranked in the top 25 this week:
1. Miami (13-3, 5-0)
Last Week: W 88-87 vs Syracuse, W 76-74 @ Duke
This Week: @ Florida State
I don't think Miami will actually finish ahead of Duke, but they are a really good basketball team. They went into Cameron Indoor last night and pulled off the biggest win in the ACC so far this year. Their three guard combo of Wong, Moore, and McGusty forms the best backcourt in the league and it's almost impossible to defend all three of them. They should be in the top 25 this week and be into everyone's bracketology. I'm grateful that the league has another team at the top to compete with Duke. Hopefully Miami doesn't spend too long celebrating, they've got another huge game Tuesday when they have to travel to Tallahassee.
2. Duke (12-2, 2-1)
Last Week: W 69-57 vs Georgia Tech, L 74-76 vs Miami
This Week: @ Wake Forest, vs NC State
Duke lost a thriller last night on their home court, but this was a pretty excusable loss. Miami is a good team, and this was only their 2nd game since December 22nd as they've been having Covid issues since coming back from Christmas break. They have 2 tough tests this week, but if they can take care of business, no one will be worried about Duke.
3. North Carolina (11-4, 3-1)
Last Week: L 73-78 @ Notre Dame, W 74-58 vs Virginia
This Week: vs Georgia Tech
North Carolina was looking like they were clearly the 2nd best team in the ACC before losing at Notre Dame Wednesday night. Notre Dame hasn't lost at home yet, so there's no shame in that loss, but they didn't quite look right. That loss must have woken them up though, and they took out all of their frustrations on UVA yesterday. That game wasn't nearly as close as the final score suggested. Armando Bacot had his way with the smaller frontcourt of Virginia. The Tar Heels are starting to put it all together.
4. Louisville (10-5, 4-1)
Last Week: W 75-72 vs Pitt, L 70-79 @ Florida State
This Week: vs NC State, @ Pitt
After a few questionable losses in the non-conference, Louisville has been looking pretty good. I really like the balance of this team. They have 9 players that contribute every game and Noah Locke is leading the team in scoring at only 10.8 PPG. El Ellis seems to be finding his shot, as he scored 14 and 18 in the last 2 games, and that's huge when you can get that kind of production off the bench.
5. Wake Forest (13-3, 3-2)
Last Week: W 76-54 vs Florida State, W 77-74 (OT) vs Syracuse
This Week: vs Duke, @ Virginia
Wake had a tough week 2 weeks ago dropping back-to-back road games against Louisville and Miami, but bounced back in a big way this week by destroying FSU at home and then winning a very exciting game against Syracuse. Unfortunately for Wake Forest, Duke is coming to town Wednesday after their first conference loss. The Demon Deacons will probably need to play a near perfect game to win that one.
6. Notre Dame (9-5, 3-1)
Last Week: W 78-73 vs North Carolina, W 72-68 (OT) @ Georgia Tech
This Week: vs Clemson, @ Virginia Tech
The Irish have looked a lot better since getting blown out by Boston College. They've won 5 straight games since then and 6 of their last 7. They also haven't lost at home all year. If you haven't seen the freshman Blake Wesley play yet, you need to, because he's probably going to only be in South Bend for one year.
7. Florida State (8-5, 2-2)
Last Week: L 54-76 @ Wake, W 79-70 vs Louisville
This Week: vs Miami, @ Syracuse
This week perfectly portrays what Florida State has been so far this year. They lose by 20+, then turn around and beat a team that was previously unbeaten in conference play. I'm going to keep the Seminoles near the middle of these rankings until they can show some more consistency.
8. Virginia (9-6, 3-2)
Last Week: W 75-65 @ Clemson, L 58-74 @ North Carolina
This Week: vs Virginia Tech, vs Wake Forest
Virginia was starting to look much better before getting blown out by Carolina yesterday. They were playing much better defense and finding better offense by getting the ball inside. They won 2 of 3 straight road games and most fans will take that outcome, but they had no answer for Bacot yesterday. He destroyed them on the boards. I was surprised to see that he only had 9 offensive rebounds. The Hoos have 2 tough home games this week to try to get back on track.
9. Clemson (10-5, 2-2)
Last Week: L 65-75 vs Virginia, W 70-65 @ NC State
This Week: @ Notre Dame, vs Boston College
The Tigers bounced back from a frustrating home loss to UVA to get a nice win on the road in Raleigh. Brad Brownell has done a nice job with this team this year and they're getting huge contribution from their frontcourt. They're also shooting 40.9% from 3 as a team this year. If they're able to give Notre Dame their first home loss on Wednesday, Clemson could string together a nice little winning streak.
10. Virginia Tech (8-6, 0-3)
Last Week: L 63-68 vs NC State
This Week: @ Virginia, vs Notre Dame
The Hokies came off of a Covid pause and gave NC State their first conference win of the season in a wild game that had huge runs both ways. Virginia Tech has 2 more tough matchups this week to try to pick up their first ACC win. The computers continue to rank the Hokies high, but at some point that needs to translate to wins or they're going to dig themselves way too big of a hole in the standings.
11. Syracuse (7-8, 1-3)
Last Week: L 87-88 @ Miami, L 74-77 (OT) @ Wake Forest
This Week: vs Pitt, vs Florida State
The Orange has lost back-to-back heartbreakers and are playing much better than their record suggests. This is a good team that needs to start winning some games if the Boeheims want to get to the postseason.
12. NC State (8-8, 1-4)
Last Week: W 68-63 @ Virginia Tech, L 65-70 vs Clemson
This Week: @ Louisville, @ Duke
Dereon Seabron has been incredible this season. He's averaged 21 points in the last ten games, but that's only resulted in 3 wins for the Wolfpack. It's not going to get any easier for them at this point, either. They'll probably be the underdog in their next 7 games.
13. Pittsburgh (6-9, 1-3)
Last Week: L 72-75 @ Louisville, W 69-67 vs Boston College
This Week: @ Syracuse, vs Louisville
I was ready to move Pitt out of last place even before yesterday as they had lost their first 3 conference games by a combined 5 points, but they beat BC yesterday, so they get to move up 2 spots! John Hugley is having a huge year and their style of play will keep them competitive in a lot of games this year.
14. Boston College (6-7, 1-2)
Last Week: L 67-69 @ Pitt
This Week: vs Georgia Tech, @ Clemson
The Langford brothers have been a pleasant surprise for the Eagles this year, but Boston College is where they were expected to be in the standings so far this year. They'll have a good chance to pick up another win this week when they host Georgia Tech.
15. Georgia Tech (6-8, 0-4)
Last Week: L 57-69 @ Duke, L 68-72 (OT) vs Notre Dame
This Week: @ Boston College, @ North Carolina
Michael Devoe is having an All-ACC caliber year. He's leading the league in scoring at 21.1 PPG. The Yellow Jackets have also beat every team from the state of Georgia that they've played this year. Unfortunately, they don't play any other teams from Georgia this year.