After the turmoil of the first three weeks, this fourth week of ACC basketball has been… calm. Well, as calm as college basketball in one of the nation’s best conferences can be, at any rate. There were still the shocking upsets and lopsided blowouts, still last-minute cancellations and Covid-19 controversies, but all things considered it was a much more mellow seven days of ACC hoops.
That said, this week brought us the first crop of conference games, with 10 ACC teams squaring up across five games. Those matchups have provided plenty of new information. Let’s unpack it as we sort out the power rankings after four weeks.
Tier 1
1) North Carolina –
The Heels this week became the third ACC team to take down Kentucky, pulling away to win by 12 after trailing by 4 at halftime. Carolina won the game by doing what they do best, feeding their big men and allowing them to open the floor for their guards. But there are some very significant worries for Roy Williams. Caleb Love has not been very efficient, and Carolina as a team has been dreadful from three-point range. Once the 26.6% average comes up, however, the rest of the league is in serious danger.
2) Virginia –
It has been an exciting week for Virginia despite not playing a game. For one thing, they were cleared to return to the practice court on Saturday ahead of Tuesday’s game against William & Mary. For another, they added top-ranked Gonzaga to the schedule, who they will face in Fort Worth, Texas on December 26. The Hoos should cruise past the Tribe, but there need to be significant improvements on both sides of the ball if they are to have a chance against Gonzaga. Only time will tell.
3) Duke ▲1
The confident away win that Duke came out of South Bend with was very impressive given all that had been going on in their program. The Blue Devils never trailed, ending up with a 10-point win over Notre Dame. They did nearly everything perfectly in the win, shooting over 50% from the field and from three, making all their free throws, dominating the glass, and only turning the ball over eight times. Ultimately, it was a positive performance from a Duke squad that needed a confidence boost.
4) Florida State ▼1
Florida State’s loss to UCF was an absolute stunner, especially given that they were up five at the break and lost the second half by 17. But the second half came mainly as a result of an offensive explosion by UCF, not because of anything the Noles did wrong. They still put up 35 points in the latter half, and their 13-point victory against Georgia Tech in the game before was impressive. Like every other coach in this conference, Leonard Hamilton still has some kinks to work out.
Tier 2
5) Clemson –
Clemson spent their first week ranked in the AP top 25 by losing to Virginia Tech on the road. The Tigers had gotten off to a good start, and losing their first road game of the season by two possessions is nothing to be ashamed of. The worry at this point is getting inside the paint. Half of their points came from beyond the arc against the Hokies, and their 43.8% field goal percentage to date is not good. Clemson needs to find some way to work the ball inside.
6) Syracuse ▲1
This is where things start to get really murky. Syracuse played two games this week, a confusing six-point win over Northeastern and an absolutely insane overtime victory over Buffalo. Neither team is very good, but the 16-point comeback and subsequent overtime dominance of Buffalo cushion the blow a little bit. Syracuse has proven that they can put points on the board, but with an often-spotty defense and inconsistent three-point shooting, there’s still a long way to go.
7) NC State ▲1
While NC State did suffer a loss to mid-major Saint Louis, by no means does that loss lower their stock much. Saint Louis is a very good team, one that the Wolfpack looked better than for a long time. Rebounding with a good win over Campbell, Kevin Keatts has to be happy with the way his team has played thus far. Devon Daniels and Jericole Hellems have looked good, and Cam Hayes has similarly been solid. NC State isn’t getting production out of some others, but that’s a pretty solid core regardless.
8) Louisville ▼2
25-4 was the score 11 minutes through Louisville’s game against Wisconsin, the top-25 contest looking like some random buy game that you might skim over. The Cardinals were absolutely run out of the gym by Wisonsin, turning the ball over 18 times and allowing the Badgers 22 assists on 31 made field goals. This was a massive setback for Louisville, who now has to travel to Pittsburgh for their first ACC game only three days later.
9) Miami –
Miami has looked absolutely horrendous over their last three games. Absolutely horrendous. They’ve been undoubtedly the worst team in the conference, more on par with teams like FGCU and Jacksonville than Pittsburgh. With that said, they are missing their two best players, which is why they stay put at ninth. Miami without Chris Lykes and Kameron McGusty is a bad team. With them? Well, we’ll know when they get back.
Tier 3
10) Georgia Tech –
Georgia Tech led the whole way in a win over a Florida A&M team that’s not as bad as their record indicates, and then picked up an easy 28-point victory over Delaware State. The two games haven’t provided much fresh information about the Yellow Jackets, simply reproving the dominance of Moses Wright and his quartet of guards. Georgia Tech hasn’t shot the ball well though, and their defense has been suspect on many an occasion.
11) Virginia Tech ▲1
The home win over Clemson was certainly impressive, as was the blowout of Coppin State. Not to sound like a broken record, but I need to see some consistency out of the Hokies before any sort of trust can be born. Until that point, they’re not moving much despite impressive play from some players, most prominently Keve Aluma.
12) Pittsburgh ▲1
Pitt is on a roll, there’s no other way to put it. Since the dumbfounding home loss to Saint Francis to open the season, they’ve won five in a row, one of which was against a Northwestern team that just knocked off Michigan State. The win over Miami doesn’t really amount to anything given those aforementioned injuries, but all the same the trio of Champagnie, Toney, and Johnson have been very strong.
13) Notre Dame ▼2
Losing to Duke is not a huge shock, but one would have expected Notre Dame to do better against Purdue. The Fighting Irish have been up and down in terms of wins and losses, but they have a decent core of players. However with Syracuse and Virginia coming up, the Irish are in real danger of losing four straight.
Tier 4
14) Wake Forest –
Wake hasn’t played a game in three weeks, and it’ll be a round month until they get to return to the court. They only got two games in before this tenuous break, so there’s still a ways to go before a legitimate assessment of the Demon Deacons can be made.
15) Boston College –
With no game this week and a 1-5 record, there’s not much to say about Boston College. They’ll get their second win at the expense of Maine on Tuesday before the brunt of the ACC schedule kicks in. The times are bleak for the Eagles.