By R.L. Bynum
North Carolina fell three spots to No. 10 in the AP Top 25 men’s poll Monday as the Tar Heels were one of four top-10 teams in last week’s poll to lose.
The league-leading Tar Heels (20–6, 12–3 ACC) split a pair of ACC games last week, losing 86–79 at Syracuse on Tuesday before beating Virginia Tech 96–81 at home on Saturday. Carolina’s 1,044 poll points were its fewest since garnering 954 in the Dec. 25 poll, when it was No. 9.
UNC has a half-game ACC lead over Duke (20–5, 11–3), which slid up one spot to No. 8 after wins over Wake Forest (77–69) and Florida State (76–67). That extended the Blue Devils’ win streak to four since their 93–84 loss at UNC on Feb. 3, when Jeremy Roach says Duke got “punked”.
Duke can tie Carolina, which doesn’t have a mid-week game, for the ACC lead with a victory at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Miami (ESPN).
Virginia (20–7, 11–5), which is 1½ games back of UNC, was No. 21 but fell out of the poll with the 26th-most poll points after losing at home to Pittsburgh 74–63 but beating Wake Forest 49–47 in Charlottesville. The Cavaliers, who lost 75–41 at Virginia Tech on Monday, host Carolina at 4 p.m. Saturday (ESPN).
Eight consecutive weeks in the top 10 matches Carolina’s longest streak during one season since doing it for the final eight 2019 polls. It’s the longest top-10 streak since the Tar Heels did it 13 straight weeks over two seasons from Jan. 28, 2019, to Dec. 2, 2019.
Voting UNC the highest at No. 5 was Chris Murray of Nevada Sports Net, and Darnell Dickers of the Daily Herald in Provo, Utah, voted the Tar Heels the lowest at No. 13. Two voters, including Dick Vitale had UNC No. 6, with eight — including Rodd Baxley of The Fayetteville Observer — putting the Tar Heels No. 7 and eight voting UNC No. 8.
Kate Rogerson of WTVD and JB Ricks of Spectrum News each voted Carolina No. 10.
In other metrics, UNC is sixth in KPI, ninth in the NET rankings, 10th in KenPom, and 12th in both BPI and Bart Torvik’s T-Rank.
Although the average of 102 bracket projections on Bracket Matrix has Carolina as the third-highest seeded No. 2 team, the Tar Heels were the top No. 2 team in the NCAA tournament’s early bracket reveal on Saturday before their win over Virginia Tech.
Teams ahead of UNC in last week’s poll to lose were:
—Purdue (23–3), which fell one spot to No. 3 after a 73–69 loss to unranked Ohio State days after the Buckeyes fired head coach Chris Holtmann.
—Marquette (19–6), which dropped three spots to No. 7 after losing 81–53 to No. 1 UConn.
—Kansas (20–6), which fell three spots to No. 9 after losing 79–50 at Texas Tech and beating Oklahoma 67–57.
South Carolina suffered the largest fall in the poll, plummeting nine spots to No. 20 after losing to Auburn 101–61 and LSU 64–63.
Caleb Love’s Arizona team (20–5) moved up one spot to No. 4 after a 105–60 home win over rival Arizona State.
Kerwin Walton’s Texas Tech team (18–7) returned to the poll at No. 23 after a one-week absence after the Red Raiders followed up the win over Kansas with an 82–74 loss at Iowa State (20–5), which jumped four spots to No. 6.
UNC is 2–2 against teams currently ranked, with wins against No. 5 Tennessee (19–6) and No. 8 Duke and losses against No. 1 UConn (24–2) and No. 17 Kentucky (18–7).
AP Top 25
| Ranking | Team | Record | Poll points | Previous |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | UConn (62 first-place votes) | 24–2 | 1,550 | 1 |
| 2 | Houston | 22–3 | 1,473 | 3 |
| 3 | Purdue | 23–3 | 1,414 | 2 |
| 4 | Arizona | 20–5 | 1,373 | 5 |
| 5 | Tennessee | 19–6 | 1,230 | 8 |
| 6 | Iowa State | 20–5 | 1,160 | 10 |
| 7 | Marquette | 19–6 | 1,114 | 4 |
| 8 | Duke | 20–5 | 1,116 | 9 |
| 9 | Kansas | 20–6 | 1,065 | 6 |
| 10 | North Carolina | 20–6 | 1,044 | 7 |
| 11 | Baylor | 19–6 | 959 | 12 |
| 12 | Illinois | 19–6 | 853 | 14 |
| 13 | Alabama | 18–7 | 803 | 15 |
| 14 | Auburn | 20–6 | 690 | 13 |
| 15 | Creighton | 19–7 | 612 | 17 |
| 16 | Dayton | 21–4 | 584 | 16 |
| 17 | Kentucky | 18–7 | 540 | 22 |
| 18 | Saint Mary’s (CA) | 21–6 | 486 | 18 |
| 19 | San Diego State | 20–6 | 374 | NR |
| 20 | South Carolina | 21–5 | 346 | 11 |
| 21 | Washington State | 20–6 | 215 | NR |
| 22 | Colorado State | 20–6 | 171 | NR |
| 23 | Texas Tech | 18–7 | 135 | NR |
| 24 | Florida | 18–7 | 124 | NR |
| 25 | BYU | 18–7 | 123 | 19 |
Others receiving votes: Virginia 103, Gonzaga 99, Wisconsin 88, Michigan State 64, TCU 54, South Florida 45, New Mexico 27, FAU 27, Utah State 22, Grand Canyon 16, Nevada 11, Pittsburgh 4, Clemson 3, Appalachian State 1, McNeese 1, Drake 1.
UNC season statistics
| Team | League | Overall | NET* |
|---|---|---|---|
| No. 3 Duke | 0–0 | 11–0 | 2 |
| California | 0–0 | 10–1 | 63 |
| No. 12 North Carolina | 0–0 | 10–1 | 15 |
| No. 23 Virginia | 0–0 | 9–1 | 21 |
| Miami | 0–0 | 10–2 | 33 |
| Virginia Tech | 0–0 | 10–2 | 58 |
| No. 11 Louisville | 0–0 | 9–2 | 17 |
| SMU | 0–0 | 9–2 | 43 |
| Stanford | 0–0 | 8–2 | 98 |
| Clemson | 0–0 | 9–3 | 32 |
| Notre Dame | 0–0 | 9–3 | 65 |
| Wake Forest | 0–0 | 9–3 | 59 |
| N.C. State | 0–0 | 8–4 | 34 |
| Georgia Tech | 0–0 | 7–4 | 189 |
| Syracuse | 0–0 | 7–4 | 96 |
| Pittsburgh | 0–0 | 6–6 | 154 |
| Boston College | 0–0 | 5–6 | 177 |
| Florida State | 0–0 | 5–6 | 148 |
* — Through Wednesday games
Tuesday’s results
No. 12 North Carolina 77, East Tennessee State 58
No. 3 Duke 97, Lipscomb 73
No. 20 Tennessee 83, No. 11 Louisville 62
Dayton 97, Florida State 69
Clemson 68, South Carolina 61
Miami 98, Florida International 81
Georgia Tech 87, Marist 76
Wednesday’s results
N.C. State 108, Texas Southern 72
Pittsburgh 103, Binghamton 6
Syracuse 76, Mercyhurst 62
Wake Forest 71, Longwood 68
UT Arlington at Stanford, 10 p.m., ACCN Extra
Friday’s games
Mississippi Valley State at Florida State, 7 p.m., ACCN Extra
Morgan State at California, 10 p.m., ACCN Extra
Saturday’s games
Montana at No. 11 Louisville, noon, ACCN Extra
Lafayette at Georgia Tech, 2 p.m., ACCN Extra
Elon at Virginia Tech, 2 p.m., ACCN Extra
Ohio State vs. No. 12 North Carolina at CBS Sports Classic in Atlanta, 3 p.m., CBS
Northeastern at Syracuse, 4 p.m., ACCN Extra
Maryland at No. 23 Virginia, 6 p.m., ESPN
No. 3 Duke at No. 16 Texas Tech, 8 p.m., ESPN
Stanford at Colorado, 8 p.m., ESPNU
Sunday’s games
Penn State vs. Pittsburgh in Hershey, Pa., noon, Big Ten Network
Ole Miss vs. N.C. State in Greensboro, 1 p.m., ESPN
No. 13 Vanderbilt at Wake Forest, 1 p.m., The CW
Purdue Ft. Wayne at Notre Dame, 2 p.m., ACCN Extra
Central Arkansas at SMU, 2 p.m., ACCN Extra
Cincinnati vs. Clemson in Greenville, S.C., 3 p.m., ESPN
North Florida at Miami, 4 p.m., ACC Network
Columbia at California, 5 p.m., ACCN Extra
Monday’s games
American at Virginia, 6 p.m., ACCN Extra
Jacksonville at Florida State, 7 p.m., ACCN Extra
Stonehill at Syracuse, 7 p.m., ACCN Extra
Fairleigh Dickinson at Boston College, 7 p.m., ACCN Extra
East Carolina at No. 12 North Carolina, 8 p.m., ACC Network
| Date | Month/day | Time | Opponent/event (current ranks) | TV/ record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October | ||||
| 24 | Friday | L, 78–76 | vs. No. 10 BYU in SLC | Exhib. |
| 29 | Wednesday | W, 95–53 | vs. Winston-Salem St. | Exhib. |
| November | ||||
| 3 | Monday | W, 94–54 | vs. Central Arkansas | 1–0 |
| 7 | Friday | W, 87–74 | vs. No. 17 Kansas | 2–0 |
| 11 | Tuesday | W, 89–74 | vs. Radford | 3–0 |
| 14 | Friday | W, 97–53 | vs. N.C. Central | 4–0 |
| 18 | Tuesday | W, 73–61 | vs. Navy | 5–0 |
| Fort Myers Tip-Off | ||||
| 25 | Tuesday | W, 85–70 | vs. St. Bonaventure | 6–0 |
| 27 | Thursday | L, 74–58 | vs. No. 9 Michigan State | 6–1 |
| December | ACC/SEC Men’s Challenge | |||
| 2 | Tuesday | W, 67–64 | at Kentucky | 7–1 |
| ————————— | ||||
| 7 | Sunday | W, 81–61 | vs. Georgetown | 8–1 |
| 13 | Saturday | W, 80–62 | vs. USC Upstate | 9–1 |
| 16 | Tuesday | W, 77–58 | vs. East Tennessee State | 10–1 |
| CBS Sports Classic in Atlanta | ||||
| 20 | Saturday | 3 p.m. | vs. Ohio State | CBS |
| ————————— | ||||
| 22 | Monday | 8 p.m. | vs. East Carolina | ACCN |
| 30 | Tuesday | 7 p.m. | vs. Florida State | ESPN2 |
| January | ||||
| 3 | Saturday | 2:15 | at SMU | The CW |
| 10 | Saturday | 6 p.m. | vs. Wake Forest | ACCN |
| 14 | Wednesday | 9 p.m. | at Stanford | ACCN |
| 17 | Saturday | 4 p.m. | at California | ACCN |
| 21 | Wednesday | 7 p.m. | vs. Notre Dame | ESPN2 |
| 24 | Saturday | 2 or 2:30 | at No. 23 Virginia | ESPN or ESPNU |
| 31 | Saturday | 2 p.m. | at Georgia Tech | ACCN |
| February | ||||
| 2 | Monday | 7 p.m. | vs. Syracuse | ESPN |
| 7 | Saturday | 6:30 | vs. No. 3 Duke | ESPN |
| 10 | Tuesday | 7 p.m. | at Miami | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 14 | Saturday | 2 p.m. | vs. Pittsburgh | ESPN |
| 17 | Tuesday | 7 p.m. | at N.C. State | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 21 | Saturday | 1 p.m. | at Syracuse | ABC |
| 23 | Monday | 7 p.m. | vs. No. 11 Louisville | ESPN |
| 28 | Saturday | 6:30 or 8:30 | vs. Virginia Tech | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| March | ||||
| 3 | Tuesday | 7 p.m. | vs. Clemson | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 7 | Saturday | 6:30 | at No. 3 Duke | ESPN |
| 10–14 | Tues.-Sat. | ACC tournament | Spectrum Center, Charlotte |
Photo via @UNC_Basketball
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