By R.L. Bynum
North Carolina moved up three spots in the AP Top 25 men’s basketball poll to No. 14 after holding on to beat Wake Forest 87–84 on Saturday.
The Tar Heels (14–2, 2–1 ACC) regained some of the poll position they lost after falling five spots the previous week following the 97–83 setback at SMU on Jan. 3.
UNC is among five ACC teams in the poll, led by No. 6 Duke (4–0, 15–1).
Louisville (12–4, 2–2) stayed at No. 20 after its 84–73 loss to the Blue Devils and Virginia (14–2, 3–1), jumped seven spots to No. 16, but SMU (12–4, 1–2) fell from No. 24 to out of the poll after road losses to Clemson (74–70) and Duke (82–75).
The Tigers (14–3, 4–0) debuted in the poll at No. 22 after beating SMU 74–70 and winning 76–61 at Notre Dame.
Four teams ahead of the Tar Heels in last week’s poll lost:
—Elliot Cadeau’s Michigan team (14–1), slipped two notches to No. 4 after its 91–88 home loss Saturday to Wisconsin.
—Alabama (11–5) plummeted five spots to No. 18 after losing to Vanderbilt 96–90 and Texas 92–88.
—Texas Tech (12–4) fell one spot to No. 15 after losing 69–65 to Houston.
—Arkansas (12–4) slipped two spots to No. 17 after getting blown out 95–73 by Auburn.
Vanderbilt (16–0), with former UNC players Tyler Nickel and Jalen Washington, moved up one spot to a season-high No. 10 after beating the Crimson Tide and also knocking off LSU 84–73.
Ranking UNC the highest at No. 12 is Zach Klein of WSB in Atlanta. Dylan Sinn of The Journal Gazette in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and Shane Mittlen of the Daily News-Record in Harrisonburg, Va., both left the Tar Heels off their ballots.
John Johnson of WXII voted UNC No. 13, Chris Lea of WRAL has the Heels No. 14 and Kate Rogerson of WTVD voted Carolina No. 16.
The most voters (28) had UNC No. 14.
More on Tar Heels
— Two games, one long week: Tar Heels brace for the Bay Area grind
— Why did ball not go to Wilson late? ‘I don’t want to even speak to that’
— UNC’s NET ranking unchanged, but two games upgraded to give Heels 10 more Quad 1 chances
— Heels ‘take foot off pedal,’ survive rough final minutes to win
— Watch, read about best games, biggest individual efforts in Smith Center history
AP Top 25
| Rank | School (1st-place votes) | Record | Poll points | Previous |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arizona (60) | 16–0 | 1,524 | 1 |
| 2 | Iowa State (1) | 16–0 | 1,448 | 3 |
| 3 | UConn | 16–1 | 1,358 | 4 |
| 4 | Michigan | 14–1 | 1,300 | 2 |
| 5 | Purdue | 15–1 | 1,253 | 5 |
| 6 | Duke | 15–1 | 1,237 | 6 |
| 7 | Houston | 15–1 | 1,130 | 7 |
| 8 | Nebraska | 16–0 | 1,056 | 10 |
| 9 | Gonzaga | 17–1 | 1,050 | 8 |
| 10 | Vanderbilt | 16–0 | 1,035 | 11 |
| 11 | BYU | 15–1 | 1,013 | 9 |
| 12 | Michigan State | 14–2 | 865 | 12 |
| 13 | Illinois | 13–3 | 778 | 16 |
| 14 | North Carolina | 14–2 | 659 | 17 |
| 15 | Texas Tech | 12–4 | 609 | 14 |
| 16 | Virginia | 14–2 | 515 | 23 |
| 17 | Arkansas | 12–4 | 492 | 15 |
| 18 | Alabama | 11–5 | 470 | 13 |
| 19 | Florida | 11–5 | 349 | NR |
| 20 | Louisville | 12–4 | 336 | 20 |
| 21 | Georgia | 14–2 | 227 | 18 |
| 22 | Clemson | 14–3 | 218 | NR |
| 23 | Utah State | 14–1 | 161 | NR |
| 24 | Tennessee | 11–5 | 140 | 21 |
| 25 | Seton Hall | 14–2 | 136 | NR |
Others receiving votes: Saint Louis 92, Kansas 60, Iowa 58, Miami (Ohio) 49, Villanova 40, Wisconsin 37, Miami 30, Texas A&M 23, UCF 18, Saint Mary’s 17, SMU 15, Auburn 14, George Mason 8, N.C. State 3, Southern Cal 1, St. John’s 1.
| Team | League | Overall | NET* |
|---|---|---|---|
| No. 6 Duke | 4–0 | 15–1 | 4 |
| No. 22 Clemson | 4–0 | 14–3 | 28 |
| Miami | 3–0 | 14–2 | 33 |
| No. 16 Virginia | 3–1 | 14–2 | 16 |
| N.C. State | 3–1 | 12–5 | 31 |
| No. 14 North Carolina | 2–1 | 14–2 | 23 |
| Syracuse | 2–1 | 11–5 | 67 |
| Stanford | 2–2 | 13–4 | 73 |
| Virginia Tech | 2–2 | 13–3 | 59 |
| No. 20 Louisville | 2–2 | 12–4 | 18 |
| No. 24 SMU | 1–2 | 12–4 | 24 |
| California | 1–2 | 12–4 | 71 |
| Notre Dame | 1–2 | 10–6 | 74 |
| Georgia Tech | 1–3 | 10–7 | 146 |
| Wake Forest | 1–3 | 10–7 | 63 |
| Boston College | 0–3 | 7–9 | 176 |
| Florida State | 0–3 | 7–9 | 133 |
| Pittsburgh | 0–3 | 7–9 | 111 |
* — Through Sunday games
Saturday’s results
No. 14 North Carolina 87, Wake Forest 84
No. 20 Louisville 75, Boston College 62
N.C. State 113, Florida State 69
Miami 91, Georgia Tech 81
No. 6 Duke 82, SMU 75
Syracuse 83, Pittsburgh 72
No. 23 Virginia 70, Stanford 55
Virginia Tech 78, California 75
No. 22 Clemson 76, Notre Dame 61
Tuesday’s games
No. 16 Virginia at No. 20 Louisville, 7 p.m., ESPN2
Miami at Notre Dame, 7 p.m., ESPNU
Boston College at No. 22 Clemson, 7 p.m, ACC Network
Florida State at Syracuse, 9 p.m, ACC Network
Wednesday’s games
Pittsburgh at Georgia Tech, 7 p.m., ACC Network
No. 14 North Carolina at Stanford, 9 p.m., ACC Network
Virginia Tech at SMU, 9 p.m., ESPN2 or ESPNU
No. 6 Duke at California, 11 p.m., ACC Network
Saturday’s games
No. 16 Virginia at SMU, noon, ESPN2 or ESPNU
Notre Dame at Virginia Tech, noon, ACC Network
Georgia Tech at N.C. State, noon, The CW
Syracuse at Boston College, 2 p.m., ACC Network
Miami at No. 22 Clemson, 2:15, The CW
No. 14 North Carolina at California, 4 p.m., ACC Network
No. 6 Duke at Stanford, 6 p.m., ACC Network
Wake Forest at Florida State, 6 p.m., ESPN
No. 20 Louisville at Pittsburgh, 8 p.m., ESPN2 or ESPNU
| Date | Month/day | Time | Opponent/event (current ranks) | TV/ record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October | ||||
| 24 | Friday | L, 78–76 | vs. No. 11 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. 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. 12 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. ETSU | 10–1 |
| CBS Sports Classic in Atlanta | ||||
| 20 | Saturday | W, 71–70 | vs. Ohio State | 11–1 |
| ————————— | ||||
| 22 | Monday | W, 99–51 | vs. East Carolina | 12–1 |
| 30 | Tuesday | W, 79–66 | vs. Florida State | 13–1, 1–0 ACC |
| January | ||||
| 3 | Saturday | L, 97–83 | at SMU | 13–2, 1–1 |
| 10 | Saturday | W, 87–84 | vs. Wake Forest | 14–2, 2–1 |
| 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 p.m. | at No. 16 Virginia | ESPN |
| 31 | Saturday | 2 p.m. | at Georgia Tech | ACCN |
| February | ||||
| 2 | Monday | 7 p.m. | vs. Syracuse | ESPN |
| 7 | Saturday | 6:30 | vs. No. 6 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. 20 Louisville | ESPN |
| 28 | Saturday | 6:30 or 8:30 | vs. Virginia Tech | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| March | ||||
| 3 | Tuesday | 7 p.m. | vs. No. 22 Clemson | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 7 | Saturday | 6:30 | at No. 6 Duke | ESPN |
| 10–14 | Tues.-Sat. | ACC tournament | Spectrum Center, Charlotte |
Photo courtesy of UNC Athletics Communications
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