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.
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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
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— 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* | WAB* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 1 Duke | 17–1 | 29–2 | 1 | 2 |
| No. 10 Virginia | 15–3 | 27–4 | 13 | 11 |
| Miami | 13–5 | 24–7 | 32 | 28 |
| No. 19 North Carolina | 12–6 | 24–7 | 23 | 19 |
| Clemson | 12–6 | 22–9 | 36 | 33 |
| No. 24 Louisville | 11–7 | 22–9 | 14 | 25 |
| N.C. State | 10–8 | 19–12 | 35 | 45 |
| Florida State | 10–8 | 17–14 | 69 | 74 |
| California | 9–9 | 21–10 | 65 | 49 |
| Stanford | 9–9 | 20–11 | 59 | 51 |
| SMU | 8–10 | 19–12 | 39 | 50 |
| Virginia Tech | 8–10 | 19–12 | 53 | 52 |
| Wake Forest | 7–11 | 16–15 | 64 | 81 |
| Syracuse | 6–12 | 15–16 | 83 | 92 |
| Pittsburgh | 5–13 | 12–19 | 109 | 146 |
| Notre Dame | 4–14 | 13–18 | 93 | 121 |
| Boston College | 4–14 | 11–20 | 159 | 217 |
| Georgia Tech | 2–16 | 11–20 | 167 | 210 |
* — Through Sunday games
Saturday’s results
No. 1 Duke 76, No. 19 North Carolina 61
Boston College 77, Notre Dame 69
Clemson 79, Georgia Tech 76
No. 24 Louisville 92, Miami 89
Florida State 92, SMU 78
Stanford 85, N.C. State 84
Wake Forest 80, California 73
Pittsburgh 71, Syracuse 69, OT
END OF REGULAR SEASON
ACC tournament
Spectrum Center | Charlotte
Tuesday through Saturday
| Date | Time/ scores | Month/day | Opponent/event (current ranks) | TV |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October | Exhibitions | |||
| 9 | W, 88–70 | Friday | vs. No. 21 USC in Greensboro | |
| 18 | L, 76–58 | Sunday | vs. Indiana in Indianapolis | |
| 27 | W, 89–82, OT | Tuesday | vs. Charlotte | |
| November | Regular season | |||
| 2 | W, 80–72 | Monday | vs. Western Carolina | 1–0 |
| 6 | 7 p.m. | Friday | vs. Wofford | ACCN |
| 10 | 7 p.m. | Tuesday | vs. Wyoming | ACCN |
| 13 | 7 p.m. | Friday | vs. Georgia | ESPN2 |
| 20 | 9 p.m. | Friday | vs. Marshall | ACCN |
| 23 | 7 p.m. | Monday | vs. Monmouth | ACCN |
| 27 | 7 p.m. | Friday | Dick Vitale Invitational vs. West Virginia in Charlotte | ESPN |
| December | ||||
| 1 | 7:30 | Tuesday | ACC/SEC Challenge vs. No. 12 Arkansas | ESPN |
| 6 | 3 p.m. | Sunday | vs. Butler | ESPN2 |
| 12 | Noon | Saturday | at Georgetown | Peacock |
| 15 | 7 p.m. | Tuesday | Tobacco Road Classic vs. N.C. State in Greensboro | ESPN2 |
| 19 | 2:30 | Saturday | CBS Sports Classic vs. No. 23 Kentucky in New York | CBS |
| 21 | 8 p.m. | Monday | vs. The Citadel | The CW |
| 30 | 4 p.m. | Wednesday | vs. California | ACCN |
| January | ||||
| 2 | 4 p.m. | Saturday | at Boston College | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 5 | 9 p.m. | Tuesday | at No. 11 Louisville | ESPN or ESPNU |
| 9 | Noon | Saturday | vs. N.C. State | ESPN2 |
| 13 | 7 p.m. | Wednesday | at Florida State | ESPN2 or ESPNU |
| 16 | 2:15 | Saturday | vs. Stanford | The CW |
| 19 | 9 p.m. | Tuesday | vs. No. 9 Virginia | ESPN |
| 23 | Noon | Saturday | at Syracuse | ESPN or 2 or U |
| 26 | 7 p.m. | Tuesday | vs. SMU | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 30 | 6 or 6:30 | Saturday | Nashville Hoops Showdown vs. No. 3 Illinois in Nashville, Tenn. | ESPN |
| February | ||||
| 2 | 7 p.m. | Tuesday | at Notre Dame | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 6 | 2:15 | Saturday | vs. Georgia Tech | The CW |
| 8 | 6 p.m. | Monday | vs. No. 11 Louisville | ESPN |
| 13 | 5:30 | Saturday | at No. 2 Duke | ABC |
| 20 | 7 p.m. | Saturday | at Wake Forest | ACCN |
| 22 | 7 p.m. | Monday | vs. No. 14 Miami | ESPN |
| 27 | 7 p.m. | Saturday | at Virginia Tech | ESPN |
| March | ||||
| 2 | 9 p.m. | Tuesday | at Pittsburgh | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 6 | 6 or 6:30 | Saturday | vs. No. 2 Duke | ESPN |
| 9–13 | Tues.-Sat. | ACC tournament in Greensboro |
Photo courtesy of UNC Athletics Communications
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