By R.L. Bynum
North Carolina jumped six spots to No. 16 in the AP Top 25 men’s poll after a 2–0 week that included a road upset of Virginia, the biggest jump of any team in the poll.
It’s the first time UNC has been ranked in every poll this late in the season since making every poll in the 2024–25 season, when the Tar Heels were in the top 10 for 15 weeks. The Tar Heels’ highest rank this season was No. 12 on Dec. 15 and Dec. 22. UNC was also No. 16 in polls on Nov. 24 and Dec. 1.
The Tar Heels (16–4, 4–3 ACC) rolled to a 91–69 home victory over Notre Dame on Wednesday before giving the Cavaliers (16–3, 5–2) their first home loss, 85–80, dropping them three spots to No. 17.
Another ACC team to drop was Clemson (17–4, 7–1), which slipped four spots to No. 22 after losing in overtime at home to N.C. State 80–76.
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Duke (18–1, 7–0) moved up one spot to No. 4 after beating Wake Forest 90–69, taking advantage of Purdue (17–3), previously No. 4, losing 69–67 to UCLA and 88–92 to Illinois. The Boilermakers fell eight spots to No. 12.
The only other ACC team in the poll is Louisville (14–5, 4–3), which moved up three spots to No. 20 after beating Virginia Tech 85–71.
In addition to the Cavaliers and Tigers, four other teams that were eight or fewer spots ahead of UNC in last week’s poll, all from the SEC, lost:
— Vanderbilt (17–3), with former UNC players Tyler Nickel and Jalen Washington, dropped three spots to No. 18 after beating Mississippi State 88–56 but losing 93–68 to Arkansas (15–5), which moved up five spots to No. 15.
— Florida (14–6) dropped three spots to No. 19 after losing 76–67 to Auburn
— Alabama (13–6) plummeted six spots to No. 23 following a 79–73 loss to Tennessee.
— Georgia (16–4) fell from No. 21 to out of the poll after losing 87–67 to Texas.
Ian Jackson’s St. John’s team (15–5) returned to the poll at No. 25. The Red Storm were last ranked on Dec. 15, when they were No. 22, after being ranked No. 5 in the preseason poll.
Ranking UNC the highest at No. 13 is Brice Cherry of the Waco Tribune-Herald in Texas. Geoff Grammer of The Albuquerque Journal in New Mexico was the only voter to leave the Tar Heels off their ballot.
John Johnson of WXII ranked UNC No. 14, Kate Rogerson of WTVD voted the Heels No. 17 and WRAL’s Chris Lea ranked Carolina No. 20.
AP Top 25
| Rank | School | Record (1st-place votes) | Poll points | Previous |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arizona | 20–0 (60) | 1,500 | 1 |
| 2 | UConn | 19–1 | 1,402 | 2 |
| 3 | Michigan | 18–1 | 1,379 | 3 |
| 4 | Duke | 18–1 | 1,326 | 5 |
| 5 | Nebraska | 20–0 | 1,283 | 7 |
| 6 | Gonzaga | 21–1 | 1,097 | 8 |
| 7 | Michigan State | 18–2 | 1,072 | 10 |
| 8 | Iowa State | 18–2 | 1,070 | 9 |
| 9 | Illinois | 17–3 | 1,060 | 11 |
| 10 | Houston | 17–2 | 983 | 6 |
| 11 | Texas Tech | 16–4 | 939 | 12 |
| 12 | Purdue | 17–3 | 864 | 4 |
| 13 | BYU | 17–2 | 837 | 13 |
| 14 | Kansas | 15–5 | 614 | 19 |
| 15 | Arkansas | 15–5 | 568 | 20 |
| 16 | North Carolina | 16–4 | 528 | 22 |
| 17 | Virginia | 16–3 | 509 | 14 |
| 18 | Vanderbilt | 17–3 | 497 | 15 |
| 19 | Florida | 14–6 | 389 | 16 |
| 20 | Louisville | 14–5 | 297 | 23 |
| 21 | Saint Louis | 19–1 | 286 | 24 |
| 22 | Clemson | 17–4 | 245 | 18 |
| 23 | Alabama | 13–6 | 202 | 17 |
| 24 | Miami (OH) | 20–0 | 140 | 25 |
| 25 | St. John’s | 15–5 | 133 | NR |
Others receiving votes: Tennessee 88, Kentucky 51, Georgia 49, Iowa 30, Texas A&M 27, Auburn 15, N.C. State 8, SMU 4, Saint Mary’s 3, Utah St. 2, Villanova 2, Wisconsin 1.
| Team | League | Overall | NET* |
|---|---|---|---|
| No. 4 Duke | 7–0 | 18–1 | 3 |
| No. 22 Clemson | 7–1 | 17–4 | 31 |
| No. 17 Virginia | 5–2 | 16–3 | 14 |
| Miami | 5–2 | 16–4 | 37 |
| N.C. State | 5–2 | 14–6 | 27 |
| No. 16 North Carolina | 4–3 | 16–4 | 23 |
| SMU | 4–3 | 15–5 | 33 |
| No. 20 Louisville | 4–3 | 14–5 | 17 |
| Virginia Tech | 4–4 | 15–6 | 52 |
| California | 3–4 | 15–5 | 55 |
| Stanford | 3–4 | 14–6 | 72 |
| Syracuse | 3–4 | 12–8 | 79 |
| Georgia Tech | 2–5 | 11–9 | 145 |
| Notre Dame | 2–5 | 11–9 | 83 |
| Wake Forest | 2–5 | 11–9 | 67 |
| Boston College | 2–5 | 9–11 | 157 |
| Florida State | 1–6 | 8–12 | 113 |
| Pittsburgh | 1–6 | 8–12 | 126 |
* — Through Sunday games
Saturday’s results
No. 16 North Carolina 85, No. 17 Virginia 80
No. 22 Clemson 77, Georgia Tech 63
N.C. State 71, Pittsburgh 72
No. 4 Duke 90, Wake Forest 69
Miami 85, Syracuse 76
No. 20 Louisville 85, Virginia Tech 71
SMU 83, Florida State 80
Notre Dame 68, Boston College 64
California 78, Stanford 66
Monday’s game
No. 20 Louisville at No. 4 Duke, 7 p.m., ESPN
Tuesday’s games
Wake Forest at Pittsburgh, 6 p.m., ACC Network
No. 17 Virginia at Notre Dame, 7 p.m., ESPN2
Syracuse at N.C. State, 7 p.m., ESPN U
Georgia Tech at Virginia Tech, 8 p.m., ACC Network
Wednesday’s games
California at Florida State, 7 p.m., ACC Network
Stanford at Miami, 9 p.m., ACC Network
Saturday’s games
No. 4 Duke at Virginia Tech, noon, ESPN
Pittsburgh at No. 22 Clemson, noon, ACC Network
No. 17 Virginia at Boston College, 1:30, The CW
No. 16 North Carolina at Georgia Tech, 2 p.m., ACC Network
SMU at No. 23 Louisville, 2 p.m., ESPN
N.C. State at Wake Forest, 3:45, The CW
California at Miami, 4 p.m., ACC Network
Stanford at Florida State, 6 p.m., ACC Network
Notre Dame at Syracuse, 6 p.m., The CW
| Date | Month/day | Time | Opponent/event (current ranks) | TV/ record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October | ||||
| 24 | Friday | L, 78–76 | vs. No. 13 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. 14 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. 7 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 | L, 95–90 | at Stanford | 14–3, 2–2 |
| 17 | Saturday | L, 84–78 | at California | 14–4, 2–3 |
| 21 | Wednesday | W, 91–69 | vs. Notre Dame | 15–4, 3–3 |
| 24 | Saturday | W, 85–80 | at No. 17 Virginia | 16–4, 4–3 |
| 31 | Saturday | 2 p.m. | at Georgia Tech | ACCN |
| February | ||||
| 2 | Monday | 7 p.m. | vs. Syracuse | ESPN |
| 7 | Saturday | 6:30 | vs. No. 4 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. 4 Duke | ESPN |
| 10–14 | Tues.-Sat. | ACC tournament | Spectrum Center, Charlotte |
Photo courtesy of UNC Athletics
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