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* | 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
Non-conference schedule
| Date | Month/day | Opponent/event (final ranks) |
|---|---|---|
| October | Exhibitions | |
| 9 | 7 p.m. Friday | vs. USC in Greensboro |
| 18 | 5 p.m. Sunday | vs. Indiana in Indianapolis |
| 27 | Tuesday | vs. Charlotte |
| November | Regular season | |
| 2 | Monday | vs. Western Carolina |
| 6 | Friday | vs. Wofford |
| 10 | Tuesday | vs. Wyoming |
| 13 | Friday | vs. Georgia |
| 20 | Friday | vs. Marshall |
| 23 | Monday | vs. Monmouth |
| 27 | Friday | Dick Vitale Invitational vs. West Virginia in Charlotte |
| December | ||
| 1 | Tuesday | ACC/SEC Challenge vs. No. 13 Arkansas |
| 6 | Sunday | vs. Butler |
| 12 | Saturday | at Georgetown |
| 15 | Tuesday | Tobacco Road Classic vs. N.C. State in Greensboro |
| 19 | 2:30 Saturday, CBS | CBS Sports Classic vs. Kentucky in New York |
| 21 | Monday | vs. The Citadel |
| January | ||
| 30 | Saturday | Nashville Hoops Showdown vs. No. 5 Illinois in Nashville, Tenn. |
ACC opponents
Home and away: Duke and Louisville
Home only: California, Georgia Tech, Miami, N.C. State, SMU, Stanford and Virginia
Away only: Boston College, Florida State, Notre Dame, Pitt, Syracuse, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest
Don’t play: Clemson
Photo courtesy of UNC Athletics
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