2022-23 ACC Basketball Power Rankings: Week 1

Sam Bass gives his ACC basketball power rankings for week 1 of the 2022-23 college basketball season.

Matchup of the week: Kansas vs Duke

Sneaky good matchup of the week: Baylor vs Virginia

All games listed are EST

1) North Carolina Tar Heels

Last week ranking: 1 (-)

Record: 2-0

Last week: UNC Wilmington (W) 69-56, Charleston (W) 102-86

Next week: Gardner-Webb (Nov. 15 – 8 p.m.), James Madison (Nov. 20 – 12 p.m.)

Best wins: UNC Wilmington, Charleston

Worst losses: N/A

North Carolina may not have looked like the best team in the country this week, but it is a tall task to show that in the first week of the season against opponents that they are supposed to trample. The Tar Heels took care of business against UNCW, although looking sloppy at times in the second half. Charleston gave them some trouble, though, leading the top-ranked team by seven into halftime, but UNC left no doubt, scoring 59 points in a monstrous second half. This team is getting its feet wet, and when they do, they are borderline unbeatable.

2) Duke Blue Devils

Last week ranking: 2 (-)

Record: 2-0

Last week: Jacksonville (W) 71-44, SC Upstate (W) 84-38

Next week: #5 Kansas (Nov. 15 – 9:30 p.m.), Delaware (Nov. 18 – 7 p.m.)

Best wins: Jacksonville, SC Upstate

Worst losses: N/A

Duke took care of business when it needed to. Jon Scheyer got his first win as the head coach of Duke, and the Blue Devils are off to a smooth 2-0 start, as expected. Duke faces its first real test when it has a matchup Kansas on Tuesday, and the true standing of the team will be shown.

3) Virginia Cavaliers

Last week ranking: 3 (-)

Record: 2-0

Last week: NC Central (W) 73-61, North Dakota State (W) 89-42

Next week: Northern Iowa (Nov. 14  – 8 p.m.), #5 Baylor (Nov. 18 – 7 p.m.)

Best wins: NC Central, Monmouth

Worst losses: N/A

Virginia finally saw the 3-point shooting it so desperately desired from a season ago in the two wins this week. Armaan Franklin looks more confident in his stroke, Ben Vander Plas has been a pleasant addition, and Isaac McKneely is game ready. The Cavaliers look back to form and look again like an ACC powerhouse.

4) Miami Hurricanes

Last week ranking: 5 (+1)

Record: 2-0

Last week: Lafayette (W) 67-54, UNC Greensboro (W) 79-65

Next week: FAMU (Nov. 15, 7 p.m.), Providence (Nov. 19, 4 p.m.)

Best wins: Lafayette, UNCW

Worst losses: N/A

The wildcard in the ACC, Miami won both of its buy games and did so with ease. Isaiah Wong averaged 15.5 this week and was a catalyst for the Hurricane offense, which is quick and relies on pace of play. The Hurricanes are a team to watch in the ACC, and a game against a Big East team in Providence can show just how good Miami is.

5) Syracuse Orange

Last week ranking: 7 (+2)

Record: 1-0

Last week: Lehigh (W) 90-72

Next week: Colgate (Nov. 15, 7 p.m.), Northeastern (Nov. 19, 2 p.m.)

Best wins: Lehigh

Worst losses: N/A

Jesse Edwards looked like a monster in the middle for the Orange, posting 18 points and 11 boards in the team’s lone win this week. Joe Girard is more than capable of leading a team, and Judah Mintz fits into the system like a glove.

6) Wake Forest Demon Deacons

Last week ranking: 10 (+4)

Record: 2-0

Last week: Fairfield (W) 71-59, Georgia (W) 81-71

Next week: Utah Valley (Nov. 15 – 7 p.m.), La Salle (Nov. 18, 2 p.m.)

Best wins: Fairfield, Georgia

Worst losses: N/A

Wake got off to arguably the best start of any ACC team, beating Georgia pretty handily. Daivien Williamson averaged 19 points over the week, scoring 25 in the team’s big win.

7) Virginia Tech Hokies

Last week ranking: 8 (+1)

Record: 2-0

Last week: Delaware State (W) 95-57, Lehigh (W) 80-43, William & Mary (W) 94-77

Next week: Old Dominion (Nov. 17, 2 p.m.)

Best wins: Lehigh, William & Mary

Worst losses: N/A

Mike Young and the reigning ACC Champs rolled through an easy week this week. Grant Basile posted a 30-point game on 12-of-16 shooting in Virginia Tech’s opener. Sean Pedulla quietly scored 18 or more in all three of the Hokies opening week contests.

8) North Carolina State Wolfpack

Last week ranking: 9 (+1)

Record: 2-0

Last week: Austin Peay (W) 99-50, Campbell (W) 73-67

Next week: FIU (Nov. 15 – 9 p.m.), Elon (Nov. 19 – 1 p.m.)

Best wins: Austin Peay, Campbell

Worst losses: N/A

It was a tough second game for the Wolfpack, but they were able to squeeze out a win and avoid the epitome of brutality (shoutout to Jon Rothstein.) Despite such a close game, NC State did not trail in the second half of that game, and Terquavion Smith had a nice 19-point game, shooting over 50% from the field.

9) Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Last week ranking: 6 (-3)

Record: 2-0

Last week: Radford (W) 79-76, Youngstown State (W) 88-81

Next week: Southern Indiana (Nov. 16 – 8 p.m.), Lipscomb (Nov. 18, 7 p.m.)

Best wins: Youngstown State, Radford

Worst losses: N/A

A very scary opening night for Notre Dame, as they trailed Radford with under a minute to play, ultimately rallying and squeezing out a win. Some things, particularly the defense, need to be smoothed out for this team moving forward, but they have no problem scoring the rock, and Nate Laszewski is still an elite college player.

10) Boston College Eagles

Last week ranking: 14 (+4)

Record: 2-0

Last week: Cornell (W) 79-77, Detroit Mercy (W) 70-66

Next week: Maine (Nov. 14 – 6 p.m.), George Mason (Nov. 18 – 8 p.m.)

Best wins: Cornell, Detroit Mercy

Worst losses: N/A

No one expected Boston College to be an elite team, and two close wins in buy games are about what to expect. Nonetheless, jobs were taken care of and the Eagles start their season at 2-0.

11) Pittsburgh Panthers

Last week ranking: 13 (+2)

Record: 1-1

Last week: UT Martin (W) 80-58, West Virginia (L) 56-81

Next week: #22 Michigan (Nov. 16 – 6 p.m.), Alabama State (Nov. 20 – 2 p.m.)

Best wins: UT Martin

Worst losses: West Virginia

It was quite the tale of two games for Pitt, handling UT Martin with ease and then looking lost when it hosted West Virginia. The Panthers shot below 27% from beyond the arc in both games they played as well.

12) Clemson Tigers

Last week ranking: 12 (-)

Record: 1-1

Last week: The Citadel (W) 80-69, @ South Carolina (L) 60-58

Next week: SC Upstate (Nov. 15 – 7 p.m.), Bellarmine (Nov. 18 – 7 p.m.)

Best wins: The Citadel

Worst losses: South Carolina

Clemson was very close to grabbing an early resume booster on the road against in-state rival South Carolina. However, a loss to a power five team on the road cannot hurt them too much, and a hot start otherwise could make Clemson a surprise in the conference. Chase Hunter averaged 18 points per game in Clemson’s first two contests, 11 more than he averaged all of last season.

13) Florida State Seminoles

Last week ranking: 4 (-9)

Record: 0-2

Last week: Stetson (L) 74-83, @ UCF (L) 54-68

Next week: Troy (Nov. 14 – 7 p.m.), Florida (Nov. 18 – 8 p.m.)

Best wins: N/A

Worst losses: Stetson

There really could not have been a worse start for the Seminoles. Losing to Stetson at home by nine was not the start FSU was looking for. Losing on the road at UCF is not great, but that game definitely was not a guaranteed Florida State win. However, the Seminoles not only lost, but they were also flat-out embarrassed, especially on the offensive end. Leonard Hamilton’s squad has a lot to work on before their next week of play to try to get back on track.

14) Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

Last week ranking: 15 (+1)

Record: 2-0

Last week: Clayton State (W) 93-63, Georgia State (W) 59-57

Next week: NIU (Nov. 17 – 8 p.m.)

Best wins: Georgia State

Worst losses: N/A

Georgia Tech began their season against division two opponent Clayton State (yes, I had to look that up,) and then battled Georgia State to the wire to squeeze out the win. The Yellow Jackets had an eight-point lead with less than three minutes in that game and allowed Georgia State to crawl back in, creating quite the nail-biter. NIU should be an easy task, but the following week could prove troublesome in Atlanta.

15) Louisville Cardinals

Last week ranking: 11 (-4)

Record: 0-2

Last week: Bellarmine (L) 67-66, Wright State (L) 73-72

Next week: Appalachian State (Nov. 15 – 6 p.m.)

Best wins: N/A

Worst losses: Bellarmine, Wright State

What’s worse than losing a buy game by one point? Losing two buy games by one point. Louisville lost their second straight game on a Wright State buzzer beater, which was just icing on the cake after losing their previous game by a point as well. Kenny Payne still seeks his first win in Louisville.