2023-24 ACC Basketball Power Rankings: Week 8

Sam Bass gives his ACC basketball power rankings heading into week 8 of the 2023 season.

Matchup of the week: Syracuse vs. Pittsburgh (Dec. 30 – Noon)

Sneaky good matchup of the week: Lipscomb vs. Florida State (Dec. 30 – Noon)

All games listed are EST.

1) Clemson Tigers

Last week’s ranking: 1

Record: 10-1 (1-0)

Last week: W vs. Queens (109-79)

Next week: vs. Radford (Dec. 29 – 7 p.m.)

Quality wins: at Alabama, at Pittsburgh, South Carolina, TCU, Davidson

Bad losses: N/A

After dropping their first game of the season a week ago, Clemson bounced back with a 30-point win over Queens. PJ Hall led the way for the Tigers, scoring 27, bringing his season average up to 20.7. Hall seems like a surefire first-teamer in the ACC is is absolutely in the early conversation for the conference’s Player of the Year.

2) North Carolina Tar Heels

Last week’s ranking: 3 (+1)

Record: 8-3 (1-0)

Last week: W vs. #7 Oklahoma (81-69)

Next week: vs. Charleston Southern (Dec. 29 – 8 p.m.)

Quality wins: Tennessee, Oklahoma, Arkansas

Bad losses: N/A

UNC finally got their top 25 win after dropping two such matchups in a row. The Tar Heels got off to a hot start in Charlotte and rode it to a 12-point win over once-undefeated Oklahoma. RJ Davis tallied 23 in the victory.

3) Virginia Cavaliers

Last week’s ranking: 2 (-1)

Record: 9-2 (1-0)

Last week: L vs. Memphis (77-54)

Next week: vs. Morgan State (Dec. 27 – 7 p.m.), at Notre Dame (Dec. 30 – Noon)

Quality wins: Texas A&M, Florida

Bad Losses: N/A

Memphis’ athleticism was too much for Virginia who struggled with the Tigers’ ball pressure and expanded defense. Virginia never got anything going on offense for more than three minutes, and Memphis took advantage of scoring droughts by pouring in buckets. Virginia needs a player to create their own outside shots, or these teams will continue to give them nightmares.

4) Duke Blue Devils

Last week’s ranking: 5 (+1)

Record: 8-3 (0-1)

Last week: W vs. #10 Baylor (78-70)

Next week: vs. Queens (Dec. 30 – 2 p.m.)

Quality wins: Baylor, Michigan State

Bad losses: N/A

Duke is starting to creep back on the radar of college hoops fans with a convincing win over a very solid Baylor squad. Jared McCain led all scorers with 21, and all of Duke’s starting five reached double figures. This balanced approach seems to be working for Duke, who are now winners of three straight with another buy game coming up.

5) Miami Hurricanes

Last week’s ranking: 4 (-1)

Record: 9-2 (1-0)

Last week: W vs. Stonehill (97-59)

Next week: vs. North Florida (Dec. 29 – 6 p.m.)

Quality wins: Kansas State, UCF

Bad losses: N/A

Miami throttled Stonehill in their lone matchup this week, pouring in 97 points in the 38-point win. The Hurricanes attempted an astounding 78 shots, including 39 three-point attempts. Although not a sustainable rate of attempts, it shows how aggressive Miami wants to be with the ball and how quick they want to pace of play to be.

6) North Carolina State Wolfpack

Last week’s ranking: 7 (+1)

Record: 9-3 (1-0)

Last week: W vs. Saint Louis (82-70), W vs. Detroit Mercy (83-66)

Next week: No games

Quality wins: Saint Louis

Bad losses: N/A

NC State picked up a nice win versus Saint Louis and then parlayed that with a buy-game win over Detroit Mercy. The Wolfpack are quietly 9-3 heading into ACC basketball play and could be an interesting contender to keep an eye on with a very streaky offense.

7) Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

Last week’s ranking: 6 (-1)

Record: 8-4 (1-0)

Last week: W vs. UMass (73-70), W vs. Hawai’i (73-68), L vs. Nevada (72-64)

Next week: No games

Quality wins: Duke, Mississippi State, Penn State, UMass

Bad losses: UMass Lowell

Georgia Tech went to Hawaii and won two games before finally being brought back down to earth with a loss to Nevada. It seemed like the Yellow Jackets would never lose again after their red-hot run, but alas, all good things must come to an end. GT enters conference play at 8-4, and although not the sexiest team on paper, is very dangerous for the rest of the league.

8) Syracuse Orange

Last week’s ranking: 8 (-)

Record: 9-3 (0-1)

Last week: W vs. Niagara (83-71)

Next week: vs. Pittsburgh (Dec. 30 – Noon)

Quality wins: Oregon

Bad losses: N/A

Syracuse continued to stack W’s with a nice home win versus Niagara. ‘Cuse was led by Judah Mintz, who scored 18 and is averaging just under 20 per game. The future NBA draft pick is dynamic on offense and can lift the Orange in conference play. A home matchup with Pitt before the New Year is the perfect way to see how legitimate Syracuse really is.

9) Virginia Tech Hokies

Last week’s ranking: 9 (-)

Record: 9-3 (1-0)

Last week: W vs. American (77-55)

Next week: at Wake Forest (Dec. 30 – 2 p.m.)

Quality wins: Iowa State

Bad losses: N/A

Virginia Tech is another middle-of-the-pack ACC basketball team that can pose problems for the top dogs. Lynn Kidd scored a career-high 31 points in the win over American last week on 14-of-15 shooting. The Hokies travel to Winston-Salem for a matchup with the Demon Deacons this weekend, which will be an excellent game.

10) Wake Forest Demon Deacons

Last week’s ranking: 10 (-)

Record: 8-3 (0-0)

Last week: W vs. Delaware State (88-59), W vs. Presbyterian (91-68)

Next week: vs. Virginia Tech (Dec. 30 – 2 p.m.)

Quality wins: Florida, Rutgers

Bad losses: N/A

Wake has quietly put together an 8-3 non-conference record. They have a couple of quality wins and no bad losses. Do not be so quick to call the Demon Deacons a contender, but do not write them off by any means. They host Virginia Tech in their conference opener, trying to continue to put wins on the board and make noise in the ACC.

11) Boston College Eagles

Last week’s ranking: 11 (-)

Record: 9-3 (0-1)

Last week: W vs. Lehigh (85-69)

Next week: No games

Quality wins: St. John’s, Richmond

Bad losses: Loyola Chicago

Since falling to NC State in overtime, BC has played some really solid ball. They are winners of four straight, the most recent being a 17-point win over Lehigh. Claudell Harris Jr. posted 29 points on 10-of-15 shooting, and Quinten Post added 13, dropping his season average to 18.3. This team could be sneaky in 2024.

12) Pittsburgh Panthers

Last week’s ranking: 12 (-)

Record: 9-3 (0-1)

Last week: W vs. Purdue Fort Wayne (62-48)

Next week: at Syracuse (Dec. 30 – Noon)

Quality wins: N/A

Bad losses: N/A

Pitt struggled offensively against Purdue FW but picked up the slack on defense, holding the Mastodons to just 33.9% shooting on the night. Pitt is currently bordering the bottom tier and middle tier in the ACC, but a win over Syracuse would definitely take them off the border.

13) Florida State Seminoles

Last week’s ranking: 13 (-)

Record: 6-5 (0-1)

Last week: W vs. North Florida (91-75), W vs. Winthrop (67-61)

Next week: vs. Lipscomb (Dec. 30 – Noon)

Quality wins: Colorado

Bad losses: South Florida

FSU won two games to get back over .500. The Noles have an interesting scheme, as they poured out 91 points against UNF, but just 67 in a narrow win over Winthrop. Hosting Lipscomb makes for an interesting matchup the day before New Year’s Eve.

14) Louisville Cardinals

Last week’s ranking: 14 (-)

Record: 5-7 (0-1)

Last week: L vs. #9 Kentucky (95-76)

Next week: No games

Quality wins: N/A

Bad losses: Chattanooga, DePaul, Arkansas State

No one expected Louisville to beat Kentucky, right? Not much to say about the Cardinals, who could not complete the impossible this week. They now have a nice break before starting conference play in 2024, hoping to shock the world.

15) Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Last week’s ranking: 15 (-)

Record: 5-7 (0-1)

Last week: L vs. The Citadel (65-45), W vs. Marist (60-56)

Next week: vs. Virginia (Dec. 30 – Noon)

Quality wins: N/A

Bad losses: Western Carolina, The Citadel

ND lost another buy game, narrowly escaping two in a week when they beat Marist by just 4. They host Virginia this week, hoping for a major upset on a slumping team.