Sam Bass gives his ACC basketball power rankings heading into week 18 of the 2024-25 season.
Matchup of the week: Duke vs. North Carolina (Mar. 8 – 6:30 p.m.)
Sneaky good matchup of the week: Louisville vs. Stanford (Mar. 8 – 2 p.m.)
All games in EST.
1) Duke Blue Devils
Last week’s ranking: 1 (-)
Record: 26-3 (17-1)
Last week: W vs. Miami (97-60), W vs. Florida State (100-65)
Next week: vs. Wake Forest (Mar. 3 – 7 p.m.), at North Carolina (Mar. 8 – 6:30 p.m.)
Quality wins: Auburn, at Arizona, at SMU, at Wake Forest
Bad losses: None
Duke continues to roll, having only one conference loss and putting together an undeniable one seed campaign. They hold a one game lead over Clemson and Louisville, and clinch the ACC outright with two wins this week. They also clinch the top seed in the ACC Tournament with two wins or a win and a Clemson loss. Standing in the way is a struggling Wake team and rival North Carolina. Grab your popcorn.
2) Clemson Tigers
Last week’s ranking: 2 (-)
Record: 24-5 (16-2)
Last week: W vs. Notre Dame (83-68), W vs. Virginia (71-58)
Next week: at Boston College (Mar. 6 – 7 p.m.), vs. Virginia Tech (Mar. 8 – 6 p.m.)
Quality wins: Duke, Kentucky, San Francisco, North Carolina
Bad losses: Georgia Tech
Clemson has gone from “good because they are in the ACC” to “legitimate Final Four contender” in the month of February. Their two-loss ACC season most recently saw a comeback win on the road against Virginia. The Tigers have been cruising this year. They need a Duke loss and to win out to win a share of the league, but, nonetheless, Clemson has already clinched a double bye in the ACCT.
3) Louisville Cardinals
Last week’s ranking: 3 (-)
Record: 23-6 (16-2)
Last week: W vs. Virginia Tech (71-66), W vs. Pittsburgh (79-68)
Next week: vs. Cal (Mar. 5 – 9 p.m.), vs. Stanford (Mar. 8 – 2 p.m.)
Quality wins: Clemson, at SMU, West Virginia
Bad losses: at Georgia Tech
Louisville, like Clemson, has clinched a double bye in the ACCT, and, like Clemson as well, needs to win out with a Duke loss to win part of the ACC. Likely, Louisville will have the 2 seed in the ACC Tournament, as they have a tie breaker over Clemson, and to move up to the one, Duke would have to lose twice, as they do not have the tiebreaker over Duke.
4) North Carolina Tar Heels
Last week’s ranking: 6 (+2)
Record: 19-11 (12-6)
Last week: W vs. Florida (96-85), W vs. Miami (92-73)
Next week: at Virginia (Mar. 4 – 7 p.m.), vs. Duke (Mar. 8 – 6:30 p.m.)
Quality wins: Dayton, UCLA
Bad losses: Stanford
UNC has been playing some great basketball as of late. Hubert Davis made rotation changes and now has his lineup more spread out and playing positions more comfortable to them, and it has worked to a tee. The Tar Heels are now tied for fourth in the conference, looking to lock up a double bye and help their case for the NCAA Tournament, but they travel to Virginia and host Duke in a tough week.
5) Wake Forest Demon Deacons
Last week’s ranking: 4 (-1)
Record: 20-9 (12-6)
Last week: L vs. Virginia (83-75), W vs. Notre Dame (74-71)
Next week: at Duke (Mar. 3 – 7 p.m.), vs. Georgia Tech (Mar. 8 – 2:15 p.m.)
Quality wins: Michigan, at SMU
Bad losses: Florida State, Virginia
Wake’s season took a real hit this week, losing to Virginia at home and all but squandered their chance at an at-large NCAAT bid. They barely beat Notre Dame, but avoided total disaster by winning by 3. Wake now has a chance for resurrection, as a win on Duke’s home court would put them back in the field of 68 without question. However, if that does not happen, which is likely, Wake is not only outside the tournament, but they will also fall out of position for the fourth seed in the ACC.
6) SMU Mustangs
Last week’s ranking: 5 (-1)
Record: 21-8 (12-6)
Last week: W vs. Cal (81-77), L vs. Stanford (73-68)
Next week: vs. Syracuse (Mar. 4 – 9 p.m.), at Florida State (Mar. 8 – 4 p.m.)
Quality wins: LSU, Washington State
Bad losses: None
SMU is quietly making a bit of a case right now for an at-large bid, although a loss at Stanford does not help their cause. Right now, the Mustangs are 12-6 in conference and only have 8 losses overall. The problem is the weakness of their resume, as their best win is over LSU early in the year. SMU needs to win two games in the ACC Tournament on top of these next two contests to be confident for an invite to the field.
7) Stanford Cardinal
Last week’s ranking: 7 (-)
Record: 19-10 (11-7)
Last week: W vs. Boston College (78-60), W vs. SMU (73-68)
Next week: at Notre Dame (Mar. 5 – 9 p.m.), at Louisville (Mar. 8 – 2 p.m.)
Quality wins: at Santa Clara, SMU
Bad losses: Cal Poly
Stanford picked up two nice wins this week, beating BC handily before picking up a nice win over SMU. Stanford needs to win the ACC to make the tournament, but closing the year with a win at Louisville would be a great way to cap off a solid first season in the conference.
8) Florida State Seminoles
Last week’s ranking: 8 (-)
Record: 16-13 (7-11)
Last week: L vs. North Carolina (96-85), L vs. Duke (100-65)
Next week: at Virginia (Mar. 4 – 9 p.m.), vs. SMU (Mar. 8 – 4 p.m.)
Quality wins: at Rice, at Pittsburgh, at Wake Forest
Bad losses: at Cal, Virginia Tech, at Boston College
FSU lost two tough ones this week to drop them to four games below the .500 mark in league play. They play Virginia and SMU, and the only thing for the Noles to do to cap off Leonard Hamilton’s career, besides make a miraculous run to win the ACC, is end SMU’s season by putting a final blemish on their resume.
9) Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Last week’s ranking: 10 (+1)
Record: 15-14 (9-9)
Last week: W vs. Pittsburgh (73-67), W vs. NC State (87-62)
Next week: vs. Miami (Mar. 4 – 7 p.m.), at Wake Forest (Mar. 8 – 2:15 p.m.)
Quality wins: Louisville, at Clemson, Stanford
Bad losses: North Florida, at Florida State, at Virginia
Georgia Tech year after year puts together a season full of hot streaks and freezing cold streaks. The Jackets won two games this week to get to .500 in league play, but the losses just simply did not avoid the team, and GT will go without postseason basketball yet again.
10) Virginia Cavaliers
Last week’s ranking: 11 (+1)
Record: 14-15 (7-11)
Last week: W vs. Wake Forest (83-75), L vs. Clemson (71-58)
Next week: vs. Florida State (Mar. 4 – 9 p.m.), at Syracuse (Mar. 8 – 4 p.m.)
Quality wins: at Pittsburgh, at Wake Forest
Bad losses: at Cal, Notre Dame, Virginia Tech
Virginia beat Wake on the road and then looked like they could upset Clemson at home, but got outplayed in the second half and dropped the contest. Virginia plays FSU and Syracuse before the ACC Tournament, and Virginia fans can look forward to this nightmare season ending and hopefully rebuilding the once elite program back into a contender.
11) Pittsburgh Panthers
Last week’s ranking: 9 (-2)
Record: 16-13 (7-11)
Last week: L vs. Georgia Tech (83-63), L vs. Louisville (79-68)
Next week: at NC State (Mar. 5 – 7 p.m.), vs. Boston College (Mar. 8 – 6 p.m.)
Quality wins: at Ohio State
Bad losses: at Florida State, Virginia, Georgia Tech
Pitt went from top 2 in the league to a bubble team to flat out bad. Whether that was schedule, drop of intensity, or just bad luck is up to interpretation. Either way, Pitt ends their regular season against NC State and BC this week.
12) Virginia Tech Hokies
Last week’s ranking: 12 (-)
Record: 13-16 (8-10)
Last week: L vs. Louisville (71-66), W vs. Syracuse (101-95)
Next week: vs. North Carolina (Mar. 4 – 7 p.m.), at Clemson (Feb. 8 – 6 p.m.)
Quality wins: None
Bad losses: Jacksonville
Virginia Tech has been surprisingly solid compared to their expectations this year. The Hokies looked miserable in November but managed to win some big games and will not be sweating an ACC Tournament birth this season.
13) Cal Golden Bears
Last week’s ranking: 13 (-)
Record: 13-16 (6-12)
Last week: L vs. SMU (81-77), W vs. Boston College (82-71)
Next week: at Louisville (Mar. 5 – 9 p.m.), at Notre Dame (Mar. 8 – 4 p.m.)
Quality wins: at USC
Bad losses: Cornell, Virginia Tech, Syracuse, Georgia Tech
Cal is one of three teams who have not clinched their bid to the ACCT, but should play in day 1 as long as disaster does not hit. The Golden Bears need to beat either Louisville or Notre Dame on the road, OR see losses from BC and NC State.
14) Syracuse Orange
Last week’s ranking: 15 (+1)
Record: 12-17 (6-12)
Last week: W vs. NC State (74-60), L vs. Virginia Tech (101-95)
Next week: at SMU (Mar. 4 – 9 p.m.), vs. Virginia (Mar. 8 – 8 p.m.)
Quality wins: None
Bad losses: Notre Dame, at Florida State, at Miami
Syracuse also needs a win to play any sort of postseason basketball. They have a tough go, going to SMU, who can use as many wins as possible, and hosting Virginia who always has their number (Sorry Mat). They will also get in with an NC State and BC loss.
15) Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Last week’s ranking: 14
Record: 12-17 (6-12)
Last week: L vs. Clemson (83-68), L vs. Wake Forest (74-71)
Next week: vs. Stanford (Mar. 5 – 9 p.m.), vs. Cal (Mar. 8 – 4 p.m.)
Quality wins: None
Bad losses: Elon, Georgia Tech, at Miami, Virginia Tech
Notre Dame hosts both Cali schools this week and needs a win for a place in the ACCT. Stop me if you’ve read this one before. NC State and BC losses would give them a bid as well. Notre Dame, of the last three teams, have the brightest future, and would be great for the ACC to see them get back to prominence sooner than later.
16) NC State Wolfpack
Last week’s ranking: 16 (-)
Record: 11-18 (4-14)
Last week: L vs. Syracuse (74-60), L vs. Georgia Tech (87-62)
Next week: vs. Pittsburgh (Mar. 5 – 7 p.m.), at Miami (Mar. 8 – 12 p.m.)
Quality wins: None
Bad losses: Virginia, Virginia Tech, Cal x2
NC State needs to win two games and have some more help to get into the ACC Tournament. which is difficult. As of now, it looks like the Wolfpack, after making the Final Four a year ago, will be playing their last game March 8.
17) Boston College Eagles
Last week’s ranking: 17 (-)
Record: 12-17 (4-14)
Last week: L vs. Stanford (78-60), L vs. California (82-71)
Next week: vs. Clemson (Mar. 5 – 7 p.m.), at Pittsburgh (Mar. 8 – 6 p.m.)
Quality wins: Boise State
Bad losses: Dartmouth, NC State
BC will likely be ending its season on March 8 at Pitt, because, like NC State, need 2 wins and some help to squeeze into the 15-team bracket. It has been a while since BC was nationally relevant, and it looks like that will remain true for some time, barring anything crazy in the offseason.
18) Miami Hurricanes
Last week’s ranking: 18 (-)
Record: 6-23 (2-16)
Last week: L vs. Duke (97-60), L vs. North Carolina (92-73)
Next week: at Georgia Tech (Mar. 4 – 7 p.m.), vs. NC State (Mar. 8 – 12 p.m.)
Quality wins: None
Bad losses: Charleston Southern, Mount St. Mary’s, Virginia Tech
Miami is a bad basketball team. Their season ends March 8, and they hope NC State’s will end with them. Miami fans, do not fret. Louisville was in this same position last year and now are a lock for the NCAAT and nationally ranked. Just need to find Jim Larranaga’s successor in the offseason.