A week after having six teams in the AP Top 25 poll, five ACC teams land inside the top 25 this week. Virginia headlines the list, and is up to No. 2; that’s the highest the Cavaliers have been ranked since the 2014-15 season.
- No. 2 Virginia
- No. 5 Duke
- No. 15 North Carolina
- No. 20 Clemson
- No. 25 Miami
Quick Thoughts
- Virginia is led by its Pack Line defense, which ranks No. 1 in the nation in adjusted defensive efficiency, per KenPom. Part of what makes them elite: defense at the rim. Opponents are shooting just 41.1 percent on two-point field goals against UVA, which ranks fifth in the nation.
- More to the point, though: opponents have connected on just 46.5 percent of their non-post-up attempts at the rim, according to Synergy Sports — No. 11 in the nation.
- In the win over Wake Forest, Duke’s Marvin Bagley had another 30-point, 10-rebound game — his third of the season. Bagley is on pace to be the first player since Blake Griffin in 2008-09 to average 22 points, 11 rebounds and at least one block.
- Luke Maye had another big game for No. 15 UNC in the win over Notre Dame on Saturday: 18 points and 11 rebounds — to go along with three assists. Maye can score in a variety of ways; however, he’s best moving without the ball around Joel Berry and Theo Pinson. According to Synergy, Maye leads the ACC in points off cuts with 72 (on 70.1 percent shooting). Duke’s Bagley is No. 2 with 60.
- The Clemson Tigers bounced back after the one-point loss at NC State with a win at home against Miami. Donte Grantham went 4-of-4 on three-pointers against the Hurricanes. Grantham’s shooting 42.6 percent on triples this season — a major development for Clemson. On spot-up possessions, Grantham is 21-of-50, scoring 1.08 points per possession. Amongst ACC players with at least 50 spot-ups, Grantham ranks 18th with an adjusted field goal rate of 56 percent, per Synergy.
- Miami’s offense has slipped in ACC games: just 96.5 points per 100 possessions, according to KenPom. Part of the problem: a suddenly bricky jump shot for Bruce Brown. As a freshman, Brown connected on 42.6 percent of his catch-and-shoot attempts (63.9 effective field goal percentage), per Synergy. So far this season, though: Brown is just 3-of-19 (15.8 percent) on catch-and-shoots.
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