15. North Carolina Tar Heels
Record: 9-3 (0-0 ACC)
Last Week: No. 15
North Carolina is better than its record. The Tar Heels might just stand at 9-3 at this point in time but they are definitely worthy of this top-15 ranking due to their talent level and willingness to play away from home. Unlike many other major conference teams, UNC has already played six games either on the road or at neutral sites and that goes a fairly long way in regards to resume-building, in my opinion. Additionally, two of their losses (at Michigan, neutral-site vs. Kentucky) came against very good teams and their loss to Texas is not all that brutal.
Remarkably, the Tar Heels have only played one team ranked outside of the KenPom top-100 since Nov. 22 (UNC-Wilmington). And while they are just 4-3 during this stretch, the experience that the team has gained should help them out come conference play. With that said, though, it is important that the team does not look ahead to their ACC opener on the road against Pittsburgh because their final non-conference game, at home against Harvard, still looms.
North Carolina’s offense, which functions at a frenetic pace (13.4 seconds per possession, 3rd-fastest nationally), is among the best in the country and they should be able to fill up the basket against just about any opponent in the nation. In order to compete for the ACC title, though, the Tar Heels will need to improve on the defensive end of the floor. UNC currently ranks 16th in the nation in adjusted defensive efficiency but they need to be more balanced to take down teams like Virginia and Duke (more on these two later).