ACC Basketball power rankings: Florida State takes top spot, Duke slides

ACC Basketball power rankings: Florida State takes top spot as Duke tumbles

SUNRISE, FLORIDA - DECEMBER 21: Head coach Leonard Hamilton of the Florida State Seminoles looks on against the South Florida Bulls during the second half of the Orange Bowl Basketball Classic at BB&T Center on December 21, 2019 in Sunrise, Florida. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) /

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CHAPEL HILL, NORTH CAROLINA – JANUARY 04: Head coach Roy Williams of the North Carolina Tar Heels (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /

15. team. 441. . 8-9 (1-5). . Tar Heels

Things have been tough for North Carolina all season, tougher when star point guard Cole Anthony went down, and they get even tougher following a four-game ACC losing streak. The Tar Heels lost to Virginia on December 8, went 2-2 over the next four games and then the unthinkable happened. North Carolina lost three straight home games, which included losses to Georgia Tech, Pittsburgh, and the biggest disappointment, UNC’s first-ever loss to Clemson in Chapel Hill.

Obviously, Cole Anthony’s absence has had a major effect on a team that literally revolved around his play but the nature of these losses has nonetheless been unacceptable for a program of North Carolina’s caliber, something even head coach Roy Williams has been getting at recently.

Thankfully for North Carolina, a recent Instagram post from Anthony would seem to indicate that—among much speculation that he might shut it down for the season in preparation for the 2020 NBA Draft—he will be returning to the floor at some point this season.

The Tar Heels’ next two games are against Virginia Tech and Miami (FL). On Saturday North Carolina went on the road to and loss against a Pitt squad that had already beat them in Chapel Hill this season. Their next game following this is against a Virginia Tech team that is not short on offensive-minded talent. The Tar Heels were already a poor shooting team before Anthony went down, and without him, they have put up some truly horrific numbers shooting from the perimeter.

If Cole Anthony returns in either of these games—which both fit his original four-to-six weeks timetable—then I fully expect for UNC to win at least one of them.

But if Anthony is out until late January, we are likely looking at the Tar Heels having six-straight ACC losses heading into a January 25 matchup with Miami (FL). Godspeed Cole Anthony.