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

Similar to North Carolina, we have seen Wake Forest take quite a tumble in the standings. They are currently on a three-game losing streak but unlike the Tar Heels, all three losses come against the cream of the crop of the ACC. Of their three losses, a 90-59 blowout loss at the hands of Duke was sandwiched between a 10-point loss at Florida State and a 10-point home loss to Virginia Tech. All very reasonable games to drop and some a bit closer than expected sans the loss to the Blue Devils.

Demon Deacons’ guard Brandon Childress has been up-and-down but impressive as of late. He struggled tremendously in a terrible zero-point performance at Cameroon Indoor. But he scored 16 points on 62.5% against the Hokies and 20 points against Florida State.

Since our last ACC power rankings, Wake Forest has picked up one ACC win over a gritty Pittsburgh team. That win came in impressive fashion as came back from a 16-point deficit to win that game. In the win over Pitt, Childress chipped in eight points and six assists, and Wake Forest shot 39.1% from the 3-point line one of their more impressive offensive performances (against good competition).

The Demon Deacons’ January 19 matchup with Boston College told us a lot about where they are as a team. Though they are right near the very bottom of the ACC, they are very much capable of defending their homecourt. A quick turnaround into a Tuesday night game at Clemson will provide a chance for a signature win for Wake Forest, something they lack at this point of the season.