Busting Brackets
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ACC Basketball power rankings: Miami soars while Georgia Tech declines

By Tristan Freeman

Jan 8, 2022; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels forward Armando Bacot (5) reacts with guard Caleb Love (2) in the first half at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 8, 2022; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels forward Armando Bacot (5) reacts with guard Caleb Love (2) in the first half at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports /
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ACC Basketball Ebenezer Dowuona Jericole Hellems North Carolina State Wolfpack (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
ACC Basketball Ebenezer Dowuona Jericole Hellems North Carolina State Wolfpack (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) /

12. Virginia Tech Hokies – 8-6 (0-3)

Losing to both Duke and a surprisingly good Wake Forest isn’t a shame at all for the Hokies but after losing to NC State a home this week, there’s no question this isn’t the team that had high preseason expectations. The score was 68-63, with Keve Aluma going for 18 points, while guard Storm Murphy had 14 points.

Yet no one else was in double figures for the team, an issue they’ve had all year. The defense isn’t good enough to withstand the offensive inconsistencies outside of Aluma in the post. They take on both Notre Dame and Virginia this week, who has some positive momentum. Virginia Tech needs to find some soon or else risk this ending up as a lost season.

11. NC State Wolfpack – 8-8 (1-4)

There was some good and bad news for the Wolfpack from the past week’s split of games. They gave up just 70 and 63 points respectively against Virginia Tech and Clemson, the best defensive efforts against power-conference opponents this season. The bad news is that they scored just 65 and 68 points, some of the lowest-scoring outputs as well.

NC State has relied heavily upon Dereon Seabron, who scored a combined 52 points in the two games. But it’s important that both Terquavion Smith and Casey Morsell are in double figures to keep them in games, especially if they’re going to be high-scoring. The Wolfpack are potentially staring down a 1-6 record in ACC Basketball play, taking on both Duke and Louisville on the road.