ACC Basketball power rankings: Florida State rises, Louisville dives down

ACC Basketball power rankings: Florida State rises, Louisville dives downward

CORAL GABLES, FLORIDA - JANUARY 22: Kameron McGusty #23 of the Miami Hurricanes drives to the basket against Matthew Cleveland #35 of the Florida State Seminoles during the first half at Watsco Center on January 22, 2022 in Coral Gables, Florida. (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images) /

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ACC Basketball Notre Dame Fighting Irish guard Blake Wesley Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports /

. 12-6 (5-2). . Fighting Irish . 5. team. 443

When the Fighting Irish were 3-4 overall after losing to Boston College by 17 points, it looked as if everything was over for this team. Yet they’ve won 9 of 11 since including a few important victories to get back in the bubble talk.

The Irish have won six of seven games in the month of January alone, with the loss coming to Virginia Tech on the road. They’ve beaten Pittsburgh, North Carolina, and Georgia Tech in one-possession games, along with surviving a motivated Howard squad on the road on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The two convincing wins came against Clemson and Louisville, with the ladder coming in a strong second-half effort to pull away, 82-70.

Freshman guard Blake Wesley continues to excel, scoring a game-high 22 points on 8/13 from the field. Paul Atkinson, Prentiss Hubb, and Dane Goodwin each had 12+ points to bolster the statline. The improved play from Hubb and senior forward Nate Laszewski has been what Notre Dame needed to be more consistent on offense. And with Wesley emerging as the go-to guy, there’s some order in how they operate.

The Irish is quietly a half-game out of first place in the ACC standings and has a trio of home games coming up that will be very important. If they can win two of three against NC State, Virginia, and Duke coming up, they’ll be legitimately in the at-large consideration.