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 Sam Waardenburg Miami (Fl) Hurricanes (Photo by Eric Espada/Getty Images) /

The Hurricanes have been great in league play, currently tied for first place in ACC Basketball and averaging over 80 ppg on offense. The guard trio of Kameron McGusty, Isaiah Wong, and Charlie Moore has continued to play well and big man Sam Waardenburg has emerged to give the team a real boost in the frontcourt to provide balance.

Miami has been beating everyone, with the clear exception of the Florida State Seminoles. The Hurricanes lost to their in-state rivals two weeks ago and had a chance to get some revenge this weekend at home. Unfortunately, they were getting destroyed early on, down by as much as 23 points early in the second half.

A furious comeback by the Hurricanes cut the lead all of the way down to just one point in the final seconds but Wong couldn’t make the game-winning shot to break the Seminoles’ hearts in a 61-60 loss. Wong had a game-high 22 points, while both Moore and McGusty each had 12. The rest of the team had just 14 points combined, a weakness for Miami when the star trio doesn’t go off.

Although they’re 0-2 against FSU on the season, Miami doesn’t have to play them anymore. And on paper, the rest of the ACC games are fairly winnable for them. If they can avoid some land mines down the road, the Hurricanes not only could make the NCAA Tournament but potentially win the regular-season title as well.