NCAA Basketball: Ranking the final 10 unbeaten teams for 2022-23 season

3. Virginia

There have been some close calls and there have been some amazing wins, but Virginia is 8-0 and Tony Bennett’s squad is playing really impressive basketball one month into the season. These Cavaliers have by no means been perfect, but there is some real impressive performances among these first eight games.

Back at the Main Event in Las Vegas, the Cavaliers got two incredible wins over Baylor and Illinois; wins that will likely look even better as the season goes on. Virginia then got a 2-point road win at Michigan and has taken care of business in their other matchups. They were greatly challenged by James Madison this past Tuesday but held the nation’s best offense to just 50 points in the win.

All five of the Cavaliers’ starters are averaging double-digit points so far this season and all five are playing their roles well. Former national champion point guard Kihei Clark continues to lead the show while Armaan Franklin and Jayden Gardner continue to take steps forward on both sides of the ball. An underrated piece of the rotation is Ohio transfer Ben Vander Plas, providing the most important depth to this talented starting lineup.

This strong defensive squad won games with their offense in Las Vegas but will have to lean more heavily on that defensive side in the weeks to come. They’ll host Houston in their next outing and likely be underdogs, with somebody getting their first loss of the season in that game. After that, ACC play may pose far fewer potholes than usual; the conference doesn’t look very strong at this point. The Cavaliers look like the favorites in the conference, but it’s not exactly the first time we’ve said that about one of Bennett’s teams.