ACC Basketball: Buy or sell Duke, Virginia, Clemson, NC State and Miami?

CHAPEL HILL, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 21: Pete Nance #32 of the North Carolina Tar Heels and D.J. Burns Jr. #30 of the North Carolina State Wolfpack tip off to begin their game at the Dean E. Smith Center on January 21, 2023 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The Tar Heels won 80-69. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images) /

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ACC Basketball Virginia Cavaliers (Photo by Ryan M. Kelly/Getty Images) /

Virginia – Buy

The AP Top 25 is far from infallible, but it has at least one thing right – Virginia is the best team in the ACC. The Cavaliers are ranked No. 7, with Miami being the next highest-ranked ACC team at No. 20.

This Virginia team may not be the defensive powerhouse we’ve seen in the past, but they still control the tempo of every game. Perhaps more importantly, the Cavaliers are an excellent offensive team, ranking No. 18 nationally in adjusted offensive efficiency and shooting nearly 40% from 3-point range.

Under Tony Bennett, Virginia has made two deep runs in the NCAA Tournament – once in 2016 when they made the Elite Eight and once in 2019 when they won the national championship. In both of those years, Virginia ranked higher nationally in offensive efficiency than defensive efficiency. That is the case again this season, which could bode well for another deep run in March.

Miami – Buy

After a strong Elite Eight run last March and a promising 13-1 start to the season, Miami’s stock was skyrocketing just a few weeks ago. However, the Hurricanes hit a bit of a rough patch, going 3-3 and suffering a Quad 3 loss to Georgia Tech.

Despite this recent setback, things are still looking bright for the Hurricanes. They’ve held their spot in the AP Top 25 despite some recent struggles, which is a testament to the up-and-down nature of this college basketball season.

One thing that hasn’t changed is Miami’s recipe for success in March. Great guard play and great coaching are key ingredients for a deep tournament run, and Miami has both. Head coach Jim Larrañaga is still at the helm, and although Kameron McGusty and Charlie Moore are gone from last year’s team, Isaiah Wong is back and playing at a level worthy of ACC Player of the Year consideration. Jordan Miller has also taken a leap, averaging 14.8 points per game.

The key for Miami could be Nijel Pack, who was a First Team All-Big 12 player last season at Kansas State. Pack hasn’t quite lived up to that level of production so far, averaging just 12.3 points per game. If he can find his rhythm, the Hurricanes could be a force to be reckoned with in the ACC and make another deep run in March. Overall, I’m buying Miami stock coming out of this mini-slump.