ACC Basketball: Virginia rise, Florida State and Clemson falls in latest power ranking

2. Duke Blue Devils - 16-5 (7-3)

Ever since they got back-to-back losses to Arkansas and Georgia Tech (neither of whom looks good now), Duke has largely handled business. They had won 11 out of 12 games in a couple of months, with Pitt’s Blake Hinson and his historic three-point shooting game against them at home being the exception.

Duke has also had its close calls. They nearly got swept against Georgia Tech after struggling with them at home, while needing a late foul call to get past Clemson a couple of weeks ago. And they suffered a road loss at UNC this past weekend, falling 93-84. Jared McCain, Jeremy Roach, and Kyle Filipowski all had 20+ points but the defense wasn’t good enough.

The Blue Devils had dealt with injuries, with both Roach and Mark Mitchell missing time But McCain has emerged as the best guard on the team, making up for Tyrese Proctor’s off-nights as of late. Filipowski has also had some less-than-stellar games but he’s still averaging 17.7 ppg and 8.5 rpg on the year overall.

Duke is safely in the NCAA Tournament field but is working on seeding positioning. They have three home games coming up and will be heavily favored in each, taking on Notre Dame, Boston College, and Wake Forest. After that are three straight road games so to have any chance of catching up in the ACC standings, they’ll need to take care of business.