Exactly 101 media members who attended the 2022 ACC Tipoff voted in the conference's preseason poll. Ninety of them picked North Carolina to win the league, which obviously made sense in October (even if the Tar Heels finishing with the best record in the conference is no longer a likely scenario).
Two people picked Miami.
Honestly, I didn't understand it at the time because UNC, Duke and Virginia (on paper at least) seemed like more sensible options. But, in the spirit of giving credit where credit is due, picking Miami to win the ACC is now looking sneaky brilliant as we get ready to flip the calendar to 2023 considering the Hurricanes, on Friday afternoon, improved to 13-1 overall, and 4-0 in the ACC, with a 76-65 win at Notre Dame. That means Jim Larranaga's team went to bed Friday night alone atop the conference standings. For what it's worth, they're currently projected to share the ACC's regular-season title with Virginia, according to KenPom.com.
Isaiah Wong is the standout.
The 6-foot-4 junior got 15 points, four rebounds and three assists in the double-digit victory at Notre Dame and is now averaging a team-high 17.1 points, 4.6 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.7 steals in 34.0 minutes per game. Jordan Miller, Norchad Omier and Nijel Pack are also performing at a high level — but Wong has been the most consistently great player on the roster. He's the main reason Miami is No. 13 in Saturday morning's updated CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings.
The only change from Friday's Top 25 And 1 is that North Carolina was removed following its 76-74 loss at Pitt. The Tar Heels have been replaced by Memphis, which is 11-3 overall and 9-1 in its past 10 games (with the lone loss in that stretch coming at Alabama). Penny Hardaway's Tigers own six victories over Power 5 programs — specifically Auburn, Stanford, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, Nebraska and Vanderbilt. The star of the team is Kendric Davis, a transfer from SMU who is averaging 19.6 points and 6.0 assists in 33.5 minutes per game. The 6-foot guard is on track to receive All-America honors and currently in a two-man competition with Houston's Marcus Sasser for the AAC Player of the Year award.
Top 25 And 1 rankings
Rk | Teams | Chg | Rcrd | |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 |
Purdue
| Zach Edey finished with 14 points and 10 rebounds in Thursday's 82-49 win over Florida A&M. The Boilermakers' next game is Monday against Rutgers. | -- | 7-1 |
2 |
UConn
| Jordan Hawkins finished with 22 points and seven rebounds in Wednesday's 74-66 win over Villanova. The Huskies' next game is Saturday at Xavier. | -- | 5-3 |
3 |
Houston
| J'wan Roberts finished with 15 points and nine rebounds in Wednesday's 89-50 win at Tulsa. The Cougars' next game is Saturday against UCF. | -- | 4-3 |
4 |
Arizona
| Azuolas Tubelis finished with 26 points and nine rebounds in Thursday's 93-68 win over Morgan State. The Wildcats' next game is Saturday at Arizona State. | -- | 3-4 |
5 |
Kansas
| Jalen Wilson finished with 21 points and six rebounds in Thursday's 68-54 win over Harvard. The Jayhawks' next game is Saturday against Oklahoma State. | -- | 7-0 |
6 |
Texas
| Marcus Carr finished with 41 points and four assists in Tuesday's 97-72 win over Texas A&M-Commerce. The Longhorns' next game is Saturday at Oklahoma. | -- | 6-1 |
7 |
Gonzaga
| Drew Timme finished with 18 points and seven rebounds in Wednesday's 120-42 win over Eastern Oregon. The Zags' next game is Saturday against Pepperdine. | -- | 7-1 |
8 |
Alabama
| Marcus Sears finished with 20 points and three assists in Wednesday's 78-67 win at Mississippi State. The Crimson Tide's next game is Tuesday against Ole Miss. | -- | 6-2 |
9 |
Virginia
| Armaan Franklin finished with 20 points and two rebounds in Wednesday's 66-46 win over Albany. The Cavaliers' next game is Saturday at Georgia Tech. | -- | 5-2 |
10 |
Baylor
| Keyonte George finished with 21 points and four assists in Wednesday's 85-56 win over Nicholls. The Bears' next game is Saturday at Iowa State. | -- | 5-2 |
11 |
Tennessee
| Santiago Vescovi finished with 22 points and two steals in Wednesday's 63-59 win at Ole Miss. The Vols' next game is Tuesday against Mississippi State. | -- | 7-0 |
12 |
UCLA
| Jamie Jaquez Jr. finished with 20 points and eight rebounds in Friday's 67-66 win at Washington State. The Bruins' next game is Sunday at Washington. | -- | 6-1 |
13 |
Miami
| Nijel Pack finished with 21 points and four steals in Friday's 76-65 win at Notre Dame. The Hurricanes' next game is Wednesday at Georgia Tech. | -- | 3-4 |
14 |
Indiana
| Tamar Bates finished with 19 points and two assists in Friday's 69-55 win over Kennesaw State. The Hoosiers' next game is Jan. 5 at Iowa. | -- | 5-2 |
15 |
Wisconsin
| Steven Crowl finished with 25 points and eight rebounds in Friday's 76-66 win over Western Michigan. The Badgers' next game is Tuesday against Minnesota. | -- | 8-0 |
16 |
Duke
| Duke missed 19 of the 27 3-pointers it attempted in Tuesday's 81-70 loss at Wake Forest. The Blue Devils' next game is Saturday against Florida State. | -- | 5-2 |
17 |
Xavier
| Jack Nunge finished with 23 points and 12 rebounds in Wednesday's 84-79 win at St. John's. The Musketeers' next game is Saturday against UConn. | -- | 7-1 |
18 |
Missouri
| Kobe Brown finished with 30 points and six rebounds in Wednesday's 89-75 win over Kentucky. The Tigers' next game is Wednesday at Arkansas. | -- | 6-1 |
19 |
West Virginia
| Kedrian Johnson finished with 18 points and three steals in Thursday's 75-64 win over Stony Brook. The Mountaineers' next game is Saturday at Kansas State. | -- | 5-2 |
20 |
Arkansas
| Arkansas missed 21 of the 25 3-pointers it attempted in Wednesday's 60-57 loss at LSU. The Razorbacks' next game is Wednesday against Missouri. | -- | 5-2 |
21 |
Ohio St.
| Brice Sensabaugh finished with 21 points and six rebounds in Thursday's 90-59 win over Alabama A&M. The Buckeyes' next game is Sunday at Northwestern. | 1 | 5-2 |
22 |
Maryland
| Jahmir Young finished with 18 points and seven rebounds in Thursday's 80-64 win over UMBC. The Terrapins' next game is Sunday at Michigan. | 1 | 7-1 |
23 |
New Mexico
| Jaelen House finished with 26 points and five assists in Wednesday's 88-69 win over Colorado State. The Lobos' next game is Saturday against Wyoming. | 1 | 6-2 |
24 |
San Diego St.
| Matt Bradley finished with 27 points and three rebounds in Wednesday's 71-55 win over Air Force. The Aztecs' next game is Saturday at UNLV. | 1 | 4-2 |
25 |
LSU
| Trae Hannibal finished with 19 points and six rebounds in Wednesday's 60-57 win over Arkansas. The Tigers' next game is Tuesday at Kentucky. | 1 | 6-1 |
26 |
Memphis
| Kendric Davis finished with 24 points and nine assists in Thursday's 93-86 win over South Florida. The Tigers' next game is Sunday at Tulane. | NR | 6-1 |
IN: Memphis. OUT: North Carolina