Another one bites the dust
Another one bites the dust
And another one gone, and another one gone
Another one bites the dust (yeah)
Hey, I’m gonna get you, too
Another one bites the dust
Another One Bites
the Dust – Queen
Another one bites the dust is a perfect example for what the beginning of the season looks like — especially in the ACC. The ACC is currently 35-1 so far this season, with the one loss being an overtime loss by Boston College in the only true road game of any ACC team’s season so far.
So, with a little bit more data, this round of ACC rankings may look a little bit different than the last round. However, that’s why they play the games, and who you play also matters (determining which absolute beat down of a bad team was more impressive is no easy feat). So, without further ado, here this week’s ACC men’s basketball power rankings.
(All games and stats are as of Sunday, November 9th, 2025)
1. North Carolina Tar Heels (2-0)
Last week: won 94-54 against Central Arkansas, won 87-74 against Kansas
The Tar Heels take the top spot this week with what was probably the most impressive win of the early ACC season. Caleb Wilson had his coming out party with huge games against both the Bears and the Jayhawks. North Carolina should continue to roll this week, even with the loss of guard Seth Trimble in games against the Highlanders and Eagles.
This week: vs Radford (11/11), vs NC Central (11/14)
2. Duke Blue Devils (2-0)
Last week: won 75-60 against Texas, won 95-54 against Western Carolina
Cameron Boozer started his campaign this year for best newcomer in the ACC with a big zero in his opening half against Texas. However, the young freshman finished the game with a double-double, and the Blue Devils found one of the better victories in the early ACC season. Duke will be tested early this week as they travel to play the Black Knights of Army on Tuesday night in the annual battle of Coach K’s former teams.
This week: at Army (11/11), vs Indiana St (11/14)
3. Louisville Cardinals (2-0)
Last Week: won 104-45 against South Carolina St, won 106-70 against Jackson St
All the Cardinals did this week was defeat their opponents 210 to 115, so why the two spot drop? Well, it helps when you actually play someone (no offense to the Bulldogs and Tigers, but come on), which Louisville will do this week when they welcome in a very highly ranked Wildcats team on Tuesday.
This week: vs Kentucky (11/11), vs Ohio (11/15)
4. Virginia Tech Hokies (2-0)
Last week: won 98-67 against Charleston Southern, won 107-101 against Providence
The Hokies struggled in the first half a little bit against Charleston Southern, but came out in the second-half strong and got the big win against the Buccaneers. They also got one of the more impressive wins over a Big East squad with their six point win over Providence, hence the six spot jump in the rankings.
This week: vs St Joseph’s (11/12), vs Charlotte (11/16)
5. NC State Wolf Pack (2-0)
Last week: won 114-66 against NC Central, won 94-70 against UAB
The Wolfpack have looked strong in their first season under coach Will Wade, beating both teams by double digits. However, despite Wade’s comments that Ven-Allen Lubin should’ve played more in Chapel Hill, the undersized center has still not played 28 minutes in a ball game yet this season.
This week: vs UNCG (11/12)
6. Notre Dame Fighting Irish (2-0)
Last week: won 89-67 against Long Island, won 102-70 against Detroit Mercy
The Fighting Irish fell a few spots this week, not based on anything they did but on who they played. It’s hard to keep Notre Dame ahead of both Virginia Tech and NC State when they have both played decent opponents and the Irish have not. Notre Dame will get a chance to fix that when they travel to play a very good Ohio State team at the end of the week.
This week: vs E Illinois (11/11), at Ohio State (11/16)
7. Syracuse Orange (2-0)
Last week: won 85-47 against Binghampton, won 83-43 against Delaware St
The Orange drop two spots this week after beating two very bad opponents (Notre Dame rules apply here too). Syracuse will look to continue their dominance when they play the Dragons later this week.
This week: vs Drexel (11/15)
8. Clemson Tigers (2-0)
Last week: won 88-38 against New Hampshire, won 97-59 against Gardner Webb
The Tigers are another team that made a huge jump this week thanks to convincing wins over 2 very bad opponents. Holding New Hampshire to just 38 points is pretty impressive, and it’s possible that Brad Brownell’s team is going to be okay despite all the talent that it lost this offseason. Clemson will have an early test this upcoming week when they travel to play a solid Big East squad in the Hoyas.
This week: vs Morehead St (11/11), at Georgetown (11/15)
9. Florida State Seminoles (2-0)
Last week: won 108-76 against Alcorn St, won 101-64 against Alabama St
The Seminoles saw the biggest jump in these power rankings, jumping nine spots from the bottom to the middle of the pack with two dominating wins over two really, really bad teams. But then again, that’s what good teams are supposed to do to really, really bad teams. Florida State will get the chance to show what they’re really made of when they travel to play a ranked Florida team on Tuesday.
This week: at Florida (11/11)
10. Miami Hurricanes (2-0)
Last week: won 86-69 against Jacksonville, won 101-61 against Bethune Cookman
The Hurricanes move up seven spots this week thanks in huge part to their big victory over Bethune Cookman. Beating the Wildcats wouldn’t normally be a power ranking power move if it were not for the fact that Bethune Cookman took a ranked Auburn team into overtime and almost beat them. Miami will have a chance to continue to prove how good it is when it invites in a wounded but defending champion Florida.
This week: vs Stetson (11/10), vs Florida (11/16)
11. Virginia Cavaliers (2-0)
Last week: won 87-53 against Rider, won 81-62 against NC Central
The Cavaliers start the run of teams that looks similar to our previous rankings, though Virginia stays in the same spot as they looked a little bit better than the other teams that are below them. Ryan Odom’s squad will continue to see what they can do as they play two more not-so-great teams this week in the Pirates and the Thundering Herd.
This week: vs Hampton (11/11), vs Marshall (11/15)
12. California Golden Bears (2-0)
Last week: won 87-60 against Cal St Bakersfield, won 77-67 against Wright St
The Golden Bears move up a spot this week, thanks in part to some teams ahead of them not playing well but also thanks to a dominating win over the Roadrunners. Cal did struggle against the Raiders (whose mascot is a dog by the way), which leaves room to question how good this team really is. The Golden Bears will get the chance to show everyone when they visit the Wildcats in Manhattan at the end of this week.
This week: vs Cal St Fullerton (11/10), at Kansas St (11/13)
13. Pittsburgh Panthers (2-0)
Last week: won 74-59 against Youngstown St, won 78-60 against Longwood
The Panthers continue to look middle-of-the-pack, and boast wins against the Penguins and the Lancers this past week. Pittsburgh will try to lock a P4 win down with this week when they travel to face the Mountaineers of West Virginia.
This week: vs Eastern Michigan (11/10), at West Virginia (11/13)
14. Stanford Cardinal (2-0)
Last week: won 89-79 against Portland St, won 91-68 against Montana
Considering the Cardinal are trying to figure out life without their big man Reynaud from last season, their wins against the Vikings and Grizzlies are pretty decent. Stanford will try to make it 2-0 against the Big Sky country when they welcome in the Bobcats on Wednesday.
This week: vs Montana St (11/12)
15. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (2-0)
Last week: won 56-52 in OT against Maryland Eastern Shore, won 74-45 against Bryant
The Yellow Jackets experienced an eight spot tumble this week after needing overtime to dispatch a very bad Hawks team. They didn’t fall all the way to the bottom, though, because they got the win and they followed that lackluster win up with a very solid win against the Bulldogs. Georgia Tech will see whether or not they can get their act together when they travel to play the Georgia variety of Bulldogs, who beat Maryland Eastern Shore by 65 just two days later.
This week: vs SE Louisiana (11/10), at Georgia (11/14)
16. SMU Mustangs (2-0)
Last week: won 96-76 against Tarleton St, won 69-58 against Texas A&M Corpus Christi
The Mustangs also taje a huge tumble this week, thanks in part to their very unimpressive win against the Islanders. We should learn more this week about SMU, who look to stay undefeated as they invite in two fairly decent teams in the Racers and Bulldogs.
This week: vs Murray St (11/11), vs Butler (11/15)
17. Wake Forest Demon Deacons (2-0)
Last week: won 88-74 against American, won 81-65 against Moorehead St
The Demon Deacons also make the plunge this week as they had the lowest point differential for any ACC team to win two games this week (both wins came against teams called the Eagles oddly enough). Wake Forest will look to rebound and make a statement for their season when they welcome in a highly ranked Wolverine team on Tuesday.
This week: vs Michigan (11/11), vs UMass Lowell (11/16)
18. Boston College Eagles (1-1)
Last week: Lost to FAU 83-78 in OT, won 76-47 against The Citadel
The Eagles, despite being the only team to travel this week, made their spot at the bottom easy by being the only team to also lose this week with their opening overtime loss to the FAU Owls. Boston College will look to replicate their results against the Bulldogs when they welcome in the Blue Devils of Central Connecticut on Tuesday before traveling to take on a second set of Owls at Temple.
This week: vs Central Connecticut (11/11), at Temple (11/15)
