1. Syracuse (23-0, 10-0): After being named the No. 1 team in the country, the Orange comfortably maintained its spot at the top of the conference with a pair of double-digit victories against Notre Dame and Clemson. Once again Syracuse relied on its stifling defense to retain control of the games, holding the Fighting Irish and Tigers to 40.8 percent and 34.1 percent field goal percentages respectively throughout game.
2. Virginia (19-5, 10-1): After climbing into the rankings at No. 20 last week, Virginia knocked off struggling Boston College and Georgia Tech teams. The Cavaliers held the Yellow Jackets without a field goal for the final 9:51 of their 64-45 victory Saturday.
3. Pittsburgh (20-4, 8-3): The Panthers had another tough week, but narrowly skated by with two overtime victories against struggling Miami and Virginia Tech teams. Pittsburgh outlasted Miami for a 59-55 victory in a single overtime, but needed two extra periods to dispose of the Hokies 62-57.
4. Duke (19-5, 8-3): Resting after an impressive road trip last week, Duke recorded 20-plus-point victories this week against Wake Forest and Boston College. Freshman forward Jabari Parker recorded a career-high 29 points in addition to 16 rebounds in the 89-68 win against the Eagles.
5. North Carolina (16-7, 6-4): Perhaps the most mercurial team in the conference, the Tar Heels experienced an uptick this week with a pair of victories against Maryland and Notre Dame. Against the Terrapins Roy Williams' club shot 49.0 percent from the field. North Carolina is now on a five game winning steak in conference play, though that will be tested when they take on Duke at home this Wednesday.
6. Clemson (15-7, 6-4): Duke’s early season loss to the Tigers has not gotten any easier to understand as the season progresses. Clemson went 1-1 this week with a win against Georgia Tech and a loss to Syracuse. Clemson was plagued by anemic offense in both contests, scoring 45 and 44 points in the two games respectively.
7. Maryland (14-10, 6-5): Dez Wells scored 18 points in Maryland’s 75-63 loss to North Carolina, but Seth Allen wouldn't let the Terrapins drop both games this week. The guard recorded 32 points, including seven 3-pointers, in Maryland's 83-71 victory against Florida State this week.
8. N.C. State (15-8, 5-5): Both teams shot worse than 40 percent in the Wolfpack’s narrow 56-55 victory this week against Miami. However, T.J. Warren recorded 27 points and went 8-of-14 to boost N.C. State when it needed it the most. Earlier in the week the Wolfpack were handed a loss by in-state rival North Carolina.
9. Florida State (14-9, 5-6): Trailing by 17 at the half, the Seminoles attempted a comeback in their Saturday contest against Maryland, but still ended up losing 83-71. In the first game of the week for Florida State, guard Aaron Thomas notched 24 points in a 70-50 blow out win against Virginia Tech.
10. Wake Forest (14-9, 4-6): The Demon Deacons continued to slip this week and lost their third conference game in a row. After keeping pace with the Blue Devils in the first period, the Demon Deacons were felled by the hot hands of Jabari Parker and Rasheed Sulaimon, and lost Tuesday’s contest 83-63.
11. Georgia Tech (12-12, 3-8): Hindered by an inefficient offense, Georgia Tech dropped two in a row this week against Clemson and Virginia. The Yellow Jackets were able to keep it close against Clemson in an ugly low-scoring affair, but stood no chance against the Cavaliers, who romped their way to a 64-45 victory.
12. Notre Dame (12-12, 3-8): The season has only gone downhill for the Fighting Irish after upsetting Duke in their ACC opener. Notre Dame was overpowered by surging Syracuse and North Carolina squads, committing 12 and 17 turnovers in each respective contest. Center Garrick Sherman led the team in scoring in both games.
13. Miami (11-12, 2-8): The Hurricanes came close to drastically improving their conference standing this week, but lost two heartbreakers to Pittsburgh and N.C. State. Miami dropped a 59-55 decision in overtime to the Panthers and a 56-55 nail-biter to the Wolfpack. It might have been a different week if the Hurricanes could have improved their free throw shooting—Miami shot a paltry 14-for-25 against Pittsburgh and 16-for-23 against the Wolfpack from the charity stripe.
14. Boston College (6-17, 2-8): Olivier Hanlan continues to put in solid work even as his team struggles. The sophomore guard contributed 14 and 25 points this week in losses to Virginia and Duke. Although the Eagles were unable to keep up with the Blue Devils, they lost by just 10 points to the Cavaliers.
15. Virginia Tech (8-15, 1-10): Despite some nice efforts, the Hokies have struggled to leave the bottom of the ACC all season long. Virginia Tech came close to upsetting Pittsburgh this week, but the Hokies’ 20 turnovers ultimately led to the 62-57 loss in two overtimes. Virginia Tech's contest against Florida State was anything but, losing the game by 20 points.
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