NCAA’s Andy Katz released his rankings of the top 36 teams in men’s college basketball on Monday, a series he calls the Power 36, and Duke managed to snag one of the top dozen spots.
The Blue Devils ended up 12th on Katz’s big board, one spot below North Carolina as the two highest-ranked ACC teams on the board.
Defending national champion Connecticut took the top spot, with Houston, Arizona, Purdue, and Alabama rounding out the top five. Iowa State, Marquette, Kansas, Baylor, and Tennessee took the remaining spots in the top 10 to keep out Duke and the Tar Heels.
There’s always more to basketball than a head-to-head record, but not for nothing, Duke defeated Baylor in their December game and currently sits one spot above the Bears in KenPom’s adjusted efficiency metric. Baylor has won five of its last six games after a three-game skid last month, while Duke has lost two games since December 2.
🚨 NEW #Power36 from @TheAndyKatz
1. UConn
2. Houston
3. Arizona
4. Purdue
5. Alabama
6. Iowa State
7. Marquette
8. Kansas
9. Baylor
10. Tennessee
11. North Carolina
12. Duke🗞️: https://t.co/jkIhj33gmz pic.twitter.com/LWAUARHBaY
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) February 19, 2024
Three more ACC teams found their way into the bottom of Katz’s rankings, including a surging Pittsburgh squad. The Panthers have seven of their past eight games, including road wins over Virginia and Duke, to vault up to 28th on the list. The Cavaliers came in one spot behind in 29th with Clemson immediately behind them in 30th.