Losing to an unranked team, no matter how good it might be, is typically followed by a fall down the rankings.
One of those such losses came on Tuesday night in The Empire State, when 7th-ranked UNC (who is surely to drop out of Top 10 next Monday) fell to unranked Syracuse. This was North Carolina’s third loss in its last five games, turning a once-NCAA Tournament favorite into just another team.
The next AP Poll won’t come out until Monday, but it’s not too early to start guessing how many spots teams will rise and fall. The Tar Heels now have six losses – not bad, but definitely not how many a top seed would have.
In the latest NET rankings, which are largely used to help determine a team’s NCAA Tournament seeding, UNC dropped just one spot to 11th.
North Carolina is largely helped out by its tough non-conference schedule, which includes games against ranked teams in Tennessee and Kentucky. Playing Duke once already helps, while the Tar Heels also dealt Oklahoma its first loss in December.
Plain and simple – UNC needs to beat Virginia Tech on Saturday afternoon. A win likely won’t boost North Carolina’s rankings, as the Hokies are 60th in the NET, but it’ll reassure Tar Heel Nation.
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