How good is the Atlantic Coast Conference this year?
Widely considered one of the best basketball conferences in the nation, only two teams of the 15-team conference find themselves ranked in the top 25 of the preseason AP Poll. Duke is the highest ranked at No. 7 and North Carolina follows at No. 9.
Neither of the teams received a first-place vote either with five different teams receiving at least one.
The ACC ended last season with four teams being ranking include UNC at No. 7 and Duke at No. 9. Clemson joined the two of them at No. 14 and the reigning ACC Tournament champion, NC State, came in at No. 10.
Is the ACC still the conference to beat in college basketball or has it been usurped?
Looking at the other conferences, the Big 12 has six teams ranked in the top 25 including half (five) of the top 10. The SEC has nine teams ranked in the top 25 including four in the top 15. The Big East and Big Ten are also represented by three ranked teams and four ranked teams respectively.
The only conference with a ranked team less than the ACC is the West Coast which currently houses Gonzaga. Outside of them, the ACC ranks No. 5 of the “Power Five” conferences in total teams ranked in the preseason poll.
Obviously, this will shake up as the season goes on, but the poll voters do not see the ACC as powerful as it once was. Can the conference regain more ranked teams this season and become more reputable?
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