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The Atlantic Coast Conference closes out the 2025-26 regular season with five programs ranked in the final USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll top 25, the most the conference has had represented simultaneously since the 2022-23 season. This week's poll, the final edition of the regular season before conference tournaments take over the national spotlight, reflects a week of significant movement among ACC programs.
Duke continues its historic reign at the top of the national landscape, while Virginia's late surge has been rewarded with a significant jump. Here is a full breakdown of every ACC team that matters in this week's final regular-season Coaches Poll.
Previous Ranking: No. 1
Duke completes the regular season with an unprecedented stranglehold on the No. 1 ranking and one of the most dominant resumes in college basketball history. Jon Scheyer's program closed the regular season on Saturday with a 15-point demolition of North Carolina at Cameron Indoor Stadium, a 76-61 statement win that gave Duke its 17th straight win in the building and finished the regular season on a high note after Scheyer's 600th game representing Duke (as a player and coach) the previous week.
Duke enters the ACC Tournament as the overwhelming favorite for the conference title and remains the frontrunner for the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament alongside Michigan and Arizona.
Previous Ranking: No. 13
Virginia's two-spot jump to No. 11 is the reward for a final week of the regular season in which Ryan Odom's Cavaliers continued to prove they belong among the elite programs in the country. After absorbing a 77-51 defeat at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Feb. 28, the Cavaliers responded exactly as the coaches expected: by closing the regular season strong.
Virginia hasn't advanced past the Sweet 16 since their 2019 national championship. Odom's squad believes it can change that narrative.
Previous Ranking: No. 18
North Carolina's one-spot slide to No. 19 reflects a final week that ended with a 15-point loss to Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium. They drop to the 19th spot in the final Coaches Poll, but they remain one of the more dangerous teams in the ACC Tournament field.
The drop is modest, and UNC's overall profile remains strong: 24-6 overall, 12-5 in the ACC, and the fifth-best record in a loaded conference.
Previous Ranking: NR
Louisville's return to the Coaches Poll is one of the final regular season's most satisfying storylines. After dropping out of the rankings two weeks ago, due to losses at North Carolina and Clemson, the Cardinals' vulnerability was exposed when they lost control of the game's pace. Pat Kelsey's squad won both of their final regular-season games to punch their way back in at No. 24.
Louisville finishes the regular season ranked and dangerous, exactly the kind of team that can make a deep run in Charlotte if Brown is healthy and hot.
Previous Ranking: No. 23
Miami's two-spot slide to No. 25 is the price of a mildly uneven final stretch, but it should not overshadow what has been one of the most remarkable single-season program turnarounds in recent ACC history. They were ranked No. 23 last week in their first appearance in the Coaches Poll, and a two-spot slide to No. 25 reflects a slight dip in results down the closing stretch rather than any collapse in identity.
The Hurricanes hold the No. 3 seed in the ACC Tournament and are one of the most intriguing NCAA Tournament entries in the conference.
Duke is the overwhelming favorite and enters Charlotte on a level no other ACC team can match. Virginia, Miami, and a suddenly healthy Louisville are the three programs most capable of causing bracket chaos. North Carolina, even without Caleb Wilson, has the experience and defensive infrastructure to win three games in three days.
What happens in Charlotte will shape the next Coaches Poll and, more importantly, the NCAA Tournament seedings that follow. The ACC will send multiple teams dancing, and at least one of them should be dancing deep into March.
Contact/Follow us @FSUWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of FSU news, notes, and opinions.
This article originally appeared on FSU Wire: Final regular-season rankings in USA Today Sports Coaches Poll
Continue reading...
Duke continues its historic reign at the top of the national landscape, while Virginia's late surge has been rewarded with a significant jump. Here is a full breakdown of every ACC team that matters in this week's final regular-season Coaches Poll.
No. 1 - Duke Blue Devils
Previous Ranking: No. 1
Duke completes the regular season with an unprecedented stranglehold on the No. 1 ranking and one of the most dominant resumes in college basketball history. Jon Scheyer's program closed the regular season on Saturday with a 15-point demolition of North Carolina at Cameron Indoor Stadium, a 76-61 statement win that gave Duke its 17th straight win in the building and finished the regular season on a high note after Scheyer's 600th game representing Duke (as a player and coach) the previous week.
Duke enters the ACC Tournament as the overwhelming favorite for the conference title and remains the frontrunner for the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament alongside Michigan and Arizona.
No. 11 - Virginia Cavaliers
Previous Ranking: No. 13
Virginia's two-spot jump to No. 11 is the reward for a final week of the regular season in which Ryan Odom's Cavaliers continued to prove they belong among the elite programs in the country. After absorbing a 77-51 defeat at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Feb. 28, the Cavaliers responded exactly as the coaches expected: by closing the regular season strong.
Virginia hasn't advanced past the Sweet 16 since their 2019 national championship. Odom's squad believes it can change that narrative.
No. 19 — North Carolina Tar Heels
Previous Ranking: No. 18
North Carolina's one-spot slide to No. 19 reflects a final week that ended with a 15-point loss to Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium. They drop to the 19th spot in the final Coaches Poll, but they remain one of the more dangerous teams in the ACC Tournament field.
The drop is modest, and UNC's overall profile remains strong: 24-6 overall, 12-5 in the ACC, and the fifth-best record in a loaded conference.
No. 23 — Louisville Cardinals
Previous Ranking: NR
Louisville's return to the Coaches Poll is one of the final regular season's most satisfying storylines. After dropping out of the rankings two weeks ago, due to losses at North Carolina and Clemson, the Cardinals' vulnerability was exposed when they lost control of the game's pace. Pat Kelsey's squad won both of their final regular-season games to punch their way back in at No. 24.
Louisville finishes the regular season ranked and dangerous, exactly the kind of team that can make a deep run in Charlotte if Brown is healthy and hot.
No. 25 — Miami Hurricanes
Previous Ranking: No. 23
Miami's two-spot slide to No. 25 is the price of a mildly uneven final stretch, but it should not overshadow what has been one of the most remarkable single-season program turnarounds in recent ACC history. They were ranked No. 23 last week in their first appearance in the Coaches Poll, and a two-spot slide to No. 25 reflects a slight dip in results down the closing stretch rather than any collapse in identity.
The Hurricanes hold the No. 3 seed in the ACC Tournament and are one of the most intriguing NCAA Tournament entries in the conference.
Conference Outlook Entering the ACC Tournament
Duke is the overwhelming favorite and enters Charlotte on a level no other ACC team can match. Virginia, Miami, and a suddenly healthy Louisville are the three programs most capable of causing bracket chaos. North Carolina, even without Caleb Wilson, has the experience and defensive infrastructure to win three games in three days.
What happens in Charlotte will shape the next Coaches Poll and, more importantly, the NCAA Tournament seedings that follow. The ACC will send multiple teams dancing, and at least one of them should be dancing deep into March.
Contact/Follow us @FSUWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of FSU news, notes, and opinions.
This article originally appeared on FSU Wire: Final regular-season rankings in USA Today Sports Coaches Poll
Continue reading...
