ACC men’s basketball is in dire need of a bounce-back season after being a largely unwatchable mess over the last few years, and while I would hate to jinx anything, perhaps that is just what we’re getting in 2026? The league is off to an excellent start to this season, with only four losses on the ledger, and two of those are excusable (Wake by one in OT against Michigan, FSU by two at Florida).
Currently there are 14 teams in the Pomeroy top 75, and six in the top 50. Last season, the ACC finished with seven top-75 squads, with five of those in the top 50. Eight teams finished outside the top 100, and right now there is only one such team.
The ACC has picked up several good non-conference wins against P5 teams already: Duke over Texas, Louisville over Kentucky, UNC over Kansas, and Virginia Tech over Providence. (Then there is Boston College on its own little island of sadness, coming off a one-point home defeat to Central Connecticut State on Tuesday. Dammit, Boston College, you are embarrassing the family again! Go to your room and think about what you’ve done; I can’t even look at you right now.)
The most encouraging thing is the positive development of the league’s middle tier, which may be flush with kinds of flawed-but-capable teams that will compete for at-large bids. Having double-digit teams with at least a shot at an at-large spot come February would be a dramatic improvement. Not to mention it would make league play a hell of a lot more watchable. Bring on the middle-tier bloodbath, I say.
The ACC hasn’t had more than five teams make the NCAAs since 2021. This year’s version has five teams that look like tournament locks, with a good chance of adding a couple more to the field from the next group. Nice work so far, everyone.
