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UNC Basketball: Tar Heels make jump in KenPom rankings

By Zack Pearson

Nov 23, 2021; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Hubert Davis reacts in the first half at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 23, 2021; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Hubert Davis reacts in the first half at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports /
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Hubert Davis and the UNC Basketball program just completed a big 2-0 week that included a home win over then-No. 24 Michigan and their first Atlantic Coast Conference win of the year a few days later. 

While Sunday’s game at Georgia Tech was a slow start for the Tar Heels, they rebounded with a big second half to earn the win. The Tar Heels have looked more like a complete team over the past few weeks which is a great sign moving forward.

And while UNC isn’t ranked in the Top 25 by the Associated Press, they did climb up the latest KenPom rankings.

As of Monday Night, UNC jumped up to No. 29 in the latest KenPom rankings with an adjusted efficiency margin of +17.58. The stat takes offensive efficiency minus the defensive efficiency to determine by how many points a team would outscore the “average” Division I program by.

When looking at those numbers, UNC is ninth in adjusted offensive efficiency which is points scored per 100 possessions at 114.2. The number holding them back is the adjusted defensive efficiency at 96.6 which is 81st in the country. So there is still work to be done.

UNC is the second-highest-rated team in the ACC behind only Duke who is at No. 7 in the poll with +23.94. They are behind some teams like Loyola-Chicago (+17.69), Florida (+17.99), and Wisconsin (+18.2) who are also outside of the Top 25.

While the ranking isn’t where UNC wants to be at the moment, their two losses are to No. 2 Purdue (+29.01) and No. 10 Tennessee (+22.87).

UNC will also get a shot at some of the better teams in the country with No. 8 UCLA coming up in a few weeks plus two games against the Blue Devils. They also have Virginia Tech, Florida State, Louisville, Virginia, Notre Dame and Clemson on their schedule, all Top 51 teams according to the KenPom rankings.

The Tar Heels will next be in action on Saturday as they host Elon in a non-conference game. UNC will be looking for their fourth-straight win.

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