The initial NET Rankings prove to be beneficial for the UNC basketball program

Ah, it’s that time of year. The weather is getting colder, winter is coming, Christmas is around the corner, and of course, everyone’s favorite tradition: the NET Rankings are back. 

How many Quad One wins does your team have? How many Quad One opportunities will there be? Will a Quad One November opponent become a Quad Two by the time Selection Sunday rolls around in March?

We’re officially on NET Ranking watch

The first NET rankings dropped on Monday, and the UNC Basketball program didn’t have to wait until February to secure its first Quad One victory (for now!). Remember, NET Rankings isn’t necessarily about where your team is ranked, in this case, the Tar Heels. It’s about where your opponents are ranked. 

North Carolina does come in at 26th in the NET rankings, and while it is a combination of other predictive metrics, that doesn’t necessarily mean the Tar Heels will be there on a seed line come March. It does, however, mean that the committee will look at essential categories from the NET, mainly, the different quad buckets (Quad One, Quad Two, Quad Three, and Quad Four), to determine that seed line. 

Here’s a quick reminder of how the quad system is set up:

Quad One
Home: NET 1-30 
Neutral: NET 1-50
Away: NET 1-75 

Quad Two
Home: NET 31-75 
Neutral: NET 51-100
Away: NET 76-135

Quad Three
Home: NET 76-160
Neutral: NET 101-200
Away: NET 136-240

Quad Four
Home: NET 161-364
Neutral: NET 201-364
Away: NET 241-364

In the first NET Rankings, the Tar Heels are currently 1-1 in Quad One games (splitting matchups versus Michigan State and Kansas), and undefeated elsewhere. Another Quad One opportunity, and likely the final non-conference chance, comes on Tuesday evening as the UNC Basketball program travels to Lexington to face Kentucky (currently No. 15 in the NET Rankings despite being 0-2 in Quad One games). 

Once conference play begins, the ACC is trending towards having more Quad One and Quad Two opportunities than it has in recent years. Just comparing last year’s initial release, the average ACC Ranking is up almost 25 spots. 

According to the initial rankings, North Carolina will have several quad-one opportunities in conference play, with a total of eight matchups currently in the quad-one category. However, only two of those matchups will take place in Chapel Hill (Duke and Louisville). The other six will require traveling outside the friendly confines of the Dean Smith Center, and only two will take place in the state of North Carolina (@ NC State and @ Duke). 

California, SMU, Miami, and Virginia will be the other four quad one matchups the Tar Heels will get the opportunity to boost that NCAA Tournament resume. This is a friendly reminder that where a team is ranked at the time you played them DOES NOT MATTER. It is where that team is ranked on Selection Sunday. So while Miami (or any other team currently on the schedule) may currently be a Quad One opportunity, if that team falls apart and loses 10 straight, they could drop to a Quad Two (or worse) ranking. 

A prime example of this is the CBS Sports Classic matchup with Ohio State. The Buckeyes are currently 63rd in the NET. But if they were to outperform their expectations in the Big Ten, it is very possible that come Selection Sunday, Ohio State could end up inside the top 50 and be counted as a Quad One game on the UNC Basketball program’s resume. 

The NET updates daily following results from each matchup and can be viewed on the official NCAA website here. As the season progresses and for major NET changes that affect the UNC Basketball program, follow @JordanFalls on X.