Following this week's action (along with the early results in ACC play), you can easily make the case that the UNC basketball program has no business being ranked in the AP Top 25.
Well, the Tar Heels somehow managed to stay within this week's top 25, but took a significant dip in the updated rankings.
UNC basketball falls drastically
After sitting at No. 14 in last week's ranking, one that provided the UNC basketball program with a three-spot jump, the Tar Heels dropped 8 spots in this week's poll to No. 22. They now rank as the fourth-highest ACC squad, trailing Duke (No. 5), Virginia (No. 14), and Clemson (No. 18). Louisville, who comes in at No. 23 in this week's rankings, rounds out the top 25 for the Atlantic Coast Conference.
NEW AP TOP 25 ‼️ Arizona is the unanimous No. 1 in the week 11 poll.
— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) January 19, 2026
Should your team be ranked higher? pic.twitter.com/QtzD4o1GUR
Opportunities Ahead
North Carolina will have two chances to bounce-back this week. First, they will host Notre Dame in Chapel Hill on Wednesday night before heading to Charlottesville for a top-25 battle with the Virginia Cavaliers.
If the Tar Heels can come away with two victories this week, it will drastically change the projection of how people perceive this team at this point in the 2025-2026 season.
The UNC basketball program will face some very good teams down the stretch, as they currently have five scheduled games against top-25 ranked opponents. Two meetings against Duke along with single-game matchups with Virginia, Louisville and Clemson are must-win games on the calendar for Hubert Davis' team, as they desperately need to stack up quality wins over some of the country's top teams after suffering a few head-scratching losses in the early portion of ACC play, especially the ugly two-game West Coast skid that sent the Tar Heels back to Chapel Hill with two losses.
The opportunities are there to prove that the recent outcomes aren't ones that should define this UNC basketball team. However, if losses continue to pile up, don't be stunned if the Tar Heels fall out of the AP Top 25 as early as next week if thy can't get the job done.