Jalek Felton is suspended. Theo Pinson is hurting. And North Carolina has now dropped three consecutive games for the first time in more than four years. So things clearly aren't great for the reigning national champions.
But they're not terrible, either.
UNC still has a resume featuring four victories over schools also ranked in the CBS Sports Top 25 (and one), and just two sub-50 KenPom losses, which is something no school ranked below the Tar Heels can claim. And though Tuesday night's 82-78 loss at Clemson was disappointing for UNC fans, undeniably, for my purposes it was nothing more than a close loss on the road to a team I already had ranked higher than North Carolina anyway. Which is why North Carolina remains No. 17 in Wednesday morning's updated Top 25 (and one).
Next up is Saturday's game with Pitt at the Dean Smith Center. Lose that one, then we'll talk. But a close loss at Clemson is no reason to drop UNC. And, for whatever it's worth, keep this in the back of your mind: The last time the Tar Heels lost three straight games (in January 2014), they responded by winning 13 of their next 14. So Roy Williams has been here before. And last time things worked out OK.
Wednesday's Top 25 (and one)
Rk | Teams | Chg | Rcrd | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | The Wildcats' resume features three wins over teams also ranked in the Top 25 (and one) - specifically Xavier, Gonzaga and Tennessee. Villanova's lone loss is a single-digit loss at Butler. | -- | 18-16 |
| 2 |  | The Cavaliers have won 12 straight games since losing at West Virginia. They're 9-0 in the ACC and at least two games ahead of everybody else in the league standings. | -- | 23-11 |
| 3 |  | The Boilermakers have won 17 straight games since losing consecutive games to Tennessee and Western Kentucky. Fifteen of Purdue's 21 wins are double-digit wins. | -- | 34-5 |
| 4 |  | The Blue Devils are 6-1 against top-50 KenPom teams with two sub-50 losses. They own wins over Michigan State, Florida State, Florida, Miami, Texas and Notre Dame. | -- | 27-9 |
| 5 |  | The Jayhawks are 8-3 against top-50 KenPom teams with one sub-50 loss. They're alone atop the Big 12 standings heading into Saturday's game with Kansas State. | -- | 23-11 |
| 6 |  | The Spartans are 4-3 against top-50 KenPom teams with zero sub-25 losses. They've won four straight games since losing to Michigan. | -- | 20-15 |
| 7 |  | The Musketeers have won five straight games since losing at Villanova. Their resume includes seven top-50 KenPom wins and only one sub-50 loss. | -- | 16-18 |
| 8 |  | The Bearcats will take a 12-game winning streak into Wednesday's game against Houston. They're 8-0 in the AAC and at least two games ahead of everybody else in the league standings. | -- | 22-15 |
| 9 |  | The Red Raiders' resume features four top-50 KenPom wins and just one sub-45 loss. They've won two straight games since losing at Iowa State. | -- | 23-11 |
| 10 |  | The Tigers have won 18 of their past 19 games to improve to 8-1 in the SEC. They own a two-game lead over Kentucky and Florida in the SEC standings. | -- | 27-8 |
| 11 |  | The Mountaineers' resume features four top-50 KenPom wins and zero sub-35 losses. They're still the only team that's beaten Virginia. | -- | 9-23 |
| 12 |  | The Sooners' resume features seven top-50 KenPom wins and just one sub-55 loss. They're tied in the loss column with Texas Tech and West Virginia for second place in the Big 12 standings. | -- | 20-12 |
| 13 |  | The Gaels' 16-game winning streak includes victories at Gonzaga and at BYU. Their lone losses came more than two months ago. | -- | 26-8 |
| 14 |  | The Zags have won three straight games since losing to Saint Mary's. Their resume features three top-50 KenPom wins and only one sub-25 loss. | -- | 27-8 |
| 15 |  | The Wildcats have won six straight games since losing at Colorado. They're 2-2 against top-50 KenPom teams with two sub-50 losses. | -- | 27-9 |
| 16 |  | The Tigers' resume includes six top-50 KenPom wins and just two sub-50 losses. They're 12-0 at home and 3-1 in neutral-court games. | -- | 24-12 |
| 17 |  | The Tar Heels' resume includes three victories over schools also ranked in the Top 25 (and one). Their first game with Duke is next week. | -- | 29-8 |
| 18 |  | The Vols' resume includes three top-50 KenPom wins and zero sub-50 losses. They'll take a three-game winning streak into Wednesday's game with LSU. | -- | 27-9 |
| 19 |  | The Shockers' resume features three top-55 KenPom wins and zero sub-45 losses. They're tied in the loss column with Houston for second in the AAC standings. | -- | 15-19 |
| 20 |  | The Buckeyes' resume includes wins over Michigan State and Michigan. Ohio State is 9-1 in its past 10 games. | -- | 22-14 |
| 21 |  | The Wildcats' resume includes four top-50 KenPom wins and just one sub-60 loss. They own victories over West Virginia and Louisville. | -- | 23-10 |
| 22 |  | The Rams have won 13 straight games since losing at Alabama. Two of their three losses are to teams also ranked in the Top 25 (and one). | -- | 12-20 |
| 23 |  | The Sun Devils' resume includes double-digit victories over Kansas and Xavier. They're 2-1 since losing at Stanford. | -- | 14-18 |
| 24 |  | Four of the Wolverines' six losses are to schools ranked ahead of them in the Top 25 (and one). Michigan's resume includes a double-digit victory at Michigan State. | -- | 8-24 |
| 25 |  | The Wolf Pack's seven-game winning streak was snapped late Wednesday at Wyoming thanks to a terrible no-call at the end of regulation. Nevada remains alone atop the MWC standings. | -- | 26-8 |
| 26 |  | The Seminoles have won three straight games since losing at Boston College. Their resume includes five top-50 KenPom wins and two sub-50 losses. | -- | 17-16 |
