Hurricanes Hoops Move Up to No. 2 in AP Poll, but Can They Make It to No. 1?

Another week, another historic ranking for the University of Miami's men's basketball team. Thanks to Duke's loss to Maryland and the Canes' buzzer-beater against Clemson, the team has moved up to number two in the polls. It's the team's highest ranking in school history and also the first time the Canes have been the highest-ranked ACC team.

The Hurricanes received 20 first-place votes. Number-one-ranked Indiana received 43 first-place votes, but just 16 points separate the teams in the voting.

Let's not jinx ourselves here, but the question now is if the Canes can make it to the number one spot.

The team hosts Virginia at home tomorrow, and though the Cavaliers aren't in the national picture, they are currently third in the ACC standings. On Saturday, the team heads to Wake Forest. That team is currently 4-9 in the ACC and hovers near the bottom of the conference. These are very manageable wins for the Canes.

First-ranked Indiana has a tougher schedule this week. The team faces No. 4 Michigan State on the road tomorrow. Remember that the Canes beat MSU at the beginning of the season, the first indication this team was special. Now Hurricanes fans are in the position of being the Spartans' auxiliary rooting section on Tuesday. Failing that, Indiana faces Minnesota over the weekend. That team is unranked but, despite an overall mediocre showing, has upset four ranked teams so far this season.

We'll update this post when the coaches' poll is released.

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