UNC Basketball Team Steadily Climbing All-Important Rankings

With a pair of home outings on tap this week, UNC basketball has an opportunity to extend its winning streak to five games.

UNC basketball guard Ian Jackson | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

It's highly unlikely that UNC basketball will reappear in the AP Top 25 Poll when the Week 11 edition comes out on Monday afternoon. That said, despite a relatively high count in the loss column, it wouldn't be a surprise if Hubert Davis and his fourth batch of Tar Heels (11-6, 4-1 ACC), who began the season at No. 9 before falling out entirely the second weekend of December, receive a few votes.

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As of Monday morning in the daily updated NCAA NET Rankings, a key metric to evaluate squads for eventual March Madness invites and seeding, UNC has risen to No. 36 overall in light of its three-game winning streak, including Saturday's clutch 63-61 road win over the NC State Wolfpack.

And the Tar Heels, enjoying a stardom surge by freshman guard Ian Jackson and encouraging production of late from junior big man Jalen Washington, now stack up at No. 4 among ACC teams in the NET Rankings.

They have taken care of business against mediocre and overmatched opponents to the tune of a 10-0 mark between Quad 2-4 games. However, they remain 1-6 in Quad 1 outings, and this week's slate doesn't provide any notable top-tier tests.

UNC basketball squares off against the visiting Cal Golden Bears (8-8, 1-4 ACC) in the Dean E. Smith Center at 7 p.m. ET Wednesday (ACC Network) before hosting the Stanford Cardinal (11-5, 3-2 ACC) at 2:15 p.m. ET Saturday (The CW).

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Stay tuned to North Carolina Tar Heels On SI for more UNC basketball news.