Virginia Back on Track in Latest KenPom and NET Rankings After Victory Over Syracuse

Where did the Virginia Cavaliers land in the rankings this week?

Virginia Cavaliers guard Jacari White | Emily Faith Morgan-Imagn Images

The No. 18 Virginia Cavaliers are currently tied for third in the ACC standings, sharing the space with NC State, both of whom are carrying a conference play record of 9-2. Overall, the Cavaliers are running 20-3.

Not only are Virginia's records improving, but they're also on a steady winning streak right now, with four consecutive wins under their belt. Having said that, these haven't been simple matchups for the Cavaliers—they've certainly been put to the test.

After defeating the Syracuse Orange 72-59 yesterday afternoon and Pittsburgh 67-47 earlier in the week, Virginia has seen some movement in the latest KenPom and NET rankings. As of this morning, the Cavaliers come in at No. 16 in both.

The NET rankings break UVA down into the following quadrants:

Quad 1: 4-2
Quad 2: 6-1
Quad 3: 3-0
Quad 4: 7-0

As detailed on NCAA.com, "The number of Quadrant 1 wins and Quadrant 3/4 losses will be incredibly important when it comes time for NCAA tournament selection and seeding."

What’s Helping?

Virginia Cavaliers head coach Ryan Odom | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

One of the most intriguing things about Virginia this year is how new the players are to each other. Considering most of them had never played together until heading to UVA, their chemistry on the court is remarkable. Then, adding a new head coach to the mix, this could have easily been a flop season.

Staying on the same page is imperative for any college basketball program, but it's even more important when the players have little history with each other. During Ryan Odom's recent postgame press conference, he stated:

"I think the character that was the first thing, the character of this group, is really strong. Their desire to win and not win for an individual but to win for their teammates and to win for the university, I think that's the key, if you can capture that in a bottle and continue to cultivate it over the course of the season, obviously you have to have success to draw from and certainly you have to be able to learn from your failures as well. But this group has come in every day with a positive attitude, regardless of the circumstances; they've come in with a belief that they belong, and expect to win."

Virginia's next matchup is scheduled for Feb. 10 at 7 p.m. ET against Florida State. This will be a road contest for the Cavaliers in Tallahassee, Fla., adding to an already challenging meeting.