Why Duke's Loss to North Carolina Was Huge for Virginia and Their Quest To Be ACC's Top Team

Can Virginia find a way to get to the No. 1 seed in the ACC?

Feb 7, 2026; Charlottesville, Virginia, USA; Virginia Cavaliers guard Dallin Hall (30) celebrates with teammates during the second half against the Syracuse Orange at John Paul Jones Arena. Mandatory Credit: Emily Faith Morgan-Imagn Images | Emily Faith Morgan-Imagn Images

In one, if not the best game of the season, North Carolina took down Duke on a buzzer beating shot, handing the Blue Devils their first conference loss of the season. For good reason, Duke has been the heavy favorite to win the regular season crown in the ACC, but this loss opens up the door for some other teams to make a charge for the No. 1 seed in the conference and one of those teams is Virginia.

The Cavaliers have continued to fly under the radar this season, despite a 20-3 record. Not only that, but this team is a triple overtime loss to Virginia Tech and a blown double digit lead to North Carolina away from being 22-1 and unbeaten in ACC play. They lost those games, but they still have a chance to be the best team in the conference down the stretch of the season.

Can they catch Duke?

Right now, Virginia is tied for second in the ACC with NC State, who they blew out in Raleigh earlier this season. Duke and Clemson are 10-1 in the conference while the Cavaliers and the Wolfpack are 9-2 while North Carolina and Miami are 7-3.

For the Cavaliers to catch up to Duke, all they have to do is win out. That is easier said than done, but there is only one game that the Cavaliers are going to be underdogs in the rest of the way and it is the game against the Blue Devils on the road. Win that, you win the tiebreaker over them and with a loss from Clemson (they play Duke this Saturday), then you are looking at a team that will finish with the best record in the conference and be the regular season champion in the ACC.

Since blowing the lead against North Carolina, Virginia has won four in a row, despite not playing their best in games against Notre Dame and Boston College. Here is their schedule the rest of the way:

At Florida State (Tuesday)

vs Ohio State (Saturday)

at Georgia Tech (2/18)

vs Miami (2/21)

vs NC State (2/24)

at Duke (2/28)

vs Wake Forest (3/3)

vs Virginia Tech (3/7)

The three game stretch against Miami, NC State, and Duke is going to determine the ceiling for this team. If they can sweep those games, they have a strong chance at finishing as the regular season champion in the ACC while also positioning themselves to be a top seed in the ACC Tournament.

It is a tall task and Virginia has been up and down, even in their wins, but Ryan Odom has an opportunity to continue to do something special in his first season in Charlottesville as the head coach and don't be surprised if you look at the ACC Tournament bracket at the end of the season and see that the Cavaliers are at the top.