ESPN.com's Power 16: On the Heels of a title

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North Carolina heads into its ACC showdown with Duke this weekend in a familiar spot.

For the second straight week, the Tar Heels earned the No. 1 ranking in the ESPN.com Power 16 poll, but No. 2 UCLA is gaining ground fast.

The Heels earned six first-place votes to the Bruins' four. Fast-charging Kansas (one first-place vote) moved up three spots to No. 3, while Memphis and Tennessee dropped to No. 4 and No. 5.

Please note:
The Power 16 is a composite of all the ballots from a panel of ESPN.com experts. It does not reflect any one individual's picks.

This week's Power 16 comments are written by Reggie Rankin.

Power 16 | Voters 1-6 | Voters 7-12

The Power 16
	RANK	TEAM	RECORD	POINTS	COMMENTS
	1	North Carolina (6)	28-2	167	The Tar Heels are 7-1 when Quentin Thomas starts at point guard. The lone loss was to Duke, when he had seven assists and six turnovers. Will Ty Lawson start at the controls with the ACC regular-season title on the line at Cameron?
	2	UCLA (4)	26-3	161	The Bruins got their seventh straight win over Arizona last Sunday. The Wildcats had no answer for Kevin Love, who dropped in 24 points and 15 rebounds. With a win against Stanford on Thursday, the Bruins can earn their third consecutive Pac-10 regular-season title.
	3	Kansas (1)	27-3	120	Kansas showed Texas how it was supposed to handle Texas Tech. The Jayhawks drilled the Red Raiders by 58 in a game that everyone -- with the exception of the coaches -- scored. Darrell Arthur and Co. must take care of a capable Texas A&M team in College Station to keep the pressure on the Longhorns for the Big 12 regular-season title.
	4	Memphis	29-1	146	Memphis staked claim to its third straight outright C-USA title after surviving Southern Miss and beating SMU. Derrick Rose and Chris Douglas-Roberts combined for 45 points in a close call over the Golden Eagles. UAB invades FedEx Forum on Saturday dreaming of an upset after having the Tigers on the ropes in Birmingham.
	5	Tennessee	27-3	142	The No. 1 ranking was very brief, but the Vols got a hard-fought win against Florida on Wednesday to clinch at least a share of the SEC regular-season title. Tennessee will need to shoot better after connecting on only 36 percent of its shots in its past four games before Florida. It looks pretty good for the seniors' last home game on Sunday vs. South Carolina.
	6	Duke	26-3	110	The stage is set for the rivalry rematch on Saturday against North Carolina for all the ACC regular-season marbles. It will be interesting to see if the Blue Devils can shoot as well on their home court as they did in the Dean Dome (44.8 percent) from the three in an 89-78 win.
	7	Texas	25-5	96	The Longhorns took an unexpected step back by losing at Texas Tech, 83-80. They also won a hard-fought battle against Nebraska on Tuesday, 70-66. D.J. Augustin will have to control Oklahoma State point guard Byron Eaton, who has been scoring more as of late, if the Longhorns are to keep their regular-season title hopes alive.
	7	Xavier	25-4	96	The Musketeers have the A-10 regular-season title in their pocket and are a lock for an at-large bid. But they must hold off a tough Saint Joseph's team on Thursday before sending off the senior class of Stanley Burrell, Josh Duncan and Drew Lavender against a much-improved Richmond team Saturday. Xavier has a great chance to win out and earn a top seed in the Dance.
	9	Stanford	24-4	85	Stanford is one of the few teams that can match the Bruins' size and physicality. But to do that, the twin towers must be on the floor. In a January loss to UCLA, both Brook Lopez and Robin Lopez fouled out after playing 29 minutes each. There will be no Love for Kevin as Stanford attempts to take the regular-season title back to the Bay area on Thursday.
	10	Louisville	24-6	79	The Cards are on a serious run after winning nine straight games. They are getting production from the players who were out with injuries earlier this season. David Padgett and Juan Palacios have contributed in scoring, rebounding -- and most importantly -- on the defensive end. The 'Ville has a major challenge in front of it with Roy Hibbert and the high-energy Hoyas, but the Cards are primed to win their 10th straight and capture the Big East regular-season title.
	11	Georgetown	24-4	71	The Hoyas won their 20th straight at the Verizon Center after beating St. John's on Feb. 27. Roy Hibbert has been terrific, averaging 18.2 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.5 blocks over the past two games. For Georgetown to win the Big East regular season and beat Louisville, big Roy must continue to be aggressive and a scoring threat.
	12	Wisconsin	25-4	67	Wisconsin executes as well as any team in the country on both ends of the floor. Offensively, the Badgers have balanced scoring and top-notch post play from Brian Butch. Defensively, they put the handcuffs on opponents' top scorers. Wisconsin is the most consistent and highest-ranked team in the Big Ten. With the win over Penn State on Senior Day, Wisconsin is assured of at least a share of the regular-season title when it visits Northwestern on Saturday.
	13	Connecticut	23-6	47	With A.J. Price on the perimeter and Hasheem Thabeet in the post, the Huskies have the pieces in place to make a run in March. With two games remaining (at Providence, home for Cincinnati), Connecticut looks to have momentum as it heads to the Garden for the Big East tourney next week.
	14	Butler	27-3	19	Four Bulldogs, including Player of the Year Mike Green, were named on the All-Horizon teams. Butler earned an automatic berth to the tournament semifinals, which will be played at Hinkle Fieldhouse where the Bulldogs are 9-0 in conference play. The Bulldogs' experience and the soft home-court rims should book their ticket to the Horizon final.
	15	Notre Dame	23-6	16	Luke Harangody should be the Big East Player of the Year; he has stuffed the stat sheet on a regular basis. The Irish can break the game open with their 3-point shooting. ND looks for its 14th conference win in a road game at South Florida on Saturday.
	16	Michigan State	23-6	13	The Spartans scored 59 first-half points in routing Indiana, 103-74, on Sunday, marking the first time in eight years that Michigan State scored at least 100 points. The Spartans dropped 114 on Michigan in 2000, its national championship season. Drew Neitzel, the key for the Spartans, must score in double figures for State to get past Illinois and Ohio State, which upset Purdue to keep its at-large bid hopes alive.