By Tracy Smith, on March 14th, 2012  The number of ACC school playing basketball has now been whittled in half. Six teams are finished for the season-having been eliminated from the ACC tournament and not receiving and/or turning down bids to other postseason tournaments not nicknamed March Madness. Six do remain, though-and those six are all alive to compete for a championship. At least for a while, even if it’s only for a few days.
The Miami Hurricanes accepted a bid to the NIT, the lone ACC team in the 32-team field. They begin play tonight at home against Valparaiso, the regular season champions of the Horizon League. Those of you unfamiliar with the Horizon League, but are casual fans of college basketball this time of year may have heard of the Butler Bulldogs, the two-time national runners up in the NCAA tournament. Valparaiso plays in the same league. Should the ‘Canes win at home, they would face the winner of the LaSalle-Minnesota matchup, with site and time to be determined.
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By Tracy Smith, on March 8th, 2012  The title means nothing to North Carolina, Duke or Florida State. The three of them are solid locks for the NCAA tournament as if anyone needs convincing. North Carolina finally looked like the team everyone thought it would be at the beginning of the season in the final game against the Blue Devils. The Tar Heels were the more talented team and they played like it, dominating Duke from the beginning and never letting up.
If that’s the North Carolina team we see from here on out, they will be tough to beat-even by Kentucky or Syracuse. As for Duke and Florida State, their bodies of work are solid enough to merit entry without too much complaint. Few teams can boast the quality of wins the Blue Devils have, and the Seminoles have two huge wins over North Carolina and Duke on their ledger with only two really stinkers of losses. If the Seminoles defend as they are capable and do enough on offense, they should be a tough out in the tournament.
The title makes a better application for Virginia, North Carolina State and Miami. Virginia should still be in, but some shaky play down the stretch may leave some doubt in the minds of the selection committee. However, for the better part of the season the Cavaliers have been solid and if they can keep pushing forward (and certainly a win or two in the ACC tournament wouldn’t hurt), they will hear their name called on Selection Sunday.
For North Carolina State and Miami, there remains work to be done. Both teams should get past their opening round games over Boston College and Georgia Tech respectively. Those presumed wins won’t do much more than add to their win totals, but the following games-where the Wolfpack will meet the Cavaliers and the Hurricanes match up with the Seminoles-wins in those games should raise each team’s profile for an invite to the Big Dance. Of course, should the Wolfpack and Hurricanes somehow get games against the two top seeds-and Miami already has a win over the Blue Devils on its resume-close games, if not wins, might seal the deal for both teams. But then again, it’s not just what they do, it’s what teams all over the country do, as there are many teams fighting for those last open slots for the NCAA tournament.
As for the ACC tournament, just about everyone I talk to expects another Tar Heel-Blue Devil championship game. That may well be the case, but in this tournament, surprises abound. In fact, many of the guesses I made above regarding the Wolfpack and Hurricanes may not come to pass-it could be just as likely they lose their opening round games as they could roll into the semifinals. And with the Blue Devils further weakened by Ryan Kelly’s foot injury, perhaps that championship game pairing may not come to pass either.
By Tracy Smith, on February 29th, 2012  Go back to the beginning of the ACC hoop season, and all the talk about the conference race focused on North Carolina and Duke. This is not uncommon; seemingly every year one or the other is the favorite in the conference. Then North Carolina suffered a beatdown from Florida State, which was followed by Michael Snaer’s shot heard ’round Tobacco Road as the Seminoles beat Duke. For awhile, the Seminoles looked to break the stranglehold the Tar Heels and Blue Devils had on the regular season conference title.
Then Florida State ran into some problems. Namely, one bad week of basketball featuring losses to Duke at home and to Miami on the road. Because of those losses, Florida State went from having the inside track to the regular season conference title, to third place in the conference race. Which leaves our old friends, North Carolina and Duke, battling it out for the regular season title. Again.
Redundant though it may be, it has to be stated that those two have been without a doubt the two best teams in the conference. And with their performance over the course of the season, they both are in play to receive top seeds in the NCAA tournament, depending on who does what in the next few days. Which means that Saturday’s showdown at Cameron Indoor Stadium (with Duke defeating Wake Forest last night and assuming the Tar Heels defeat Maryland tonight) looms large not just for the conference championship and the ACC tournament top seed, but nationally as well.
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By Tracy Smith, on February 22nd, 2012  There are two weeks left in the regular season of the ACC, and certain realities are coming into focus. The conference has a top tier, a second-levelof good but not great teams, and a lower section of mediocre to poor teams. Duke and North Carolina are about where everyone figured they would be at the start of the season. The fact that they have been joined by Florida State comes as a surprise, and it may be even more of a surprise that the Seminoles still hold the tiebreaker over both of the Tobacco Road bluebloods this late in the regular season. That distinction has the possibility to change on Thursday night, as the Blue Devils head down to Tallahassee for the rematch. You can bet that Duke would love nothing more than to avenge the defeat suffered at Cameron Indoor last month. Should the Seminoles get past that game, a Miami Hurricanes squad desperate for another big-time vicgtory will be waiting on Saturday.
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By Tracy Smith, on February 15th, 2012 
This past week in the ACC was all about the bounce back, particularly at the top of the conference standings. The Duke Blue Devils, coming off a lossat home to the Miami Hurricanes that dropped them a game behind co-leaders North Carolina and Florida State, needed to regroup prior to facing the Tar Heels at the Smith Center last Wednesday night. With Austin Rivers hitting the shot heard ’round the country, Duke did bounce back, pulling itself back into a tie for first. They then followed that performance with a solid effort in defeating Maryland, keeping them in the running for the #1 spot.
Rivers’ shot not only was good for the Blue Devils; it helped the Seminoles as well. The same night that Duke roared back and snatched a victory away from the Tar Heels, the Seminoles were getting drilled in Chestnut Hill by a barrage of three-point baskets. The Boston College Eagles haven’t done a whole lot this conference season, but the young team performed the improbable in upsetting the Seminoles, in a game that temporarily dropped them from the conference lead. After Duke’s win, Florida State regained its hold on first place; holding a tie-breaker over both North Carolina and Duke. The ‘Noles then had a bounce back game of their own, defeating the Hurricanes 64-59 and snapping Miami’s five-game winning streak.
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By Tracy Smith, on February 8th, 2012  There is a game tonight with high stakes in the conference race. Longtime rivals will be going at it in what the national media considers one of the biggest games on the sports calendar. Two teams rich in history, close in proximity and filled with animus toward each other. A game so big, a national sports network considers it one of the linchpins of it’s “Rivalry Week.”
Of course, I’m talking about the Florida State-Boston College game. While that game is also of some importance, what with the Seminoles trying to hold on to first place in the conference race, while BC tries to avoid the cellar of same, there can only be one game that fits the description I gave above. No, it’s not Wake Forest vs. Virginia either.
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By Tracy Smith, on February 1st, 2012 Sidney Lowe, the former coach of the North Carolina State men’s basketball team was shown the door for not winning enough with the talent he was able to recruit. New coach Mark Gottfried, with a roster not completely devoid of talent, had the Wolfpack tied for first in the conference standings through five games, with the possibility of making the tournament if they can keep up the good play. Last week was a big week for the Wolfpack, with games against North Carolina and Virginia-games that if they could win one or both, would be additional proof that the team could hang around in the conference for the long haul.
Unfortunately, the Tar Heels were the Tar Heels-meaning the team that was thought to be a national contender. They ran the Wolfpack out of the Smith Center 74-55. In the home game against Virginia, the Wolfpack didn’t shoot the ball well, but battled all game long before falling short by a point. While the two losses don’t doom the Wolfpack’s chances at the NCAA tournament, nor by themselves prove they can’t play with the big boys, they represented missed opportunities. Now they face of week of winnable games against Boston College and Wake Forest, which can help rebuild their confidence, if not necessarily enhance their tournament profile.
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By Tracy Smith, on January 25th, 2012 It has been a great last few days for the Florida State Seminoles, winners of four straight conference games. You could be forgiven if you had written off the Seminoles after losing to Princeton and Harvard. You could be forgiven if you paid no attention after the Seminoles lost the first conference game by twenty points to Clemson. Granted, the game was at Clemson, but twenty points? Especially when Florida State was still under some consideration as the third-best team in the conference?
Let’s just say that no one is overlooking the Seminoles now.
Sprinkled in those four consecutive conference triumphs was a thirty-three point beatdown of presumed national title contender North Carolina. Yes, the game was in Tallahassee, but how does a team a) beat the Tar Heels by that much anywhere; and b) score 90 points in the process? The Seminoles make their name on the defensive side of the ball, but in the last few games, it has been the offense that has stepped up. Nowhere was that more noticeable than in the Seminoles most recent triumph over Duke, at the cauldron known as Cameron Indoor Stadium. Florida State came from behind, scoring fifty points in the second half-finishing with a game-winning three point shot by Michael Snaer.
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By Tracy Smith, on January 18th, 2012 The wild week that was in the ACC found the team picked for last place winning twice, the team that perpetually sits on the bubble sitting at 0-3 in the conference, and the most shocking upset in the conference in many a year.
Surprise #1: Boston College, predicted to hold down the cellar in the conference, surprised by winning two games in three days. By virtue of two-point home wins over Clemson and Virginia Tech, the Eagles sit in a five-way tie for second place in the standings. It is hard to say whether this is the beginning of a surprising trend, or whether BC will eventually find its way back down to its predicted perch. What it does say is that the Eagles may not be the automatic win most pundits presumed it will be, at least at home.
Surprise #2: Granted, leading scorer Erick Green missed the BC game with a knee injury, but who could have foreseen Virginia Tech at 0-3? With no really great wins to speak of, the Hokies need to win as many games as they can in conference, because the schedule only gives them a few opportunities to defeat top-25 teams in the league. The Hokies do get two chances each at Virginia and Duke, but only one chance against North Carolina. That opportunity comes on Thursday night. Problem is, the Tar Heels are coming off a loss that no one saw coming. Which leads to…
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By Tracy Smith, on January 11th, 2012 Forgive me for jumping way ahead this college basketball season, but it is never too early to gaze in the crystal ball to see what might happen in the future. In college basketball, the future is in March, when teams, having finished their bodies of work, hope to hear their names called on Selection Sunday to get into the best tournament in sports, the NCAA basketball championship (my opinion; yours may vary).
Apparently it is not too early to begin what fans of the tournament have come to know as the Bubble Watch: explained as which teams may or may not be included in the field of 68 if the tournament were held on a given date. For the last few years, the Virginia Tech Hokies have been on and off the bubble so much, coach Seth Greenberg’s face should be pictured whenever the topic is discussed. This year may prove to be no exception. The Hokies have begun conference play with an 0-2 slate, after losses to Wake Forest on Saturday and Florida State last night. A look at their pre-conference schedule shows a lot of wins over teams they should have beaten, and no bad losses, unless you count the one to Minnesota, which has started out 0-4 in the Big Ten. The Wake Forest loss may prove to hurt them even more, unless the Demon Deacons prove to be better than expected going forward. That said, the Hokies will have some opportunities to improve their tournament bonafides, with upcoming games against North Carolina at home, a road game against Virginia and a non-conference matchup with BYU of the West Coast Conference. Wins in two of those three games will give the Hokies a boost; and they will get two cracks at beating the Duke Blue Devils down the line. Of course, last season the Hokies famously upset Duke at home, only to see themselves out of the tournament when the selections were made. If they prove to be the fourth best team in what is being looked at as a down year for the league, that might not be enough to get them a bid to the NCAA tournament. So every game from here on out is important as the Hokies try to build a good case for inclusion.
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By Tracy Smith, on January 7th, 2012 With eight conference teams headed to bowl games, including two in BCS bowls for the first time ever, it appeared the ACC had a chance to enhance its national perception on the gridiron. That chance has now come and gone, as the conference finished bowl season with a 2-6 record. The final results were disappointing in that the teams did not win more games, and as far as the BCS bowl results go, may have pushed national impression of the conference further into irrelevancy.
Start with the Sugar Bowl-Virginia Tech was derided by many for being chosen to even play in the game, and given it’s 1-4 record in BCS bowl games, perhaps rightfully so. While the Hokies kept it close against the Michigan Wolverines, the end result was like so many of the others-a loss. The 23-20 overtime defeat sunk the team and coach Frank Beamer to 1-5 in BCS bowls, and the reputation of Virginia Tech took yet another hit in the national press. For all the success the school has had in the ACC, it hasn’t made it over the hump in the big games. This was just the latest loss of note.
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By Tracy Smith, on January 4th, 2012 Many times in college hoops, teams are forced to start without players who are expected to make a positive impact on the season. Such was the case at the University of Maryland, where two important players were off the floor at the beginning of the year. The return of Pe’Shon Howard, and the appearance of Alex Len through three games have given way to raised expectations for the Terps going forward. Before Howard’s return from a broken foot and Len’s joining the team after a ten-game suspension, Maryland struggled to beat teams many figured they should beat and lost badly to teams where they were outmanned. Nevertheless, after last night’s win over Cornell, the Terrapins stood at 10-3 with a 7-game winning streak-albeit against weaker competition. Still, the fact that the Terps are gaining confidence with a full roster can only mean good things going forward, because conference play is finally about to arrive. Awaiting the Terrapins after finishing their pre-conference schedule is a trip to Raleigh to face North Carolina State’s Wolfpack. Recent ACC Player of the Week Lorenzo Brown, along with C.J. Leslie and three-point sharpshooter Scott Wood lead the Wolfpack under new head coach Mark Gottfried.
ACC teams will finish up with their up the first phase of the season by Thursday with some additional non-conference games. The most noteworthy of these games is Duke’s trip to Philadelphia to face the Temple Owls, whom they have beaten nine straight times. The Blue Devils have been something of an afterthought nationally, even as they won the Maui Classic, but were drubbed by Ohio State. The Blue Devils haven’t lost since, however, and head into this virtual home game with the Owls looking to get even better as they head into their first conference game on Saturday against Georgia Tech.
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By Tracy Smith, on December 28th, 2011 It was generally expected that the ACC would be a bit down this season, but it was hoped that things would be better than last year, when the ACC was looked at as a less than elite basketball conference. Sadly, the results thus far haven’t shown any of the improvement the conference’s fans were hoping for. So far in non-conference games, the ACC sits at 98-44, a .690 winning percentage. There are certainly plenty of wins left before conference play kicks into gear on January 7, so that record could and should get better. However, in comparison with the other Big Six conferences, the ACC ranks fifth, with only the Pac-12 holding a worse non-conference record (88-57, .609) to date. Even the SEC, never truly known as a hoops power, has won 101 out of 140 non-conference games-and that includes the struggles of preseason top-10 Vanderbilt.
While the non-conference season has seen its share of good wins, there have also been some lost opportunities for good wins by individual schools. In the past week, Clemson went 1-2 in the Diamond Head Classic in Hawaii, with losses to UTEP and Hawaii. Florida State was routed by Florida and Georgia Tech suffered a home loss to Mercer. North Carolina played almost perfect basketball in a rout over Texas; the Longhorns seemingly were behind by double digits as soon as the game began. Duke started slow, but poured it on late to defeat UNC-Greensboro. Miami got Reggie Johnson back from a serious knee injury over the summer, and defeated Charlotte by 15 points. Johnson’s return is important for Jim Larranaga’s squad; it gives the ‘Canes an inside presence to add to what has been a perimeter-oriented offense.
Looking ahead, Virginia looks to keep rolling along even as players transfer out of the program. It was recently announced that James Johnson was given his release and would transfer from Virginia, making four players from coach Tony Bennett’s first recruiting class that will leave the program. Despite that, the Cavaliers have won eight straight games, and should push the string to ten with games against Maryland Eastern Shore and Towson. The Cavaliers will face a test on Monday night against an LSU squad that recently gave Marquette its first loss. The Tigers may be heading into that matchup on a seven-game win streak of their own, should they handle Grambling on Thursday night. Maryland gets Alex Len on the floor after his ten game suspension is over for two non-conference games this week. Len will give the Terrapins some much needed size, but he isn’t exactly built for bruising down low-though he stands over 7 feet tall, he only weighs in at 225 pounds. Still, he will give the Terrapins another option on offense, adding to ACC leading scorer Terrell Stoglin. The Terps will put their four-game win streak on the line against Albany tonight, with games against Samford on Saturday and Cornell next Tuesday to follow. Boston College, the only conference team under .500, faces a nemesis of the recent past on Thursday, as Harvard comes to Chestnut Hill. The Crimson have had the better of it over the Eagles in the recent past, and should be favored to win again. A game with Rhode Island follows on Monday.
By Tracy Smith, on December 21st, 2011 Last week in my initial post for ACC Basketball, I focused on the Syracuse-North Carolina State game. While the Wolfpack kept it close for awhile, Syracuse eventually proved itself to be the better team, pulling away in the second half to win by double digits. However, another out of conference game the next night that didn’t get any mention in my previous post may prove to have a bit more meaning.
A look at the conference standings at the moment shows that the Virginia Cavaliers have the second best record in the conference, a half game behind the Duke Blue Devils. Granted, the standings don’t mean a whole lot at the moment as ACC teams as a whole have primarily built their won-loss records on a bunch of guarantee games, mixed in with a few more challenging matchups. For the Cavaliers, this meant a trip out west to face the Oregon Ducks. While the Ducks aren’t exactly a Pac-12 power, they are expected to be improved in their second year under former Creighton head coach Dana Altman. The fact that Virginia went to Oregon, which can be a tough place to play, and came out with a 13-point victory augurs well for the upcoming season. Virginia has been getting it done on defense, and while it’s 9-1 record is impressive, they have been mostly under the radar, save for a win over a ranked Michigan team in the ACC-Big Ten challenge. As stated last week, the ACC has several candidates who could be the third-best team behind consensus 1-2 picks North Carolina and Duke, and it’s possible that Virginia could be that team. Of course, there’s a long way to go before that is determined-and the proving will begin when conference play starts.
With conference play scheduled to start on January 7, the upcoming slate is filled with non-conference games. Notable matchups include tonight’s Texas-North Carolina game in Chapel Hill. Former Clemson coach Rick Barnes brings a Longhorns squad that isn’t loaded with future pros as in years past to face the team many have picked to win the national championship. That’s not a knock on Texas; they still have talent, just not as much as in previous seasons. The game will feature two young talented point guards in Kendall Marshall for the Tar Heels and Myck Kabongo for the Longhorns. The big question will be can Texas handle the talented front line of North Carolina. Thursday night finds the Seminoles of Florida State meeting the Gators of Florida in an ACC-SEC tilt. Florida State makes its name with defense but often has trouble scoring points, while the Gators are a good offensive team whose only losses are to top-five teams Ohio State and Syracuse. Also on Thursday, Clemson’s Tigers begin a trip to Hawaii to participate in the Diamond Head Classic, where possible dates await with Kansas State and Xavier following tomorrow night’s opener versus UTEP.
By Tracy Smith, on December 14th, 2011 I can’t believe the ACC basketball season is already a month old. Seems like yesterday that North Carolina faced Michigan State on the USS Carl Vinson out in San Diego on Veterans Day. And while the hoop season was playing in the shadow of that diversion known as ACC football, everyone knows that the ACC is most famous for being a premier basketball conference. And seemingly as always, the Tar Heels and the Duke Blue Devils have been proclaimed top two teams in the conference and have been getting the lion’s share of attention. Both were ranked in the preseason top 10, but it hasn’t exactly been a smooth ride in the first month. The Tar Heels have already suffered two losses; one to UNLV and another to Kentucky in one of the best games of the young season. Duke did win the Maui Invitational in a great game over Kansas, but was drilled by Ohio State in one of the marquee games of the ACC-Big Ten challenge. Both teams are capable of taking home the title, but both have seen chinks in their armor early on that will have to be shored up come March.
While those two teams are generally considered threats, the rest of the conference has mostly been considered afterthoughts. The national perception has been that the ACC is a two team conference-Tar Heels and Blue Devils, and that the ACC is not the conference it used to be. Those folks who believe that can use the ACC-Big Ten Challenge results as fuel for their argument. With an 8-4 victory, the Big Ten won its third Challenge in a row, suggesting that the ACC isn’t as deep in quality teams as their competitors in the Midwest. After one month, it’s too early to tell how teams below the top two will change over time.
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