Atlantic Coast Conference Notebook
Dissecting the Middle of the Pack
At first glance, it’s hard to differentiate Maryland, Georgia Tech, Miami and Virginia Tech because each team is 5-5. Three of them have 14-7 records. The most apparent differences are that the Terrapins and Yellow Jackets had a lot of pre-season hype while the Hurricanes and Hokies are the conference newcomers.
With North Carolina, Duke and Wake Forest as the ACC’s only three locks for the NCAA Tournament, how do these four compare to each other? Non-conference results will be a major factor, but the selection committee should also look at who each of these teams played in the ACC.
With the imbalanced schedule, some teams play more challenging conference schedules than others. For example, Virginia Tech is the only one of the four to not play at least two games against Duke, Wake Forest and North Carolina during the final six games. Maryland and Georgia Tech each have one win against the ACC’s elite while Virginia Tech and Miami have zero.
On the other hand, some teams feast on the bottom feeders. Miami has four wins against Florida State, Clemson, Virginia and North Carolina State, all of which fall below the middle of the pack. Maryland only has two wins against the weaker links, but partially because the Terrapins lost to two of those teams. Miami has not lost any of them.
Head-to-head play solves nothing, either. Maryland beat Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech but lost to Miami. Miami lost to Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech. The Hokies beat Georgia Tech. Ugh. It’s a headache.
The bottom line is that it’s nearly impossible to pick one of these teams over another based on conference results so far. The final six weeks should help clarify the issue. The odds are that Georgia Tech will emerge from the pack and Virginia Tech will fall off. Maryland and Miami are the biggest question marks, and the two don’t get to meet again during the regular season.
ACC tournament, here we come.
Player of the Week
Shelden Williams, Duke
J.J. Redick is the scorer, but Williams is the dominator at both ends. Against Georgia Tech and North Carolina, Williams averaged 13 points, 10.5 rebounds, 5.5 blocks and three steals. And those numbers come against two of the ACC’s best, North Carolina and Georgia Tech.
Rookie of the Week
DeMarcus Nelson, Duke
Nelson had his best game of the season against one of Duke’s toughest opponent, North Carolina. Nelson scored 16 points and forced four steals in the game. He had a less productive three-point, two-rebound game against Georgia Tech. But his contribution to the 71-70 thrilling win against a hated rival is more than enough to earn this week’s honor.
ACC Coach Watch
Herb Sendek, North Carolina State
No one will blame Sendek for the myriad injuries and illnesses that have stricken the Wolfpack. But this team was expected to be an NCAA Tournament team, and coaches usually take the blame when the team underperforms, regardless of the excuses. Games at Wake Forest and Georgia Tech could help the Wolfpack right the season’s wrongs. Or they could all but close the door on North Carolina State’s NCAA aspirations.
Duke Blue Devils (18-2, 8-2)
Duke proved that the Blue Devils are a legitimate national championship contender by beating Georgia Tech and North Carolina in back-to-back home games last week. The Blue Devils opened the week with a sound drubbing of the Yellow Jackets, 82-65. Junior guard J.J. Redick led the attack with 26 points, including six three pointers. Junior forward Shelden Williams continued his dominance with 15 points, 12 rebounds and five blocks. He’s a defensive monster who can almost single-handedly eliminate the best post players of the opposing team.
Duke’s defense fueled a win against North Carolina in the nation’s best rivalry. Duke forced 23 turnovers, which fed the 71-70 victory. Redick again led Duke with 18 points. But Williams was the difference-maker with 11 points, nine rebounds, five blocks and five steals. Coach Mike Krzyzewski mastered the rotation of his lineup, managing his big men so that none of them fouled out and North Carolina could not gain an advantage. Duke held off North Carolina’s second-half runs with timely three pointers from Redick, senior guard Daniel Ewing and freshman guard DeMarcus Nelson, who scored 16 points off the bench for the Blue Devils.
Duke returns to the road this week at Maryland Saturday.
North Carolina Tar Heels (19-3, 8-2)
The Tar Heels continued to dominate opponents in the ACC by slamming North Carolina State 95-71 and Florida State 81-60. But the Tar Heels ran into a stone wall of defense against Duke in Durham, losing to the hated Blue Devils 71-70. The game was a defensive masterpiece by Duke, centered by Shelden Williams’ five blocks. North Carolina scored nearly 20 points less than the team’s average this season and shot less than 44 percent from the field. Although that’s a good percentage, it’s well below the team’s season average, which is slightly better than 50 percent. Despite the loss, junior forward Sean May had one of the best performances of his career, scoring 23 points and grabbing 18 rebounds. He outplayed his counterpart, Williams, on offense and the glass. The Tar Heels’ biggest problem was that junior guard Rashad McCants failed to hit the big shots.
Despite the loss to Duke, North Carolina still remains near the top of the standings because the Tar Heels take care of business against the lesser ACC teams. The Tar Heels led 51-32 at halftime against the Wolfpack and cruised to victory behind 20 points from freshman forward Marvin Williams. North Carolina hit 60 percent of its shots from the field and committed only nine turnovers. The Tar Heels matched that number against Florida State, eluding the Seminoles’ stifling defense for only nine turnovers again. Florida State held the Tar Heels to 40 percent shooting, but four Tar Heels reached double figures, led by McCants’ 16.
The Tar Heels complete a brutal three-game road trip at Connecticut Sunday before returning home to host Virginia Wednesday.
Wake Forest Demon Deacons (19-3, 7-2)
Wake Forest humbled the upstart Virginia Tech Hokies in the Demon Deacons’ only game during the past week. Senior guard Taron Downey led the Demon Deacons with 18 points off the bench, making up for a poor shooting game by sophomore guard Chris Paul. Paul finished with three points, all on free throws. But he was one of the most important players for Wake Forest because he kept the offense running smoothly with nine assists. He also added five rebounds. Wake Forest played uncharacteristically well on defense, holding the Hokies to 37.5 percent shooting from the field, including only 2-of-13 from three-point range. Junior center Eric Williams dominated the post with 14 points and 12 rebounds.
Wake Forest returns to action with three games in six days. First, the Demon Deacons host North Carolina State Thursday, then Florida State Saturday, and lastly, they travel to Miami Tuesday.
Maryland Terrapins (14-7, 5-5)
The Terrapins continue to claim the title of ACC enigma after splitting games last week against Miami and Virginia Tech. Maryland lost an overtime thriller at Miami, 75-73, when sophomore guard Mike Jones fouled Miami’s William Frisby with less than a second remaining. Frisby made the free throws to provide the margin of victory, and the Terps dropped a heartbreaker. The loss spoiled a 23-point performance by junior guard Chris McCray. Jones added 14 points off the bench for Maryland. Both teams struggled to hit shots as Maryland hit only 38 percent from the field and held Miami to 32 percent shooting.
Needing a victory to get back to .500 in the ACC, the Terrapins responded with a strong 86-71 home win against Virginia Tech. Junior forward Nik Caner-Medley led Maryland with 22 points, and McCray and Jones had good games with 19 points and 13 points, respectively. Against Miami, the Terrapins committed 19 turnovers to the Hurricanes’ nine. They improved against the Hokies, committing only 13 turnovers and forcing 18. Junior point guard John Gilchrist was a major factor in the offense’s efficiency with 19 points, 10 assists and five rebounds.
The Terrapins can pick up a huge victory Saturday when they host Duke. Maryland heads south to Raleigh Wednesday to play North Carolina State.
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (14-7, 5-5)
The Yellow Jackets finally got senior guard B.J. Elder back last week after he missed several weeks with a hamstring injury. Elder missed Georgia Tech’s 82-65 loss at Duke but returned for the 70-62 win at Clemson. Against Duke, the Yellow Jackets struggled to stop Duke’s primary weapons, Shelden Williams and J.J. Redick. Junior guard Jarrett Jack led Georgia Tech with 18 points. But the Yellow Jackets couldn’t find a way past Duke’s big men in the paint as they swatted 11 shots. Center Luke Schenscher had a good game with 11 points and 10 rebounds, but no other post player recorded double figures.
Elder’s return against Clemson gave Georgia Tech another weapon on the perimeter, which opened up the middle for senior forward Isma’il Muhammad, who scored 13 points. Jack led the Yellow Jackets again with 16 points, six rebounds and six assists. Elder came off the bench to play 20 minutes and scored 11 points on 4-of-8 shooting.
Georgia Tech plays one game at home against North Carolina State Sunday before getting a week off to rest.
Miami Hurricanes (14-7, 5-5)
Miami remains in the hunt for an NCAA bid after beating Maryland in a great overtime game Saturday. The Hurricanes won 75-73 when sophomore forward William Frisby hit two free throws with less than a second remaining after collecting a miss from sophomore guard Guillermo Diaz. Diaz led all scores with 27 points and helped fuel the late rally. Junior guard Robert Hite scored 17, and Frisby added 15 as few other Hurricanes could hit any shots against Maryland’s defense. Despite hitting less than 32 percent of their shots from the field, the Hurricanes were efficient in the clutch. They only committed nine turnovers in the game and forced 19 by the Terrapins. The overtime win was Miami’s fourth conference win by less than five points.
Miami travels to Clemson Saturday before hosting Wake Forest Tuesday in a game that could cement the Hurricanes’ status as an NCAA Tournament team.
Virginia Tech Hokies (12-9, 5-5)
Beneficiaries of a favorable early ACC schedule, the Hokies have fallen back to earth with three losses in four games. Last week, Virginia Tech dropped a pair of games to Wake Forest and Maryland. The Hokies could not hit their shots against Wake Forest, shooting only 37.5 percent from the field. Sophomore guard Jamon Gordon was the lone Hokie to find his stroke, but his contribution wasn’t enough to stop an 83-63 home blowout. Virginia Tech continued to struggle from the line, hitting only 13-of-21 free throws. For the year, the Hokies are about a 65 percent free-throw shooting team. That’s not going to cut it in close games.
The second loss last week wasn’t close enough for free throws to decide the outcome, however. Maryland jumped out to a 12-point halftime lead, and the Hokies could not slow the Terrapins’ offense throughout the second half, ending in an 86-71 loss. Senior guard Carlos Dixon scored 22 points to lead Virginia Tech, which shot better than 49 percent from the field. The bench for Virginia Tech was a disappointment, scoring only two points in 29 minutes. Virginia Tech’s reliance on the starting five demands that at least three starters have big games, or else the Hokies are doomed to lose.
Virginia Tech plays Virginia Saturday in a rematch of the Hokies’ victory earlier this season in Blacksburg, Va.
North Carolina State Wolfpack (13-9, 3-6)
Coach Herb Sendek is feeling the heat in Raleigh after the Wolfpack dropped two more conference games to fall near the bottom of the conference. The Wolfpack started last week with an ugly blowout at rival North Carolina. The Tar Heels smoked North Carolina State 95-71 as they shot 60 percent from the field. In contrast, the Wolfpack shot only 39 percent from the field. Senior guard Julius Hodge led North Carolina State with 18 points, but he appeared to be the only player with a sense of urgency to rally the team once they were down big in the second half. Junior guard Tony Bethel had a good game with 16 points, five rebounds and four assists. He needs to lead the offense to productivity with more assists.
In all fairness, the Wolfpack are playing without second leading scorer junior forward Cameron Bennerman. But the Wolfpack still have a talented roster that’s not playing particularly well at either end. Against Virginia, North Carolina State let one slip away when Cavalier guard Sean Singletary put back his own miss for a 64-62 win. That rebound gave the Cavaliers a 29-19 advantage in the rebounding department. Bethel, a 6-2 guard, tied for the team lead with six rebounds. He led the team with 20 points. The Wolfpack need to get their players to fulfill their roles. Forwards Ilian Evtimov, Cedric Simmons and Andrew Brackman need to play tougher on the glass to win the rebounding battles. Bethel and guard Engin Atsur need to run the offense and dish out more assists. Until that happens, North Carolina State will continue to struggle.
The Wolfpack enter a critical stretch at Wake Forest Thrusday, at Georgia Tech Sunday and home against Maryland Wednesday.
Virginia Cavaliers (12-9, 3-7)
With coach Pete Gillen on the ropes, Virginia responded with two last-second wins against North Carolina State and Florida State. Gillen switched up the starting lineup, sitting senior stud Elton Brown and sophomore swingman Gary Forbes and starting sophomore guars J.R. Reynolds and T.J. Bannister. Bannister responded by sharing the team lead against the Wolfpack with 14 points. Senior forward Devin Smith also had 14 points and eight rebounds. But the hero was freshman guard Sean Singletary, who collected his own miss with a few seconds remaining and drilled the winning basket for a 64-62 victory. Virginia won the rebounding war 29-19, and that last one was the killer.
Gillen stuck with the new lineup against Florida State, and the result was another last-second victory as Smith hit a three pointer to give Virginia a 56-55 win. Brown came off the bench to lead Virginia with 13 points and six rebounds. Virginia was outplayed by the Seminoles for most of the game, but the Cavaliers’ defense shut down Florida State during the final few minutes.
Virginia still has a long road back to NCAA contention, and wins against Virginia Tech Saturday and at North Carolina Wednesday would help significantly.
Florida State Seminoles (11-12, 3-7)
Florida State dropped games against North Carolina and Virginia last week to quickly become in danger of falling entirely off the radar for an NCAA bid. At 3-7, the Seminoles need to win out to have any shot at attracting the selection committee’s attention. Florida State started the week with a tough loss against North Carolina. The Seminoles held North Carolina to 40 percent shooting from the field and remained within single digits of the Tar Heels until midway through the second half when the Tar Heels’ depth overcame Florida State’s pressure. The Seminoles’ offense also hibernated for the week as only two players reached double figures against North Carolina and just one against Virginia. Sophomore guard Von Wafer led the Seminoles with 14 points against North Carolina.
Against Virginia, Florida State led for the entire game, until the final five seconds when Virginia’s Devin Smith hit the game-winning three pointer. The Seminoles’ lack of offensive production facilitated Virginia’s last-second victory as Florida State didn’t hit a field goal for several minutes at the end of the game. Wafer was the lone Seminole to reach double figures, scoring 16 points. Florida State desperately needs someone to help Wafer on the offensive end or else Florida State will continue to compete with Clemson for the bottom of the ACC standings.
The Seminoles visit Wake Forest Saturday looking to reprise their upset from earlier this season. Then Florida State finishes its non-conference schedule at Massachusetts Tuesday.
Clemson Tigers (11-11, 2-8)
Despite having a week to prepare for Georgia Tech, the Tigers could not solve the Yellow Jackets’ defense as only two Tigers scored in double figures. Senior forward Olu Babalola led the limp attack with 12 points in a 70-62 loss. Both teams struggled to hold onto the ball, combining for 44 turnovers. Freshman forward James Mays had a solid game in his opportunity to start, scoring 10 points and collecting five rebounds. But Clemson’s bread and butter, senior forward Sharrod Ford, was limited to three points and zero rebounds as Georgia Tech forced the Tigers to win by shooting the ball. And the Tigers responded with only 6-of-26 shooting from long range.
Clemson hosts Miami Saturday before finishing off the non-conference schedule against Georgia Wednesday.
