Atlantic Coast Conference Notebook
With two weeks remaining in the regular season, each ACC team has no more than four games remaining. Conveniently, the 12 teams have sorted them into thirds – the top four are NCAA Tournament-bound, the next four are desperate to go on a run to earn a fifth or sixth bid for the conference, and the bottom four are prepared to spoil the finishes of the other eight.
At the top, Duke, North Carolina State, Boston College and North Carolina combined to go 8-0 last week, cementing their positions atop the ACC standings. The official accolades are starting to pour in for the Blue Devils, who clinched the ACC regular season title by moving to 13-0 in conference play. Even if Duke loses all three conference games and the Wolfpack win all of their ACC games, Duke will win the regular season by virtue of the win in Durham against North Carolina State.
The middle four, however, will likely draw the majority of the attention down the stretch because they are bubble teams. All four are in need of big wins to earn an NCAA Tournament bid. Maryland, Florida State and Virginia share a tie for fifth because they are 6-6 in ACC play. Miami is a step below at 6-7. To win the favor of the selection committee, these four need to win games against the top four.
Based on that criteria, Miami is in the most trouble because the Hurricanes don’t play any of the top four teams down the stretch. And the Hurricanes have only one road game remaining, at Maryland. Road wins are another way these middle ACC teams can improve their RPI and receive more serious consideration from the selection committee.
Maryland has the most opportunities to improve its stock with three of its final four games on the road game. But the Terrapins have struggled since senior guard Chris McCray was ruled academically ineligible, so expecting more than one win against North Carolina, Florida State and Virginia on the road may be unrealistic. If Maryland can win in Chapel Hill and split the road trips to Tallahassee and Charlottesville, count on the Terps to be in the NCAA Tournament.
Virginia also has opportunities to move forward in the bubble rankings with games against Boston College and North Carolina. A win in Chapel Hill would give the Cavaliers a regular-season sweep of North Carolina. If the Cavaliers take care of Clemson in South Carolina and Maryland in Charlottesville, they have a good chance of earning an NCAA Tournament bid.
Lastly, Florida State gets three of its final four games in Tallahassee, including a game against Duke. The Seminoles likely need to win at least two of the home games, including the Blue Devil game, and the single road game at Virginia Tech. Florida State must reach 9-7 to join the at-large conversation.
At this point, the ACC can only count on four bids to the NCAA Tournament. The conference likely will only grab five bids if one of those four middle teams runs the table in the regular season and wins at least one game in the ACC Tournament. And none of these teams are consistent enough to pull it off. Given the schedules, Florida State may be most likely to do it, especially considering how close the Seminoles came to knocking off Duke in Durham earlier this month.
ACC Player of the Week: J.J. Redick
By becoming the NCAA’s all-time leader in three-pointers and Duke’s all-time scoring leader in the same week, Redick easily reigns as the ACC’s Player of the Week. He is coasting to a Player of the Year honor, and two more games with more than 30 points adds to his résumé.
ACC Rookie of the Week: Tyler Hansbrough, North Carolina
The rookie is playing like a seasoned veteran in Chapel Hill. En route to a 40-point performance, Hansbrough carried the Tar Heels throughout the first half against Georgia Tech. The Yellow Jackets simply could not stop the soon-to-be-crowned Rookie of the Year – possibly in the NCAA in addition to the ACC.
ACC Coach Watch: Gary Williams, Maryland
Of the four teams jammed in the middle of the standings, only Maryland plays two teams in the ACC’s top eight this week. And Maryland plays both on the road. For the Terrapins to stay in the NCAA Tournament bubble, Williams must find a winning combination to at least split games at North Carolina and Florida State.
Duke Blue Devils (25-1, 13-0)
Last week:
Win: Wake Forest, 93-70
Win: Miami, 92-71
Next two games:
Feb. 22: at Georgia Tech
Feb. 25: at Temple
Last week started the parade of prestige that will continue to shower this Blue Devil squad. In the same week, senior guard J.J. Redick set the all-time record for made three-pointers and surpassed assistant coach Johnny Dawkins as the most prolific scorer in Blue Devil history. In addition to Redick’s accomplishments, Duke clinched the regular-season title. Both accomplishments are notable as Redick continues to skyrocket the unofficial list of greatest college players of all time. But Redick would surely trade an individual record or two to claim a national championship. He arrived in Durham the year after the Shane Battier-led Blue Devils won the national title. The regular-season title is the first step toward earning fourth national championship for Coach Mike Krzyzewski and the first for Redick and company.
Redick continued to bask in the limelight last week as he scored 33 against Wake Forest and 30 against Miami. That makes five consecutive games with at least 30 points. He has proven to be unstoppable, even in conference play. But Duke’s national championship aspirations will likely rest on the shoulders of the contributors. Opponents can be content letting Redick and Williams combine for 40 or 50 points if they shut down the rest of the roster. But the emergence of two players late in the season may make that impossible. Freshman forward Josh McRoberts and sophomore guard DeMarcus Nelson each scored in double digits against Miami and Wake Forest. McRoberts scored 30 points in the two games, while Nelson had 23. If they continue to contribute about 10 points per game, Duke will be unstoppable throughout post-season play.
North Carolina State Wolfpack (21-5, 10-3)
Last week:
Win: Florida State, 86-64
Win: at Virginia Tech, 70-64
Next two games:
Feb. 22: North Carolina
Feb. 25: Boston College
The Wolfpack won two games last week, despite playing without senior forward Ilian Evtimov for most of both games. Evtimov strained a ligament in his foot against the Seminoles in the first half and did not return. He sat out the game at the Hokies to rest the foot, and he may return this week. The odds are good that he’ll be in the lineup if he can play considering the Wolfpack play two huge home games against North Carolina and Boston College.
North Carolina State resides in second place all alone right now, but the Tar Heels and Eagles are looking to move forward in the standings. The Wolfpack slammed the Eagles in Boston in January, but they dropped a tough game in Chapel Hill in which they led early in the game but allowed the Tar Heels to end the game on a 13-0 run. So revenge will be the story in both games, though for different teams. Equally important to maintaining second place in the ACC, North Carolina State has an opportunity to improve its seeding in the NCAA Tournament if the team can knock off the other ACC elite. Two wins would make North Carolina State 3-2 against the other three teams at the top of the standings.
Boston College Eagles (21-5, 8-4)
Last week:
Win: Stony Brook, 59-47
Win: Miami, 65-54
Next two games:
Feb. 21: at Virginia
Feb. 25: at North Carolina State
The Eagles stretched the team’s winning streak to five games last week after dispatching Stony Brook and Miami. Boston College continues to win games without blowing opponents out, but the wins demonstrate consistent effort to avoid late-game collapses. Although none of the wins during the current streak have come by more than 11 points, the Eagles also had only one game decided by fewer than six points. Boston College’s defense frustrated Stony Brook and Miami, holding both teams to fewer than 55 points and less than 40 percent shooting from the field. Although the Eagles’ defensive efficiency rating is mediocre, Boston College has improved lately, which bodes well for post-season play.
As mentioned in previous ACC Notebooks, Boston College needs sophomore center Sean Williams to improve his defensive timing and acumen after missing the entire first half of the season while he was academically ineligible. In two games last week, Williams had five blocks and played 43 minutes off the bench. He only committed three fouls in that stretch and proved to be a presence in the post. The Eagles frequently use a zone defense and need Williams to be a stopper in the middle for the other players to slide into passing lanes to force steals. If Williams can continue to regain his freshman form, the Eagles’ defense could become as dominant as one last season.
North Carolina Tar Heels (17-6, 8-4)
Last week:
Win: Georgia Tech, 82-75
Win: at Wake Forest, 83-72
Next two games:
Feb. 22: at North Carolina State
Feb. 26: Maryland
With all due respect to Virginia’s Dave Leitao, coach Roy Williams became the frontrunner for the ACC coach of the year honor after his team full of freshmen and seldom-used veterans pulled off two gutsy wins last week. The Tar Heels trailed Georgia Tech by 20 points near the end of the first half before finishing the game by outscoring the Yellow Jackets 52-25. Freshman forward Tyler Hansbrough proved he is a man among boys by scoring 40 points on 13-of-17 shooting. He also hit 14-of-19 free-throw attempts. Williams made excellent halftime adjustments to help the Tar Heels force turnovers and bad shots from the Yellow Jackets. Georgia Tech managed only 20 points in the second half.
The storyline was nearly identical in the Tar Heels’ game against Wake Forest. The Demon Deacons were on fire in the first half, but Williams found the fix at halftime. He kept his freshmen focused on the game and did not let them lose confidence in their ability to rally, even on the road. North Carolina quickly erased a double-digit deficit, led by junior forward Reyshawn Terry, who scored 24 points. Terry, a Winston-Salem native, hit several timely shots and collected loose balls on defense, leading to easy transition points for the Tar Heels. Despite the youth and inexperience, the Tar Heels have now won four consecutive road games, which is a sign of excellent coaching and the team’s progression. In sum, that equals a strong argument for coach of the year honors for Williams.
Florida State Seminoles (16-7, 6-6)
Last week:
Loss: at North Carolina State, 86-64
Win: Virginia, 76-62
Next two games:
Feb. 22: Maryland
Feb. 25: at Virginia Tech
With the ACC’s middle four teams vying for one, maybe two NCAA Tournament spots, each team’s best player must lead their respective teams to big wins. For Florida State, junior forward Al Thornton is that leader. Thornton leads the team with 16.1 points per game, nearly four more points than Alexander Johnson, who is second on the team in scoring. Thornton is a high flyer who also grabs 6.6 rebounds per game. He has a complete set of skills as he shoots 50 percent from three-point range, but he only steps out beyond the arc when necessary.
Despite scoring more than 30 points three times this season, Thornton has a propensity for disappearing in games, too. He hasn’t reached 20 since putting up 37 at Duke. Florida State needs Thornton to become a consistent 20-point producer in the final stretch, otherwise the Seminoles can plan on attending the NIT rather than the NCAA Tournament. Against Virginia, Thornton scored only 10 points and was outplayed by his Cavalier counterpart, sophomore forward Adrian Joseph. With Maryland and Virginia Tech on the schedule this week. Thornton must lead his team to two victories or else the remaining games against Duke and Miami may be inconsequential.
Maryland Terrapins (16-9, 6-6)
Last week:
Loss: at Clemson, 89-77
Win: Georgia Tech, 87-84 (OT)
Next two games:
Feb. 22: at Florida State
Feb. 26: at North Carolina
Maryland’s NCAA Tournament hopes rest on senior forward Nik Caner-Medley, who appears dominant at times for the Terrapins. He has the potential for putting up 30 points, as he did in back-to-back games against Georgia Tech and Temple. But in other games, Caner-Medley takes a back seat to his teammates and barely cracks double figures. In three of the past five games, he has scored only 10 points, including the team’s 87-84 overtime win against Georgia Tech. Despite playing 42 minutes, Caner-Medley made only three field goals. At times, his shot selection is poor.
Despite a strong 11-2 start, Maryland is in danger of missing the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive season unless the Terrapins can prove they can win big games. Maryland must at least split road games against Florida State and North Carolina. Caner-Medley is a seasoned senior leader who must guide this team through three road games in which Maryland must win at least two. He must judiciously shoot the ball and setup teammates. If Caner-Medley forces defenses to adjust to his play, Maryland’s offensive options will expand and the Terrapins would have an excellent opportunity to steal some road victories. Without big-time performances from Caner-Medley, the Terrapins are dead in the water.
Virginia Cavaliers (13-10, 6-6)
Last week:
Win: Longwood, 91-56
Loss: at Florida State, 76-62
Next two games:
Feb. 21: Boston College
Feb. 25: at Clemson
At 13-10 and coming off a loss at Florida State, the Cavaliers have no margin for error the rest of the season if they wish to remain in the discussion for an NCAA Tournament bid. Virginia has overcome an average non-conference showing with a surprisingly strong ACC run. Few observers predicted Virginia to finish north of 10th place in the ACC. So to even receive NCAA Tournament consideration at this juncture is a huge success for first-year Cavalier coach Dave Leitao.
For Virginia to move forward in the standings, the team needs sophomore point guard Sean Singletary to continue to lead the way. In the team’s loss to Florida State, Singletary scored only 12 points. But more damaging to the team’s bid to win on the road, Singletary had only two assists. The most talented sophomore in the ACC averages 18.1 points and 4.5 assists per game. When he distributes the ball effectively, he doesn’t need to spend as much effort creating his own shot. A point guard who can score as prolifically as Singletary is a boon to any team. But because Virginia lacks a wealth of talent behind Singletary, his play is critical to the team’s ability to win. If the Cavaliers can hold court against Boston College this week and beat Clemson on the road, Virginia will enter the final week of the regular season at 8-6 and likely fifth place in the ACC. That would give them an opportunity to sneak into the NCAA Tournament. If that occurs, there’s a good chance Singletary will have a pair of performances worthy of ACC Player of the Week consideration.
Miami Hurricanes (14-12, 6-7)
Last week:
Loss: at Boston College, 65-54
Loss: at Duke, 92-71
Next two games:
Feb. 22: Virginia Tech
March 1: at Maryland
Miami’s hopes for an NCAA Tournament bid were tossed into the gutter last week when the Hurricanes dropped two road games against Boston College and Duke. The Hurricanes lack any marquee wins on their schedule and now possess a four-game losing streak after losing to North Carolina State, North Carolina, Boston College and Duke in succession. Just two wins against those four would have likely cemented the Hurricanes as an at-large squad. But with three games remaining against Virginia Tech, Maryland and Florida State, Miami will enter the ACC Tournament with only one win against a certain NCAA Tournament team.
If Miami wants to run the table and win some big ACC Tournament games, the Hurricanes need senior guard Robert Hite to take over games. He has only exceeded his season average of 16.9 points per game twice in the past four games. But Hite needs to play bigger against the best competition. Usually when teams focus on Hite, backcourt mate Guillermo Diaz can get more open looks. But Miami’s most realistic chances to win require Diaz and Hite to both score about 20 points.
Clemson Tigers (15-10, 4-8)
Last week:
Win: Maryland, 89-77
Next two games:
Feb. 22: at Wake Forest
Feb. 25: Virginia
Give Clemson credit. At 3-8, the Tigers appeared dead in the water and ready to roll over to teams like Maryland. But Clemson revived its intense defensive pressure against the Terrapins, forcing 26 turnovers. The Tigers beat Maryland for the fourth consecutive time, and they could ultimately be responsible for preventing the Terrapins from earning an NCAA Tournament bid. Last season, Clemson beat Maryland three times, dooming the Terps’ at-large chances. This season, one upset might be enough for the selection committee to reconsider the Terps’ résumé.
In addition to the turnovers, Clemson found its stroke from behind the arc. The Tigers drained 12 three-pointers against Maryland, including five from senior Shawan Robinson. The guard torched the Terrapins for 24 points and helped Clemson bury Maryland with a long run midway through the second half. Averaging 11.6 points per game, Robinson is one of the ACC’s best players to come off the bench. He is second on the team in scoring and is by far the most reliable free-throw shooter on a team that struggles in that category. Robinson hits 93.1 percent of his free throws, while the entire team shoots an ACC worst 61.4 percent from the line.
Virginia Tech Hokies (13-12, 3-9)
Last week:
Loss: North Carolina State, 70-64
Next two games:
Feb. 22: at Miami
Feb. 25: Florida State
Although the Hokies are looking toward next season, Virginia Tech continues to play teams tough. The Hokies did not back down at home against North Carolina State, despite falling behind by nearly 20 points in the first half. Virginia Tech rallied in the second half and almost completed the comeback before time ran out.
As the Hokies try to end the season with positive momentum for next season, the emergence of freshman swingman A.D. Vassallo continues to be a bright spot. Vassallo finds way to contribute in every game now. Although he scored only seven points against the Wolfpack, he grabbed six rebounds. With the team returning all its major players, Vassallo promises to play an important role in the Hokies’ attempt to climb back into the ACC’s elite.
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (10-14, 3-10)
Last week:
Loss: at North Carolina, 82-75
Loss: at Maryland, 87-84 (OT)
Next two games:
Feb. 22: Duke
Feb. 25: Wake Forest
The Yellow Jackets dropped two games last week at North Carolina and Maryland, but Georgia Tech remains one of the toughest teams to play in the conference. Against the Tar Heels, Georgia Tech torched the nets in the first half to build a 20-point lead. Although the team collapsed under the Tar Heels’ defensive pressure in the second half, Georgia Tech still forces opponents to play excellent basketball to win. If the Yellow Jackets can maintain 40 minutes of offensive and defensive consistency, Georgia Tech has the talent to beat any team in the ACC. That bodes well for next season as this young team matures.
For Georgia Tech to succeed next season, freshman guard Lewis Clinch must continue to develop. Coach Paul Hewitt has put Clinch in the starting lineup to give him more playing time. He responded against Maryland with 12 points and six rebounds. Clinch could join sophomore Anthony Morrow as one of Georgia Tech’s most dangerous shooters. With an improving backcourt and solid post players, it’s just a matter of time until this Yellow Jacket squad racks up the victories.
Wake Forest Demon Deacons (13-13, 1-11)
Last week:
Loss: at Duke, 93-70
Loss: North Carolina, 83-72
Next two games:
Feb. 22: Clemson
Feb. 25: at Georgia Tech
With two games against fellow ACC cellar dwellers, Wake Forest has an opportunity to pick up some wins this week. The Demon Deacons won’t dwell on their awful conference season for long once 2005-06 concludes. But the team would still like to finish with more than one win, and games against Clemson and Georgia Tech are the best opportunities to pick up wins two and three in the conference.
Like Georgia Tech, Wake Forest continues to play tough, but they just can’t close out games. The Demon Deacons led North Carolina by double digits in the second half. But also like Georgia Tech, Wake Forest wilted under the Tar Heels’ defensive pressure. Without a true point guard in the lineup, Wake Forest can’t secure games under defensive pressure. Should coach Skip Prosser remain in Winston-Salem as his people tell the media, he must develop freshmen Harvey Hale and Shamaine Dukes in the off-season or else the turnovers will continue to be a problem next season.
