There are two really interesting articles up over at ACC Today, one
by Barry Jacobs, sort of an overview of the season thus far, and the
other an article by Michael Kruse on our pal Thad Williamson, one of the nicest
UNC people we know.
Jacobs writes about the various teams and trends thus far (some excellent
Duke stuff here) and does everyone a favor by commenting on Ned Barnette's
column yesterday in which Barnette blamed the State loss to UVa on the
referees. It is kind of ridiculous. The only time that's valid is in
a siutation where the refs clearly blow the end of the game - like when UVa got
screwed a few years ago when Wojo won the game on the line (in fairness, had
Harold Deane chased the ball instead of whining about the clock, it miaght have
turned out differently). Refs are just a fact of life. Sometimes they
help, sometimes they hurt. That's just how it goes, and unless they either
totally mismanage the game, or blow a call that changes the outcome, it's just
one factor of many.
In the other column, Kruse talks about Thad's
book in progress, a love poem to UNC hoops. We don't find the object
of Thad's affection nearly as beautiful as he does - cross Ruth Buzzy and the
wrestler Chynna, or whatever her name is, and that's about how we see it. But we
understand and admire the depth of his devotion and wish him a long and
passionate love affair.