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ACC Roundup

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There's really no other way to put this:  Virginia blew it, big time, against Wake Forest.  That's not to say that Wake didn't deserve to win; they earned it.  But Virginia was the superior team and had the regular season title on the line.  Blowing this game is as close to unforgivable as a game can be.

Sunday's ACC Action!
Teams Times TV
Clemson vs. Va. Tech 1:00 RLF
B.C. vs. Georgia Tech 3:00 FSN
ACC Standings
School Conf. Pct. Overall Pct.
Virginia 11-5 .688 20-9 .690
North Carolina 10-5 .667 24-6 .800
Virginia Tech 10-5 .667 20-9 .690
Boston College 10-5 .667 19-9 .679
Maryland 10-6 .625 24-7 .774
Duke 8-7 .533 22-8 .733
Georgia Tech 7-8 .467 19-10 .655
Florida State 7-9 .438 19-11 .633
Clemson 6-9 .400 20-9 .690
NC State 5-11 .312 15-14 .517
Wake Forest 5-11 .312 14-15 .483
Miami 4-12 .250 11-19 .367

Sean Singletary understood what happened:  "We didn't do anything right today," he told the Post. "Just a lack of energy from the beginning. No resiliency. Not much heart. They wanted it more than us. We were chasing a championship, and they wanted to spoil it for us. It's extremely frustrating to know that you have a goal at hand and the chemistry isn't there and there's no real heart being shown by any of us."

Pretty much sums it up. Singletary also said he wasn't watching squat on Sunday:  "Personally," he told the Winston-Salem Journal, "I'm not going to look at any games. I'm getting away from basketball a little bit."

That wasn't a problem for the other ACC teams in action Saturday.  Maryland beat State, winning their seventh straight, showing a lot of heart and character throughout.  State has, too; they just don't have the bodies.

Maryland has been through a lot over the last couple of seasons.  Darryl Strawberry and Mike Jones in particular have had to grow up a lot.  Mike Wise of the Post correctly notes that they have benefited mightily from four years in school.

Jones and Strawberry concur.  Jones first:  "I can honestly say I've learned a lot, I've matured a lot being here four years in college. Those who skip out miss a lot. If they have a chance to make the money, that's fine. But you just miss out on a lot of great opportunities, meeting different people, living the college life."

Strawberry: "Without college, I probably wouldn't know what life was about," he said. "Especially coming from all the way across the country. I probably wouldn't know how to live alone. Now, having to rely on myself, doing things on my own, the connections I made here at Maryland. College has been a great experience. I wouldn't give it up."

It's almost enough to make you pull for them.

Almost.

Meanwhile, down in Miami, the decimated Hurricanes played with enormous heart before bowing to a brilliant performance by Al Thornton, who scored 45 points and seemed to grow stronger as the game went on.

Sunday is the final day of the regular season, and the standings are still wildly unpredictable. In various scenarios, Maryland could finish fourth; UNC could too.  It's just an amazing season when you get down to it.

On Sunday, Clemson has their final chance to make any impression on the committee, ACC Tournament aside, with the chance to knock off Virginia Tech.  And with a win over B.C., Georgia Tech would probably assure themselves of a bid.

But given the remarkable games on Saturday, and the tradition of the ACC, don't count on anything.

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