A busy Saturday as Miami heads to Virginia Tech, UVa travels down to Wake Forest, Georgia Tech takes a non-con breather (sort of) with UConn, and State tries to wake up the ghosts of the 1970s rivalry with Maryland.
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| ACC STANDINGS | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Duke | 8-0 | 1.000 | 20-1 | .952 | ||||||||||||||||||
| North Carolina | 6-2 | .750 | 21-2 | .913 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Clemson | 5-3 | .625 | 17-5 | .773 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Maryland | 5-3 | .625 | 15-8 | .652 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Virginia Tech | 5-4 | .556 | 14-9 | .609 | ||||||||||||||||||
| NC State | 4-4 | .500 | 15-7 | .682 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Georgia Tech | 4-4 | .500 | 11-10 | .524 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Wake Forest | 3-5 | .375 | 13-8 | .619 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Boston College | 3-5 | .375 | 12-9 | .571 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Florida State | 3-6 | .333 | 14-10 | .583 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Miami | 2-6 | .250 | 15-7 | .682 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Virginia | 1-7 | .125 | 11-10 | .524 | ||||||||||||||||||
Neither team is anywhere near that level, and we're not sure two ACC teams have ever been close, although the 1986 season saw really powerful teams in Durham, Chapel Hill, and Atlanta, and the blur that was Len Bias.
There's still something nice about that matchup, though, and we still get excited about it. Both teams have come to life, and while State still has point guard issues, Javi Gonzalez has taken over the position, and really, he's not a bad little guard at all. Can he shoot? No, no really. He's a little small, a little weak still, and not as quick as you'd like him to be, either.
That said, we saw something in the kid we liked, and we think he'll be okay. May not be tomorrow, where he'll face much taller guards, but he'll get there.
If you built a gorgeous new arena, spared no expense, and your team was awful and no one came? If a ball bounces in an empty gym, does it make any noise?
UVa gets some sympathy since Sean Singletary has been playing hurt, but Dave Leitao has made his impatience clear, and his kids aren't very happy either. They basically gave up against Clemson (we didn't realize it was Clemson's biggest conference road win ever), and Wake is fast, big, and are ready for a win. Could be a long day in Winston-Salem.
Virginia has had a tough year by any measure. But former Cav Gary Forbes has had a lot of success since transferring to UMass, and now, some pretty important people are noticing.
Like State and Maryland, Georgia Tech has improved rather dramatically, but it's going to be tough for them to play their way back into tourney contention. But Paul Hewitt is relieved, to say the least. He also feels like he's learned his lesson about planning around NBA-ready freshmen.
Dan Weiderer takes a look at UNC and wonders: where now?
Miami has found their man and hired 36-year-old Kirby Hocutt as their new A.D., who comes to Miami from Ohio University. It's a big step up and a bold hire. Be fun to see how it works out.