UNC thumped Monmouth on Sunday as they should have, though they lost focus at the end, according to Roy Williams, who termed his team "ragged" late.
He was almost apologetic towards Monmouth coach King Rice, a player he helped recruit to UNC back in the day, if memory serves, before departing for Kansas.
Still, Rice's team, just 2-12, was cannon fodder for the Heels, who won by 37.
UNC outrebounded Monmouth 51-22, with precisely three of them coming from Harrison Barnes.
Kendall Marshall racked up a typical 11 assists, while John Henson had 21 points and eight boards. Tyler Zeller had eight points and 11 rebounds, while James Michael McAdoo managed eight points and 10 boards.
Last night we suggested that ETSU could be a dangerous opponent for Clemson and they were: they had an 11-point second half lead.
Clemson won, largely because of a 12-2 run, but it was only a seven-point win at home.
Still, a win is a win and you don't turn them down or offer them back.
Brad Brownell did an excellent job last season. It looks increasingly like the rebuild for Clemson is at hand.
Four conference teams are in action Monday, with the most critical game being Virginia's trip to LSU.
Trent Johnson had a bit of heat after an 11-21 season last year. The Tigers are off to a 10-3 start this year with some nice wins, including a marquee victory over Marquette. They also beat Georgia Tech 59-50, providing a bit of video of which Clemson can make double use.
Virginia is limiting teams to 37.8%. Not that it necessarily matters that much now, but LSU managed just 32.8% from the floor against Tech.
In other words, Virginia wins a lot of games on defense, but LSU is also capable of winning ugly.
This is a really key momentum game for Virginia and one, if they lose, which will cost them some credibility.
In the other games, Wake gets Wofford, a scary team for ACC teams in competitive rehab (ask Clemson), BC gets Rhody, struggling at 2-12. We really like Jim Baron - he's an excellent coach - but his team is really struggling.
On the other hand, BC is still full of rookies. Hard to make a call on this one.
And finally, Miami is hosting UNCG. They should have Malcom Grant back, who's been out a couple of games to attend to a death in the family.
Worth noting: before Reggie Johnson returned, Miami lost to Purdue by 11, beat UMass by eight, then lost to Memphis by 17 and West Virginia by 11.
Since: a double OT win over FAU, a 16-point win over Charlotte, and a 30-point win over Appalachian State.
With Johnson and Dequan Jones back, early though it is, the 'Canes have added 21 points (which should be adjusted for Grant's absence since he's averaged 15 ppg) and 15 boards.
Also worth noting, however, is the improvement in Kenny Kadji. After averaging 5.5 ppg in the first seven games, he has since put up 13 per game. He had 30 in the first six and 78 in the six since.
We thought maybe it was Johnson's return but we didn't look carefully enough: Kadji is improving rapidly all on his own.
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