ACC Roundup - Two Comebacks Fall Short

Give Wake Forest credit: the Deacons didn’t pull off the upset against UNC but they didn’t fall apart in the second half either.

When UNC pulled away at the end of the first half, we thought, well, that’s that.

Except it wasn’t.

Wake cut a second half lead of 19 down to one and rallied again, cutting a late nine-point lead down to 82-79 with 3:00 left.

UNC ended up winning by six, 93-87, but Wake Forest, for the first time in a while, showed that it could take a top team to the end of a game.

It’s good to remember just how young this team is and that it has a nice core of athletic talent.

UNC got a bit of a ghosting as Brandon Childress, son of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, came alive in the second half and reminded people of his famous father.

It’s a loss but in that loss there is a lot of optimism for the Demon Deacons.

It must be a little sickening to be a coach in the Big Four and to play BC and think: why didn’t I work harder to get those guys?

Those Guys are Jerome Robinson and Ky Bowman, BC’s backcourt. Robinson is from Raleigh and Bowman from Havelock.

You’d think that State would have seen a kid that good at Broughton and worked harder to get him, and Eastern NC is traditional Wake territory.

Oops.

BC’s NC backcourt lit State up for 45 points. State’s four guards - Maverick Rowan is now starting again - had 42.

None of State’s big men got into double figures although Boston native Abdul-Malik Abu did grab 11 rebounds.

Abu and Yurtseven were just 2-11 in the first half. Abu finished with eight points and Yurtseven with four.

Like Wake Forest, Pitt had a nice reversal: normally the Panthers have been the team to give up leads, but against Louisville, it was Pitt that crawled back.

Louisville had a 24 point lead in the second half before Jamel Artis caught fire.

He scored 32 points in the second half and had Pitt on the verge of a. remarkable comeback.

Didn’t happen, but like Wake, Pitt should get some confidence out of solid play.

On Thursday, Notre Dame travels to Miami while Clemson heads down to Atlanta for a visit with the Yellow Jackets.

We’d expect both visitors to win though Miami has a better shot than does Tech.

• No. 11 UNC blows big lead, holds off Wake Forest 93-87
• Wake Forest's Crawford draws tough assignments on defense
• Gottfried sees progress in NC State defeat
• Manning: Wake's issues are attacking the paint
• After record-setting win, UNC tested in victory at Wake Forest
• Ed Hardin: Deacs may have seen their future emerge from the past
• UNC holds on, holds off Wake Forest in 93-87 victory
• Boston College adds to NC State’s misery
• In early going, ACC home-court advantage has never been stronger – DeCock
• Pitt rally falls short at Louisville, 85-80
• Greer | U of L-Pitt: A win is a win, or ... ?
• Sean Keeley Q&A: Founder of Troy Nunes is an Absolute Magician stepping away from blog
• Syracuse freshman Taurean Thompson has offense figured out; now he has to learn defense
• ESPN’s College GameDay heading to Cameron Indoor for Miami game
• Lethal Backcourt Combo Leads Men's Basketball in Upset of NC State