ACC Roundup - One Game, Two Brilliant Performances

In ACC play Tuesday night, wow! BC’s Jerome Robinson went off for 46 in a losing effort as Notre Dame prevailed at home, 96-85.

Robinson’s monster night somewhat overshadowed a brilliant performance by Notre Dame’s TJ Gibbs, who had 28 on 8-11 overall, 5-7 from deep and 7-7 from the free throw line. He also had five rebounds and three assists.

Matt Farrell had 19 points and seven assists, and Martinas Geben stepped up with 16 points and 11 boards.

It’s hard to get past Robinson’s stunning game though. He shot 15-23 overall, 7-12 from the bonusphere and 9-9 from the line.

Both guys had monster games but Notre Dame got the win and stopped a seven-game, post Bonzie Wells injury skid.

Both teams are 14-10 and both teams are also 4-7 in the ACC.

This was also Notre Dame’s 10th straight win over BC.

In Atlanta, citing a desire to avoid an extended conflict, assistant coach Darryl LaBarrie has resigned.

You may recall that he was being investigated by the NCAA over how a recruit was handled. Here’s what he has to say:

“As a college coach, father of three beautiful girls and husband to my wonderful wife who has been terrific throughout this process, I have earned a reputation of a man of integrity that cares for student-athletes and following NCAA rules. I look forward to returning to college coaching and shaping the lives of young men along their journey. Thank you to all of my family, friends, former players, current members of the team, my teammates and former coworkers that have been extremely supportive and positive this season.

”Meanwhile, as part of my continued cooperation with the review process, I will not comment further.”

Virginia is having a great year but it’s not the first time. So far, Tony Bennett’s program hasn’t made a huge NCAA run. Can this team do it?

Count former Virginia Tech coach Seth Greenberg among the believers:

“People don’t understand,” Greenberg said, “how good their players are. … They really can play offense. Here’s the thing: They don’t play offense the way we’re used to watching offense. … Everyone gets to thinking we have to play a cookie-cutter game, that we all have to look alike and that we have to look like the NBA and everyone’s gotta run ball screens.

“No. … Why can’t we just have our own game? And therefore there’s some diversity within our game. That’s what makes the game interesting. … There’s a beauty to passing and cutting and waiting on screens and curling (off) screens and throwing pocket passes. And it also takes talent. Being strong with the basketball. A simple play like Ty Jerome’s ball fake the other day to freeze the defender and free himself up for that 3 against Louisville. That was such a good basketball play.”

We have to go along with Uncle Fester here. When you see Virginia on TV well, yes, it is boring. They don’t rush.

That doesn’t mean it’s bad offense. It’s supremely good offense - it’s just ferociously patient. We’re not sure UVA is the national favorite at this point, but it’s not too far off. They’ve always been able to stop anyone. Now they can get points too.

On Wednesday, the Cavs get a tough outing at Florida State. We’d expect Virginia to win, but it won’t be an easy game. FSU is talented, is also a great defensive team, and can score in bunches.

We’ll see.

Wake Forest is in Florida to to play Miami and the Pack has a very interesting game in Blacksburg. That one could be really special.

• State college basketball: Notre Dame survives a 46-point outburst
• Gibbs hits 5 3s, scores 28; Notre Dame beats Boston College
• No. 2 UVA is dominating defensively and the numbers show it
• Odd question: But, do we really want UVA to go 18-0 in the ACC?
• UNC faces 3 games in 5 days – and they’re big ones
• Virginia basketball’s bigs came up that way, showing off Cavaliers balance
• Clemson currently projected a top 3 seed in NCAA basketball tournament
• Eight more games: Here’s a look at the rest of NC State basketball’s schedule
• ESPN’s Greenberg: Many don’t realize how good U.Va. is’
• FSU basketball moves up in NCAA tournament projections