Single Double-Figure Scorers On ACC Teams

The 2020 season was unquestionably anomalous. Or, if you prefer, downright peculiar, most notably because it died just as teams crossed the threshold of postseason play.

But there were other oddities, large and small, that surfaced the closer you examine the stats generated within the ACC.

To highlight one intriguing example, Louisville took a strikingly different path to prosperity than any other squad in the past half-decade: The Cardinals tied for second in the conference despite having a single double-figure scorer, Jordan Nwara (18.0).

This is quite unusual, especially lately. Since 2010 only eight ACC teams finished the year with a single player averaging 10 or more points per game. The last time an ACC squad boasted a single double-figure scorer was, coincidentally enough, 2015, the year Louisville joined the ACC.

Conversely there have been the same number of squads since 2010 that had five double-figure scorers, most recently Miami in 2019.

Modern teams with a single potent scorer have not fared that poorly, with three of the eight winning better than 20 games.

Three-quarters of squads with single-barrel offenses finished with a winning record, although half of those finished with one more win than loss. Not impressive but on the positive side of the ledger.

Only Louisville in 2020, and both Clemson and NC State in 2014, finished in the ACC’s first division despite so circumscribed a scoring profile. The ’14 Tigers were sixth in the ACC; the Wolfpack tied for seventh. The Pack was carried offensively by Anthony “T.J.” Warren, the only ACC scoring leader and, to date, sole first-round NBA draft pick among this singular group.