ACC Roundup - Syracuse Romps

Sometimes it’s good to listen to your instincts. For instance, we should have listened to ours. We knew it was a mistake to pick Miami over Syracuse Tuesday night but we admire the guts they’ve shown with so many injuries.

Splat.

After starting slow and falling behind 11-2, Syracuse roared back and took a 36-22 lead into the half and kept expanding it until it got to 28. Miami fought back but by the end, Syracuse had it back to 28 before some garbage time scoring go it back down to 26.

Any way you look it it was a brutal beat-down.

Buddy Boeheim and Joe Girard, who have both had the Corona, put up 23 each.

Girard hit 8-15 and 5-9 from deep while Boeheim shot 9-16 and 4-8.

Miami had 17 turnovers to Syracuse’s eight and shot just 39.3 percent to 52.5 percent for the ‘Cuse. Syracuse also hit 10-25 from deep while Miami managed just 4-25 trying to shoot over Boeheim’s zone (of 56 attempts, 25 were behind the line).

Syracuse has a ways to go - for one, Marek Dolezaj, who has some real strong points, just can’t man the post at 6-10 and 200 lbs. The guy could eat 100 pounds of fatback for breakfast and he’d probably just lose weight. And he’s a senior! His body is always going to be thin and he does the best he can. But 200 lbs. just isn’t enough.

Correction! He’s up to 201. He might make 215 by the time he’s 40.

On to Wednesday! Clemson buses down to Georgia Tech to take on the Yellow Jackets and Steve Forbes gets his first game against the Tar Heels.

Our guess is that Clemson is going to be angry after getting crushed by Virginia on Saturday and is going to try to take Georgia Tech’s head clean off.

Wake Forest-UNC? That’s interesting. Steve Forbes has done an amazing job of making Wake Forest a competitive ACC team and UNC is not playing like, well, UNC.

But the Tar Heels have a massive size advantage that should translate into a significant rebounding edge. We’d also be surprised if UNC didn’t dominate inside

Still, Forbes has done a great job to date. Wake’s record is just 3-5. Keep in mind though that after missing four games, the Demon Deacons scheduled a quickie with Catawba that was essentially a make-up exhibition game - and nearly lost it.

Then they looked hopelessly outclassed at Georgia Tech, where the perennially offensively challenged Yellow Jackets scored at will.

Then boom! They scared Virginia and gave Duke and Louisville solid games. So would we rule out an upset in Chapel Hill?

No. But we expect UNC will kill them inside and that will be the difference.

ACC Standings

Wednesday’s ACC Action

• Clemson at Georgia Tech || 7:00 || ACCNX
• Wake Forest at UNC || 7:00 ACCN
• NC State at Virginia
• Boston College at Virginia Tech

• Cold-shooting UM stifled by Syracuse zone defense, gets trounced 83-57 on the road
• Syracuse basketball bounces back with easy win over Miami
• Syracuse guards Buddy Boeheim and Joe Girard both had coronavirus, according to SU coach Jim Boeheim
• Three takeaways from Syracuse’s 83-57 win vs. Miami
• Kadary Richmond, Jesse Edwards come off bench to spark Syracuse over Miami
• Cold-shooting UM stifled by Syracuse zone defense, gets trounced 83-57 on the road
• Syracuse dominates Miami as they snap a three game conference losing streak.
• Miami wilts again in finding consistent offense, loses third in five conference games
• Syracuse 83, Miami 57: Orange down Hurricanes
• North Carolina basketball fans troll Duke with a billboard on Durham highway
• Three thoughts heading into Wake Forest at North Carolina
• Two-way artist: Wake Forest’s Jalen Johnson has two passions, basketball and his art work