Checking in on… the ACC
Posted by rtmsf on December 14th, 2009
Steve Moore is the RTC correspondent for the ACC.
To call last week’s slate a light one in the ACC would be like saying Roy Williams is a little bit sensitive — it’s a drastic understatement (more on that in a minute). Only 11 games were played by ACC teams this week, and most were completely uninteresting. But there were two games of note…
ACC POWER RANKINGS (record as of Sunday, Dec. 13)
1. North Carolina (8-2, 0-0)
PAST: The Tar Heels destroyed Presbyterian on Saturday, 103-64. But Roy Williams turned it into a story, anyway, even though he said to “not make it bigger than it is.” More on that later.
FUTURE: UNC travels to Austin, Texas for a showdown with the Longhorns on Saturday. UNC not only sits atop these rankings, but continues to play the most must-watch games in the ACC. It’s not even close.
2. Duke (7-1, 0-0)
PAST: Did not play this week
FUTURE: Duke warms up its week with Gardner-Webb at Cameron on Tuesday, before playing a very good Gonzaga team at Madison Square Garden on Saturday. You better not make any plans on Saturday, with UNC-Texas at 2:00 (ESPN) and Duke-Gonzaga at 4:00 (CBS).
3. Georgia Tech (6-1)
PAST: Did not play this week
FUTURE: The Jackets play a non-traditional ROAD game AT Chattanooga tonight, before hosting Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Wednesday.
4. Wake Forest (6-2, 0-0)
PAST: Crushed Elon by 40 points Sunday.
FUTURE: Wake travels to UNC-Wilmington Wednesday for a “watch out” game, then hosts N.C. State in both teams’ ACC opener on Sunday.
5. Clemson (8-2)
PAST: Trevor Booker went for 25 and 14 in a rout of Furman on Sunday.
FUTURE: Clemson plays at East Carolina in another interesting road test for the ACC, then hosts the College of Charleston.
6. Miami (8-1, 0-1)
PAST: The Canes routed South Carolina-Upstate to kickoff a five-game streak of garbage games.
FUTURE: Up next: Stetson, Florida Atlantic, North Carolina A&T, and Bethune-Cookman. Gimme a break.
7. Florida State (7-2, 0-0)
PAST: Did not play this week.
FUTURE: Busy week for the Seminoles, who host Georgia State Tuesday, Auburn on Thursday, and head to Georgia Tech on Sunday.
8. Virginia Tech (8-1, 0-0)
PAST: There wasn’t much movement in the rankings this week, but the Hokies do swap spots with Maryland. That’s because Tech posted the only interesting win this week, beating Penn State on the road after routing VMI.
FUTURE: Virginia Tech hosts Charleston Southern on Saturday.
9. Maryland (6-3, 0-0)
PAST: Beat Eastern Kentucky by 11 on Saturday in a too-close-for-comfort game.
FUTURE: Maryland doesn’t play at all this week.
10. N.C. State (7-1, 0-0)
PAST: The Wolfpack move up one spot, but it wasn’t really because of their ho-hum win over Georgia Southern. See No. 12 for the reason…
FUTURE: N.C. State hosts Elon, then opens ACC play at Wake Forest over the weekend.
11. Virginia (4-4, 0-0)
PAST: The Cavaliers lost a one-point heartbreaker at Auburn. But that’s not really why they climb out of the basement. See No. 12…
FUTURE: Virginia hosts UNC-Wilmington on Saturday.
12. Boston College (6-4, 1-0)
PAST: BC head coach Al Skinner stopped scheduling most of the school’s local rivals back when I went to school down the road at BU. I bet he wishes he could stop playing Harvard. After the Ivy Leaguers stunned BC last year, the Crimson CONVINCINGLY handled the Eagles this week in a 7-point win. And to top things off, BC lost ANOTHER home game on Sunday, as the Eagles were manhandled by Rhode Island. And no, Lamar Odom was not playing for the Rams.
FUTURE: Considering the last week, the Eagles better be ready on Sunday when big, bad Bryant comes to town.
WEEK THAT WAS…
HIGHS AND LOWS: Not much to talk about in the top half of the ACC. But then there’s Boston College. I know Tommy Amaker is doing wonders with the smart kids at Harvard, but BC should never — NEVER — lose to the Crimson. The loss to Rhode Island just cemented their spot at the bottom of the rankings. Al Skinner is a good coach, and should have the Eagles back on track in a little while, but this team is really struggling so far. They have the talent to pull off a few unexpected ACC wins, but they may struggle for a CBI invite when everything’s said and done.
RAMBLING RANT OF THE WEEK: The only news to come out of North Carolina’s rout of Presbyterian was this little tale from the uber-sensitive-snotty-coach file. In short, a Presbyterian fan (I know, I laughed too) shouted “Deon, you’re gonna miss it!” to Deon Thompson as he was shooting a free throw. Roy Williams was so upset that he had security escort the fan out of the building. I mean, are you kidding me Roy? Have you listened to what fans say at Duke games, or what your own fans say? Considering the score, this guy was probably being sarcastic, or at least just showing some pride for his school. Laugh if you want, or pass back an autographed Gatorade cup as a joke. But you’re gonna have him kicked out? This is the same guy who ripped his own fans for not coming to one of his cupcake-fests earlier this year. Grow up, Roy. You have a great team, a great fanbase, and more money and job security than you ever dreamed of. Act like a professional who has actually been to a college basketball game once in your life.
WAITING IN THE TUNNEL…
CLEAR YOUR AFTERNOON: Find a spot on the couch or a stool at your local watering hole (six packs of soda, of course) on Saturday afternoon, as North Carolina and Duke play a doubleheader to watch. The Heels play at Texas at 2:00, while Duke plays its 53rd game at Madison Square Garden this season at 4 p.m. against Gonzaga. Oh, and Virginia hosts UNC-Wilmington — so there’s that…
OFF-BEAT ROAD TRIPS….: There are a few interesting road trips this week for ACC teams, aside from UNC-Texas. Not so much because they should be great games, but because they jump out at you as trips that ACC teams usually don’t schedule. Georgia Tech plays at Chattanooga tonight in what should be an easy game for Gani Lawal, Derrick Favors and Co. Wake Forest better keep its guard up on Wednesday when it goes to UNC-Wilmington (3-5), while Clemson hops on the bus for a game AT East Carolina. All three should be easy wins for the ACC teams, but when you make trips like that to smaller schools, you immediately become the biggest game of the year on that campus. The students get jacked up, the gym fills up, and you better have your guard up. If one of these goes the other way, I would maybe predict Wake Forest-UNC Wilmington. But as I said, none of those teams are having great years so far, and should be easy wins for the ACC.
As a recent graduate of NCSU and have sat behind UNC bench (not only for our home games vs. the tarheels but also for games in the Dean Dome), I have to say that Coach Roy Williams has many problems with hecklers. I have seen first hand his discuss for mild heckles from anyone. He needs to understand that hecklers are only a part of the game and fans from all over North Carolina (and the nation) are passionate about their teams.