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07 Mar 2012

The Confidential’s Basketball Top 30 for March 7, 2012

With over 300 teams in college basketball, the top 25 is just not enough anymore.  Here is the Confidential’s Top 30 for March 7, 2012:

  1. Syracuse (30-1).  Syracuse looked very good in its home finale against Louisville, a team that has historically solved the 2-3 zone.
  2. Kentucky (30-1).  Kentucky is a team on a mission.  Is this the year for Coach Calipari?
  3. North Carolina (27-4).  The preseason favorites are rounding into form at the right time.  Nobody will want to play the Tar Heels.
  4. Kansas (26-5).  There has been a lot of rotation between the teams ranked 3rd through 8th… this week Kansas moves up to #4.
  5. Missouri (27-4).  Missouri looked very good defeating Iowa State and Texas Tech.  Recovered from a tough week the week before.
  6. Duke (26-5).  Lost big to North Carolina, leaving the Blue Devils with 2nd place in the ACC.  Tiebreaker in the ACC tournament perhaps?
  7. Ohio State (25-6).  Wins over motivated teams like Northwestern and Michigan State suggest that Ohio State is also peaking at the right time.
  8. Marquette (25-6).  Loss at Cincinnati was disappointing, but Marquette handled a very good Georgetown team to end the regular season.
  9. Michigan State (24-7).  No real shame in losing to Indiana and Ohio State.  Being handled by Indiana, even on the road, was surprising.
  10. Georgetown (22-7).  The Hoyas split a tough week–beating Notre Dame and losing to Marquette.  The slight edge over Baylor due to foe quality.
  11. Baylor (25-6).  Iowa State really needed to beat Baylor.  And did.  The Bears are still primed to make some noise in March Madness.
  12. Michigan (23-8).  Michigan got important wins to keep its hopes for a #3 seed alive, even if Illinois and Penn State are not great teams.
  13. Wisconsin (23-8).  The Badgers got two more wins, over Minnesota and Illinois, keep pace with the Big 10 leaders.
  14. Indiana (24-7).  Wins over Michigan State and Purdue–a great way to end the surprise turnaround season.  Especially in a deep year for the Big 10.
  15. Murray State (30-1).  Murray State struggled in the conference tournament championship game, but pulled out the victory late.  Teams on the bubble everywhere exhaled.
  16. Florida State (21-9).  The Seminoles finished strong, beating Virginia and suddenly challenging Clemson during the final week.  A lot of good wins for this Seminole team.
  17. Creighton (28-5).  With so many teams ahead of them losing, Creighton takes advantage with its three-win sweep of the Missouri Valley Conference tournament.
  18. San Diego State (24-6).  Like Creighton, San Diego State was able to avoid losing this past week.  Even if the wins were not overly impressive, they did not lose.
  19. UNLV (25-7).  UNLV lost to Colorado State, but rallied to defeat a good Wyoming team to end the regular season.  Up next?  Wyoming again.
  20. Wichita State (27-5).  The Shockers were shocked in the MWC tournament by Illinois State.  Still, this team is looking solid for an at-large bid.
  21. Notre Dame (21-10).  Notre Dame got back in the winning way with a victory over Providence.  Now it is on to the Big Apple to make some noise in the Big East tournament.
  22. Virginia (22-8).  Virginia lost to Florida State at home, which hurt.  But they got a key overtime win over Maryland to stop the losing streak.
  23. Louisville (22-9).  The Cardinals are really struggling offensively right now.  Also playing and losing to very good teams.
  24. Florida (22-9).  No shame in losing at Vanderbilt and to Kentucky.  But the Gators are really tacking on the losses right now.
  25. Temple (24-6).  A couple of nice wins over Massachusetts and Fordham to end the season on a high note.  A very good profile for the Owls.
  26. Virginia Commonwealth (28-6).  Three more wins for Virginia Commonwealth.  Big win to qualify for the Big Dance.
  27. Iowa State (22-9).  In a week with games against Missouri and Baylor, winning the home game and losing the road game is a fine result.  A tourney lock at this point.
  28. St. Mary’s (27-5).  St. Mary’s gets the edge over Gonzaga by defeating them in the West Coast Conference tournament championship game.
  29. Gonzaga (25-6).  See above.
  30. Vanderbilt (21-10).  Vandy responded to the nice win against Florida by losing to in-state rival Tennessee to conclude the season.

Tell us what you think.  Is anyone unfairly missing?  Anyone too high or too low?

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball, Rankings and tagged , , , , , ,
06 Mar 2012

ACC Basketball Rankings: March 6, 2012

This is particularly complex with Pitt and Syracuse not yet in the ACC, but it can still be done.  Here is how we view the ACC basketball schools as of March 6, 2012:

1. Syracuse (30-1)  What more can you say?  30-1 with a Big East schedule, plus victories over Florida, North Carolina State, Stanford, and Virginia Tech.

2. North Carolina (27-4)  North Carolina appears to be peaking at the right point of the season.  After getting demolished by Florida State, the Tar Heels won 12 of 13 down the stretch.

3. Duke (26-5)  Duke has had a great season.  Had the Blue Devils beat North Carolina they would have been a #1 seed in the Big Dance.

4. Florida State (21-9)  The Seminoles were an impressive 12-4 in conference play.  Plus, they beat Virginia last week.

5. Virginia (22-8)  One of three 9-7 teams, Virginia has had the best season start-to-finish.  The best overall record too.

6. Miami (18-11)  Miami and North Carolina State are squarely on the bubble.  Need some ACC tournament wins to feel safe.

7. North Carolina State (20-11).  Missed some opportunities down the stretch.  Probably need to win two in the ACC tournament to get off the bubble.

8. Clemson (16-14)  Clemson is now 7-7 in conference play.  They followed up the win over Virginia by beating Georgia Tech and North Carolina State.

9. Maryland (16-12)  After beating Miami, Maryland was primed to move up a few spots.  But then they lost to Georgia Tech.

10.  Virginia Tech (15-14)  This team has had more closes losses.  This past week was a 2-point loss to Virginia and an OT loss to Duke.

11. Pittsburgh (15-14)  Pittsburgh’s small momentum is over.  Hard to believe this team was once 13-2.

12. Wake Forest (13-15) They did beat Boston College by nearly 30.  Not a bad way to end the week.

13. Georgia Tech (10-18).  The losing streak is over.  And Georgia Tech beat a good Maryland team to accomplish that task.

14. Boston College (8-20)  Boston College had been showing some signs of life.  Losing by 29 to a sub .500 Wake Forest team is not such a sign.

Agree?  Disagree?  Let us know!

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball, Rankings and tagged , , , , , , ,
05 Mar 2012

ACC Tournament Schedule Set

With the regular season coming to a conclusion, the seeding is set for the upcoming Atlantic Coast Conference mens’ basketball tournament.  This year’s tournament will be held in Atlanta, Georgia.  Games will be held on Thursday through Sunday.

Here are the games, courtesy of the official ACC website:

Thursday, March 8 – First Round
Game Matchup Time Coverage
1 #8 Maryland vs. #9 Wake Forest noon ACC Network/ESPNU
2 #5 NC State vs. #12 Boston College 2 p.m. ACC Network/ESPNU
3 #7 Clemson vs. #10 Virginia Tech 7 p.m. ACC Network/ESPNU
4 #6 Miami vs. #11 Georgia Tech 9 p.m. ACC Network/ESPNU
Friday, March 9 – Quarterfinals
Game Matchup Time Coverage
5 #1 North Carolina vs. Game 1 winner noon ACC Network/ESPN2
6 #4 Virginia vs. Game 2 winner 2 p.m. ACC Network/ESPN2
7 #2 Duke vs. Game 3 winner 7 p.m. ACC Network/ESPN2
8 #3 Florida State vs. Game 4 winner 9 p.m. ACC Network/ESPN2
Saturday, March 10 – Semifinals
Game Matchup Time Coverage
9 ACC Semifinal 1 1 p.m. ESPN/ACC Network
10 ACC Semifinal 2 3 p.m. ESPN/ACC Network
Sunday, March 11 – Championship
Game Matchup Time Coverage
11 Championship Game 1 p.m. ESPN/ACC Network
Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball, Conference News and tagged , , ,
04 Mar 2012

All Three ACC Favorites Win on Sunday

Today was a big day for three ACC teams.  While Florida State and Virginia are playing for seeding, North Carolina State is playing to get on the right side of the proverbial bubble.  All three teams won.

As noted above, North Carolina State really needed to win on Sunday.  And they did, beating Virginia Tech, 70-58.  With the win, the Wolfpack improved to 20-11 and 9-7 in conference play.  Scott Wood led North Carolina State with 19 points, but CJ Leslie was a huge contributor with 18 points and 11 rebounds.  Although Virginia Tech has struggled to a 15-16 record, the Hokies play everyone tough at home and rarely lose by a significant margin.  Cadarian Raines scored 15 points to lead the Hokies.

In Maryland, #24 Virginia improved to 22-8 and 9-7 in conference play by getting an overtime road win over the Terrapins, 75-72.  The big hero of the day was Virginia Senior Mike Scott, who scored 35 points and grabbed 11 rebounds.  He also scored 7 of Virginia’s 14 overtime points.  Terrell Stoglin scored 25 points to lead the Terps, who dropped to 16-14 overall and 6-10 in conference play.

In Tallahassee, #22 Florida State held off suddenly-rolling Clemson, 80-72.  Clemson was down by 16 at the half, but rallied to get it within 3 with 30 seconds to go.  But Florida State scored the final five points to improve to 21-9 and 12-4 in conference play.  With the loss, Clemson drops to 16-14 and a respectable 8-8 in conference play. Michael Snaer led Florida State with 23 points, while K.J. McDaniels and Andre Young scored 16 points to lead Clemson.

With these results, here are the final standings for the ACC regular season (including the March 4, 2012, games):

School Conf. Pct. Overall Pct.
North Carolina 14-2 .875 27-4 .871
Duke 13-3 .812 26-5 .839
Florida State 12-4 .750 21-9 .700
Virginia 9-7 .562 22-8 .733
NC State 9-7 .562 20-11 .645
Miami 9-7 .562 18-11 .621
Clemson 8-8 .500 16-14 .533
Maryland 6-10 .375 16-14 .533
Virginia Tech 4-12 .250 15-16 .484
Wake Forest 4-12 .250 13-17 .433
Georgia Tech 4-12 .250 11-19 .367
Boston College 4-12 .250 9-21 .300
Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Game Review and tagged , , , , ,
04 Mar 2012

North Carolina Wraps Up ACC Regular Season Title

The game of the day in the ACC on March 3, 2012, was the matchup between #4 Duke and #6 North Carolina.  Both teams were tied for #1 overall in the ACC with their identical 13-2 conference records and 26-4 overall records.  But North Carolina dominated Duke on Saturday, winning 88-70.

Not only was it an 18-point victory, but North Carolina led by 24 at the half.  The Tar Heels out-rebounded Due–normally a good rebounding team–42 to 22.  North Carolina shot 54.5% from the field and limited Duke to a mere 41.3%.  As is the case whenever Duke is at home, the Blue Devils had more free throw attempts than the visitor.  But Duke only made 57.1% of their attempts, compared to North Carolina’s 80%.  Simply domination.

The numbers jump off the page.  All five North Carolina starters finished in double-figures:

  • Kendall Marshall: 20 points, 10 assists, 4 rebounds
  • Tyler Zeller: 19 points, 10 rebounds
  • Harrison Barnes: 16 points, 4 rebounds
  • John Henson: 13 points, 10 rebounds
  • Reggie Bullock: 12 points, 6 rebounds

While North Carolina’s depth is questionable, no team has five starters that can do that kind of damage.  With a nice showing in the ACC tournament, the Tar Heels may yet end up with a #1 seed.

For Duke, it is a disappointing effort ending an otherwise decent regular season.  There have to be concerns about the defense.  But this is a Duke team that lost to Florida State and Miami at home.  Mason Plumlee had 17 points, while Miles Plumlee added 16 points and 11 rebounds.  Austin Rivers also had 15 points.  All told, losing to North Carolina in this fashion is not as disturbing as North Carolina’s undressing by Florida State.  This is not a vintage Duke team, but it can do some damage in March.

The Confidential will have a weekend recap Monday morning…

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball, Game Review and tagged , , , , , ,
03 Mar 2012

ACC Basketball: Final Weekend of Regular Season Games

Unfortunately, the ACC basketball season–at least the regular season–is about to come to an end.  This weekend will be the second-to-last games for several teams.  However, there is still much to be decided.

The current standings:

ACC
Team Conf. W-L Tot. W-L
Duke 13-2 26-4
North Carolina 13-2 26-4
Florida St. 11-4 20-9
Virginia 8-7 21-8
N.C. State 8-7 19-11
Miami (Fla.) 8-7 17-11
Clemson 8-7 16-13
Maryland 6-9 16-13
Virginia Tech 4-11 15-15
Wake Forest 4-11 13-16
Boston College 4-11 9-20
Georgia Tech 3-12 10-19

The games themselves will sort out a lot today.

The key game, of course, is the matchup between #4 Duke and #6 North Carolina.  It always is.  The intensity is even greater when the two teams enter the game with identical records at 26-4 overall and 13-2 in conference.  And today’s game just happens to be for the regular season title and the #1 seed in the ACC tournament.  So there’s that.

While #22 Florida State has third place all locked up, there is a 4-way tie for 4th place between Virginia, North Carolina State, Miami, and Clemson.  Miami has the easiest path, playing 9-20 Boston College.  Clemson has the toughest opponent, traveling to #22 Florida State on Sunday.  On Sunday, #24 Virginia will travel to Maryland for its finale, while North Carolina State travels to Virginia Tech.  The only other game features Wake Forest and Georgia Tech.

Meanwhile, #2 Syracuse will conclude its regular season on Saturday by hosting #17 Louisville.  Pittsburgh will travel to Connecticut in a battle between two disappointing teams.

 

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball, Weekend Preview and tagged , , , , , , ,
02 Mar 2012

Bracketology Update: ACC Style

There are now several individuals that offer predictions as to who is going to be part of the 68-team field for the Big Dance.  Here is where the major ones currently stand with respect to ACC teams:

As of February 29, 2012, ESPN “bracketologist” Joe Lunardi has Syracuse and five current ACC teams making the field.  In addition to the obvious Duke and North Carolina, Lunardi has Florida State, Virginia, and Miami.  The respective seeds are Syracuse (#1), Duke (#1), North Carolina (#2), Florida State (#4), Virginia (#8), and Miami (#12).  Hard to disagree with that. Florida State’s narrow victory over Virginia last night, 63-60, is not likely to change his analysis.

ESPN’s Eamonn Brennan has the same basic structure for teams either in the field or close to it.  Surprisingly, he has completely eliminated North Carolina State from consideration.  With a 19-11 record, this seems a bit hasty.  Especially after North Carolina State just beat Miami.

CBS’s Jerry Palm is not quite as positive.  Palm does not have Miami in his field currently.  So that leaves only Syracuse (#1), Duke (#1), North Carolina (#2), Florida State (#6), and Virginia (#9).  Palm is definitely “cool” on ACC teams as everyone beyond a #2 seed is at least one round lower than Lunardi.

Mike Huguenin of Rivals/Yahoo has a blend of Lunardi and Palm.  He has the teams just like Palm does in terms of seeding.  But unlike Palm, and like Lunardi, he also has Miami in the field as a #12 seed.

Finally, the interesting site the Bracket Project pulls from 50+ bracket projections.  After combining the various brackets, this is the national consensus:

  • Syracuse is a #1 seed and second overall
  • Duke is a #1 seed and third overall
  • North Carolina is a #2 seed and sixth overall
  • Florida State is a #5 seed
  • Virginia is a #8 seed
  • Miami is a #12 seed
  • North Carolina State is 7 spots out of the final at-large position.

So there it is.  Barring a run by North Carolina State, only Miami really seems on the fence for the Big Dance right now.  Hard to believe that brackets will be announced in just 9 days.

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball, March Madness, Predictions and tagged , , , , , , , , , , ,
01 Mar 2012

200th Post for the Atlantic Coast Confidential

In its short history, the Atlantic Coast Confidential has an opportunity to cover many notable events, such as conference realignment and the Joe Paterno/Bernie Fine sexual abuse scandals.  But the main reason for its existence is to provide an Internet/blog voice for all things ACC.  So far, the focus has been on the primary sports–basketball, football, and lacrosse.  And the Confidential is now 200 posts into its existence. 

Thank you to the readers, followers, and subscribers.  As always, if you have any comments or constructive criticism, please feel free to let us know. 

 


 

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Uncategorized
01 Mar 2012

ACC Basketball Recap: February 29, 2012

Leap Day–February 29, 2012–a day of basketball for the ACC.

The big game of the day was the matchup between two bubble teams–North Carolina State and Miami.  Ultimately, the Wolfpack successfully defended its home court and kept its March hopes alive by defeating the Hurricanes, 77-73.  However, Miami led at the half by two points and this win did not come easily by any stretch.  Rion Brown came off the bench to lead Miami with 15 points, while Malcolm Grant added 14.  The Hurricanes dropped to 8-7 in conference play and 17-11 overall.  CJ Leslie was the big star for North Carolina State, scoring 21 points and grabbing 11 rebounds.  Lorenzo Brown added 16 for the Wolfpack, who improved to 8-7 in conference play and 19-11 overall.

How about a little credit to Boston College?  With nothing but pride to play for–and nothing to play for in many months in fact–the Eagles defeated Georgia Tech, 56-52, for yet another conference win.  Boston College was led by Matt Humphrey with 13 points and Ryan Anderson with 10 points.  Daniel Miller led Georgia Tech with 13 points.  With the loss, Georgia Tech drops to 10-19 overall and 3-12 in conference play.  With the win, Boston College improves to 9-20 overall, but also to 4-11 in conference play.  That’s just enough to get the Eagles out of last place in the ACC standings.

And the Confidential will throw some credit to Pittsburgh too.  The season has been a disappointment, but senior Ashton Gibbs led Pittsburgh to an 89-69 home win over St. Johns in the regular season home finale.  Gibbs scored 19 points and Dante Taylor added 17.  With the win, the Panthers moved to 16-14 overall and 5-12 in conference play.  A bright spot in an otherwise gloomy season.

Nothing gloomy for North Carolina.  The #6 Tar Heels improved to 26-4 by handily defeating Maryland, 88-64, in the final home game of the year.  Senior Tyler Zeller went out in style, scoring 30 points  and grabbing 8 rebounds in his home finale.  Josh Henson added 19 points and 9 rebounds, while Kendall Marshall dished out 8 assists.  North Carolina’s defense held ACC leading scorer Terrell Stoglin to 4 for 18 shooting, although he finished with 16 points.  Nick Faust led the Terps with a career-high 17 points.  With the loss, Maryland drops to 16-13 overall and 6-9 in conference play.

After these games, here are the updated ACC Standings:

ACC Standings

TEAM CONF OVERALL
Duke 13-2 26-4
North Carolina 13-2 26-4
Florida State 10-4 19-9
Virginia 8-6 21-7
North Carolina State 8-7 19-11
Miami (FL) 8-7 17-11
Clemson 7-7 15-13
Maryland 6-9 16-13
Virginia Tech 4-10 15-14
Wake Forest 4-11 13-16
Boston College 4-11 9-20
Georgia Tech 3-12 10-19
Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball, Game Review and tagged , , , , , ,
29 Feb 2012

Lacrosse is Back: Weekly Report 3, February 29, 2012

ACC lacrosse is off and running.

News:

The Virginia Cavaliers remain ranked #1 in the latest Nike Top 20.  North Carolina is #4, Maryland is #5, Syracuse is #6, and Duke is #8.   In the coaches poll, Virginia is also #1.  However, Syracuse leapfrogs up to #3, ahead of North Carolina at #4 and Maryland at #5.  Duke is #10 in that poll.

Recap of Last Week:

Friday, February 24, 2012

Maryland 16-Georgetown 11.  Senior Joe Cummings set a career-high with six points to lead Maryland

Duke 12-Penn 8.  Duke University sophomore attackman Josh Dionne led Duke with four goals and Jordan Wolf added his first hat trick of the season.

Saturday, February 25, 2012

North Carolina 9-Navy 8.  Thomas Wood and Marcus Holman led the way for UNC with nine combined points

Virginia 12-Stony Brook 5.  Colin Briggs scored a career-high seven points to lead the #1 Virginia Cavaliers to victory.

Sunday, February 26, 2012

Duke 16-Jacksonville 7.  Sophomore Jordan Wolf led the 10th-ranked Blue Devils with a career-high five goals and two assists for seven points.

Syracuse 10-Army 9.    Army midfielder Alex Van Krevel’s shot with three seconds to play bounced off the helmet of Syracuse goalie, Dominick Lamolinara.

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Virginia 17-Mount St. Mary’s 5.  Virginia Chris Bocklet tied a career high with six goals to pace the No. 1 Cavaliers.

Upcoming Games:

Saturday, March 3, 2012

Duke @ Maryland

Lehigh @ North Carolina

Sunday, March 4, 2012

Syracuse @ Virginia

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Maryland @ UMBC

North Carolina @ Penn

Vermont @ Virginia

Records:

Virginia & North Carolina  4-0

Maryland & Syracuse 2-0

Syracuse and Maryland 1-0

Duke  3-1

The Confidential’s ACC Lacrosse Rankings:

1.  North Carolina (4-0).  North Carolina has beaten Navy and Penn State.  Slightly better than Virginia’s opponents.

2.  Virginia (4-0).  Virginia has played a lot of games, but has not been tested.  Syracuse will change that.

3.  Maryland (2-0).  Maryland looked good in defeating Georgetown.  Gets the slight edge over Syracuse for now.

4. Syracuse (2-0).  Syracuse eked out a victory over perennial thorn-in-its-side Army.  Still adjusting to new faces.

5.  Duke (1-1).  Still at the bottom due to the defeat.  Eventually Duke will move up.

If you have any comments on the ACC Lacrosse season or this entry, please feel free to share!

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Lacrosse and tagged , , , , , , ,

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