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22 Jan 2012

ACC Basketball Recap: January 21, 2012

Saturday was a big day in the ACC, as several teams played.  Here is the recap for the action on January 21, 2012.

It has already been discussed how #1 Syracuse was the last of the major conference teams to lose its undefeated status.

The next biggest result was Florida State’s stunning, last-second upset of #4 Duke on the road, 76-73.  That is two HUGE wins in a row for Florida State against the ACC’s two best teams.  For those that were not watching, Austin Rivers of Duke scored with 4.9 seconds to time the game up at 73-73.  Out of timeouts, Florida State quickly inbounded the ball to Luke Loucks, who raced up court and got the ball to Michael Snaer.  Snaer let go a three-pointer with less than one second to go that gave Florida State the victory as time expired.  With that, Duke’s 45-game home winning streak ended. It was a team effort for Florida State, though, as six different players scored at least seven points.  Xavier Gibson led Florida State with 16 points, while Snaer added 14.  Austin Rivers led Duke with 19 points.  With the win, Florida State improves to 13-6.  With the loss, Duke drops to 16-3.  The two teams are atop the ACC standings with a 4-1 conference record.

In an early game, Maryland was unable to keep its hot stretch alive, losing to Temple on the road, 73-60.  This means that Temple has now defeated both Duke and Maryland on its home court.  Terrell Stoglin led Maryland with 20 points, while Pe’Shon Howard scored 15.  Compounding the loss was an injury to the ankle of Terps’ center Alex Len in the first half.  No word yet on the severity.

In another early game, Wake Forest traveled to Boston College and pulled out a victory, 71-56.  The Demon Deacons held the Eagles to a mere 31.1% shooting from the field.  Wake Forest built an 8 point lead at the half and nearly matched it with a 7 point margin in the second half.  Ryan Anderson led Boston College with 13 points and 11 rebounds.  Travis McKie was the scoring leader for Wake Forest with 20 points.  Ty Walker added 11 rebounds, while McKie grabbed 10 boards.  With the win, Wake Forest improves to 11-8.

In Clemson, the Tigers were able to hold off a Georgia Tech second-half rally, winning 64-62.  Clemson led at the half by 15, but nearly squandered the win.  Glen Rice, Jr., led the Yellow Jackets with 19 points, all but 4 of them in the second-half.  The big star of the day for Clemson was Andre Young, who scored a career high 29 points with seven 3-pointers.  With the loss, Georgia Tech drops to a disappointing 8-11, as post-season hopes are fading fast.  At 10-9, Clemson has a glimmer of hope in that regard.

Finally, Pittsburgh’s losing streak continued, as the visiting #23 Louisville Cardinals defeated the Panthers in Pittsburgh, 73-62.  Something had to give as both teams were on terrible streaks.  Ultimately, Louisville prevailed, extending Pitt’s losing streak to 8 games.  Both teams had reason to be optimistic with the return of injured stars, Kyle Kuric (Louisville) and Tray Woodall (Pitt).  But it was Kuric that did the most damage, scoring a season-high 21 points.  Pitt was led by the fourteen points scored by Ashton Gibbs and Lamar Patterson.  Next up for Pitt is a home game against Providence.

 

ACC Saturday Standouts:

Scoring

Andre Young, Clemson   29 points

Terrell Stoglin, Maryland   20 points

Glen Rice, Jr., Georgia Tech & Austin Rivers, Duke   19 points

 

Rebounds

Ty Walker, Wake Forest & Ryan Anderson, Boston College   11 rebounds

Travis McKie, Wake Forest & Sean Mosely, Maryland   10 rebounds

 

Assists

Lamar Patterson, Pittsburgh & Scoop Jardine, Syracuse   7 assists

Tony Chennault, Wake Forest   6 assists

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball, Game Review and tagged , , , , , , ,
21 Jan 2012

This Day in ACC History: 24 Years Ago (Duke @ North Carolina)

Today, in another installment of This Day in ACC History, the Confidential takes a look at a regular season game between the Duke Blue Devils and the North Carolina Tar Heels on January 21, 1988, 24 years ago.

Any match-up between these bitter rivals is always noteworthy.  Both teams had very good years, with North Carolina losing in the Elite Eights and Duke losing in the Final Four.  Duke actually swept North Carolina in three matchups in 1987-1988.

But the first one was the toughest, as Duke had to travel to North Carolina on January 21, 1988.  Duke was able to pull out the victory in exciting fashion, 70-69.  In fact, GoDuke.com considers this game one of its top 10 moments in Chapel Hill and provides this summary:

Duke’s chances didn’t look too good heading to the Smith Center for their 1988 meeting with No. 2 ranked North Carolina. The No. 9 Blue Devils were coming off a dispiriting homecourt loss to Maryland and appeared to have little offense beyond junior star Danny Ferry.

But what the ’88 Devils did have was defense – maybe the best overall defense in the Krzyzewski era. Although UNC star J.R. Reid abused the smaller Devils inside for 28 points, with UNC down a single point in the final minute, he couldn’t get the ball when it counted. Duke, which got 19 points from Ferry and a vital 22 points from Kevin Strickland, tenaciously held on to its 70-69 lead.

UNC missed three straight shots, failing to take the lead, but got the ball back for one last chance. A second before the buzzer sounded, sharpshooting guard Jeff Lebo launched a potential game-winner from the left baseline. His shot was blocked by 6-foot-5 jumping jack Robert Brickey as Duke claimed the first of three victories over the Tar Heels in 1988. 

So this game went right down to the wire before Duke was able to grab the victory.

The Tar Heels were led by a famous name.  Sophomore J.R. Reid scored 27 points, while another Sophomore, Scott Williams, added 14.  Both players had double-doubles as Reid grabbed 13 boards and Williams snared 10.  Junior Jeff Lebo had 10 assists for the Tar Heels.  Other than the final score, Reid was unstoppable, converting 11 of 13 field goals attempts.  Although Duke’s defense was impressive that year, North Carolina converted 65.9% of its shots in the game.

The Blue Devils were also led by some familiar names. Senior Kevin Strickland scored 22 points, while Junior Danny Ferry scored 19.  Ferry just missed a triple-double as he had 10 rebounds and 7 assists.  Ferry, of course, gained some recent notoriety by being the Cleveland Cavaliers general manager during most of the Lebron James era.  He is currently Vice President of Basketball Operations for the San Antonio Spurs.  See here.

Do you remember this game?  Please feel free to share any details…

After a lengthy NBA career, JR Reid is not an assistant coach at Chowan University. Image courtesy of Chowan University. http://gocuhawks.com/news/2011/9/22/GEN_0922112429.aspx

This Day in History is a feature that relies heavily on information obtained from Atlantic Coast Conference Men’s Basketball Games, Michael O’ Hara, McFarland & Company, Inc. (2008).  Special thanks to that fine publication.

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball, This Day in ACC and tagged , , , , ,
20 Jan 2012

Weekend Preview: January 21-22

As is often the case this time of year, there are a number of ACC games this weekend in college basketball.

Saturday

In an unusual 11:00 a.m. start, Maryland will ride its relative hot streak into Temple for an out-of-conference game.  Both teams are 12-5.  As Maryland seeks to overcome its 3-3 start by getting itself onto the bubble, a road victory over a decent Temple team would do the trick.

At noon, Wake Forest will look to rebound from its loss to Duke when it travels to Boston College.  Wake Forest is 10-8 and Boston College is 7-11.  However, Wake has lost 4 of its last 5 games.  Boston College is a surprising 2-2 in ACC play after a 5-9 start to the season.

In the battle for 10th place in the conference standings, Georgia Tech heads to Clemson for a 2:30 pm matchup.  Clemson is looking to stay above .500 with a win, while Georgie Tech is looking to get within striking distance of .500.

In the premier matchup of the day, Florida State will try to work its Saturday magic for a second week in a row–this week at #4 Duke.  Last week, Florida State demolished North Carolina at home.  As impressive as last week was, if Florida State can upset Duke, this week will be even more impressive.  Tipoff is at 4:00 pm.

#1 Syracuse will take its 20-0 record into Notre Dame on Saturday at 6:00 pm.  Notre Dame always plays Syracuse tough at home, as they usually have the outside shooters to give the 2-3 zone fits.

At 9:00 pm, Pittsburgh tries to stop the bleeding when it hosts #23 Louisville.  After starting 11-1, the Panthers have lost seven in a row.  Louisville has its own bleeding problems.  After starting 12-0, Louisville has lost 5 of 7 games.  One of these teams will get back on track in a big way tomorrow.

 

Sunday

North Carolina State looks to make it three wins in a row as they take on Miami.  The host Hurricanes are a disappointing 10-6 so far, but they have the talent to beat the Wolfpack.  Both teams need momentum, as North Carolina State would like to crack the top 25 and Miami would like to make a run for the Big Dance.  Game time is noon.

At 6:00 pm, Virginia Tech heads to #15 Virginia in a matchup of bitter rivals.  Before the season, one would have thought that the Hokies would have been the ranked team, if any.  At this point, they are just looking for the first conference win.  The Cavs are 2-1 in conference so far.

 

 

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball and tagged , , , , , ,
20 Jan 2012

ACC Basketball Recap: January 19, 2012

There were several big games on Thursday, January 19, 2012, for the ACC.  Importantly for the ACC’s reputation, the favored team won all four games.

In the most anticipate game, #8 North Carolina rebounded from its debacle at Florida State by traveling to Virginia Tech to beat the reeling Hokies, 82-68.   It wasn’t easy for the Tar Heels, who trailed by four at halftime.  But a 19-0 second-half run turned made all the difference.  Harrison Barnes led North Carolina with 27 points, while Josh Henson contributed 16 points and 16 rebounds.  Erick Green was one of four Hokies in double-figures, leading the team with 17 points.  With the loss, Virginia Tech falls to 11-7 and 0-4 in conference.  With the win, North Carolina improves to 16-3.

In Durham, #4 Duke toppled Wake Forest 91-73 to maintain its perfect conference record.  Andre Dawkins led the Blue Devils with 21 points, but Ryan Kelly and Austin Rivers each added 20 points.  Kelly also added 10 rebounds.  Wake Forest was overmatched by Duke’s depth and size.  But four of its starters scored in double-figures, led by CJ Harris’s 20 points.  With the loss, the Demon Deacons drop to 10-8 and 1-3 in conference.  Duke improves to 16-2 overall, including 4-0 in conference play.

The other ranked ACC team, #15 Virginia, traveled to Georgia Tech and won big, 70-38.  The Cavs suffocating defense held Georgia Tech is under 30% shooting on the night.  They also out rebounded their hosts, 41-22.  As usual, Mike Scott led Virginia with 18 points and 7 rebounds.  Georgia Tech falls to 1-3 in conference and a disappointing 8-10 overall.  Virginia improves to 15-2 overall, including a 2-1 conference record.

Finally, North Carolina State improved to 14-5 on the season by beating visiting Boston College, 76-62.  Although Boston College struggled in non-conference play, the Eagles had some momentum heading into the game with a 2-1 conference record.  But the Wolfpack and its home court advantage were too much.  Scott Wood led North Carolina State’s balanced attack (6 players with 8 or more points) with 16 points.  Richard Howell had 11 points and 16 rebounds–alone providing for North Carolina State’s 44-28 rebounding advantage.  Boston College drops to 2-2 in conference play and 7-11 on the season.  North Carolina State in now 3-1 in conference play.

 

Individual Leaders:

Scoring:

Harrison Barnes, UNC, 27 points

Andre Dawkins, Duke, 21 points

Ryan Kelly, Duke, 20 points & Austin Rivers, Duke, 20 points

 

Rebounds:

Josh Henson, UNC, 16 rebounds & Richard Howell, NCState, 16 rebounds

Ryan Kelly, Duke, 10 rebounds & Travis McKie, Wake, 10 rebounds

 

Assists:

Lorenzo Brown, NC State, 11 assists

Tyler Thornton, Duke, 8 assists & Kendall Marshall, UNC, 8 assists

Erick Green, Va Tech, 5 assists & Jontel Evans, UVA, 5 assists

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball, Game Review and tagged , , , , , , , , , ,
20 Jan 2012

This Day in ACC History: 29 Years Ago (Wake Forest @ Duke)

In a new feature, the Confidential will attempt to bridge the gap between yesterday and today by providing some publicity for ACC events from the past.  Today, the Confidential takes a look at a regular season game between the Duke Blue Devils and the Wake Forest Demon Deacons.

On January 19,1983, exactly 29 years ago, Wake Forest traveled to Duke.  Admittedly, there is nothing particularly historical about this game.  It was a basketball matchup between two private, North Carolina schools that lurked in the shadows of the state flagship school, the North Carolina Tar Heels.  And 1982-1983 was no different, with North Carolina (led by Michael Jordan) and Virginia (led by Ralph Sampson) each finishing 14-2 in conference play.

Instead, what is notable is just how bad Duke was in 1982-1983.  The college basketball world is familiar with Duke and its successes in the past few decades.  In 1982-1983, however, Duke finished 3-11 in conference and 11-17 overall.  Mike  Krzyzewski was in his third season as coach, after five years of coaching at Army (73-59 record there).  By the end of the 1982-1983 season, Coach K would be 38-47 as a head coach of Duke, giving him an overall record of 111-106.  Today, he would likely have been fired.  But he was not.  Instead, 1982-1983 was the lowpoint, as he would win at least 23 games a year for the next 12 seasons, en route to breaking the all-time wins record.

Still, January 19, 1983, was not his night.  Instead, the night belonged to Wake Forest, who traveled to Duke and won 88-84.  The win was part of a 7-7 conference slate, resulting in an overall record of 20-12.  Wake Forest would head to the NIT, where it won three games, before losing to Fresno State in the semifinals.

The Demon Deacons were led by Junior Anthony Teachey’s 29 points and 11 rebounds.  The rebounds were not a surprise, as only stars Ralph Sampson and Sam Perkins averaged more rebounds per game than Teachey in the ACC that year.  From a scoring standpoint, Wake Forest had significant balance, with six different players averaging between 10.4 and 14.8 points per game in conference games, led by Junior John Toms.  With 10 points, Toms was one of four other Demon Deacons to score in double figures for Wake Forest against Duke , including Teachey (29), Senior Alvis Rogers (17), Junior Danny Young (11), and Freshman Kenny Green (10).  For more on Anthony Teachey, go here.

The Blue Devils were led by some familiar names.  Freshman Johnny Dawkins led Duke with 21 points, while Freshmen Jay Bilas and Mark Alarie added 16 and 10 points, respectively.  Sophomore Danny Meagher scored 14 points.  The youthful talent was on full display.  Bilas led the team with 8 rebounds, while Dawkins added 5 assists.  Bilas, of course, has had ample success in his work for ESPN as a basketball analyst.  After spending 9 seasons in the NBA, Dawkins has turned to coaching and he is now the head coach at Stanford.  The 1982-1983 season was just the beginning for that young Duke team and its “mediocre” head coach.

So, the next time you are watching a below average team being coached by a .500 coach and losing to an NIT bound team, bear in mind that you never know if you are watching a legend.  Nobody would have thought that on January 19, 1983.  And they all would have been wrong.

Do you remember this game?  Please feel free to share any details…

Wake Forest's Anthony Teachey, image courtesy of http://www.thedraftreview.com

This Day in History is a feature that relies heavily on information obtained from Atlantic Coast Conference Men’s Basketball Games, Michael O’ Hara, McFarland & Company, Inc. (2008).  Special thanks to that fine publication.

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball, This Day in ACC and tagged , , , ,
18 Jan 2012

The Confidential’s Basketball Top 30 for January 17, 2012

With over 300 teams in college basketball, the top 25 is just not enough anymore.  Here is the Confidential’s Top 30 for January 17, 2012:

  1. Syracuse (20-0).  The Orange set a school record by starting the season 20-0.  The Big East schedule gets much tougher though.  Next up: @ Notre Dame.
  2. Kentucky (18-1).  Kentucky struggled to beat Tennessee, but they got the win.  Waiting for that matchup with Florida.  Next up: Alabama.
  3. Baylor (17-1).  Sure, they lost at Kansas on Monday night.  But most teams lose at Kansas.  Next up: Missouri.
  4. Missouri (17-1).  Not many one loss teams right now, but Missouri is one of them.  A win over Baylor moves Missouri into the #3 slot.  Next up: @ Baylor.
  5. Duke (15-2).  Held serve against upstart Virginia.  Closer than expected at Clemson though.  Next up: Wake Forest.
  6. Ohio State (16-3).  Disappointing loss at Illinois, but followed it up with a convincing win over Indiana.  Next up: @ Nebraska.
  7. Kansas (15-3).  Convincing win over Baylor.  Starting to make a move in the Big 12 standings.  Next up: @ Texas.
  8. North Carolina (15-3).  Still amazed by that 33-point loss.  A lot of talent, but results are needed.  Next up: @ Virginia Tech.
  9. Indiana (15-3).  The losses at Michigan State and Ohio State are understandable.  Minnesota at home was a disappointing loss.  Next up: @ Nebraska
  10. San Diego State (15-2).  Only two losses were Creighton and Baylor.  A rare opportunity to disregard head-to-head play.  Next up: @ New Mexico.
  11. Creighton (16-2).  Although Creighton beat San Diego State, the overall resume is slightly behind them.  Oddly enough.  Next up: @ Missouri State.
  12. Michigan State (15-4).  Losses to Northwestern and Michigan drop the Spartans.  At least they were on the road against good teams.  Next up: Purdue.
  13. Virginia (14-2).  No shame in losing to Duke on the road.  Can’t be looking ahead to the Hokies.  Next up: @ Georgia Tech.
  14. UNLV (16-3).  Tough loss to San Diego State.  Still some good wins on the resume though.  Next up: TCU.
  15. Georgetown (15-3).  Hoyas rebounded nicely against St. Johns.  Figuratively.  Maybe literally too.  Next up: Rutgers.
  16. Kansas State (12-4).  Losing to Baylor was somewhat expected.  Losing to Oklahoma hurt though.  Next up: Texas.
  17. Murray State (18-0).  Wearing the target.  Need to keep winning to have a chance at a 4 or 5 seed.  Next up: @ Morehead State.
  18. Mississippi State (15-3).  Picked up wins over Tennessee and Alabama.  Time to hit the road now.  Next up: @ Mississippi.
  19. Illinois (15-3).  Decent losses for Illinois on the resume.  And now the win over Ohio State.  Next up: @ Penn State.
  20. Michigan (15-4).  Nice wins over Northwestern and Michigan State.  Losing by nearly 20 to Iowa?  Next up: @ Arkansas.
  21. Marquette (15-4).  Marquette has battled all year.  It is paying off as the schedule softens a bit.  Next up: @ Providence.
  22. UConn (14-3).  Huskies are starting to play better.  Look out nation.  Next up: Cincinnati.
  23. West Virginia (13-5).  Tough loss to UConn.  Nice job in handling upstart Rutgers in the follow-up.  Next up: Marshall.
  24. Wisconsin (14-5).  Won at Purdue, something Illinois could not do.  Beat Nebraska too.  Next up: Northwestern.
  25. Alabama (13-4).  Came down to Earth a bit by losing to Mississippi State.  But the win over LSU was nice.  Next up: Vanderbilt.
  26. Seton Hall (15-3).  Loss to USF hurts the resume.  That’s a winnable road game for a team in the top 25.  Next up: @ Villanova.
  27. Wichita State (15-3).  Best win remains UNLV.  Losses are all respectable though.  Next up: @ Northern Iowa.
  28. Stanford (15-3).  Atop the weak Pac-12 right now.  Going to be hard to impress this year.  Next up: @ Washington State.
  29. St. Mary’s (17-2).  Win over Gonzaga is nice.  That loss to Denver is still puzzling.  Next up:  @ St. Mary’s.
  30. Florida (14-4).  Losses to Tennessee and Rutgers still hurt.  But getting some momentum back.  Next up: Pepperdine.

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 , , , , ,
16 Jan 2012
3 Comments

ACC Basketball Rankings: January 16, 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 January 16, 2012:

1.  Syracuse (19-0)  The Orange just keep on rolling.  Things get a bit tougher schedule-wise with Pittsburgh on Monday and then a trip to Notre Dame.

2. Duke (15-2)  Neither win was dominating this week, but the Blue Devils won.  That is something that North Carolina cannot say.

3. North Carolina (15-3)  It’s one thing to lose, but to get blown out by Florida State was unfathomable.  Too much talent to be this erratic.

4. Virginia (14-2)  Hard to penalize the Cavs for losing on the road to Duke.  Had they won, they might be #2.

5. North Carolina State (13-5)  Close call between Maryland and NC State after the Georgia Tech loss.  But the Wolfpack and Terps played head-to-head and NC State won.  Slight edge for now.

6. Maryland (12-4) Recovered nicely from the loss to NC State.  But not enough to leapfrog them, obviously

7. Florida State (11-6)  Beating Virginia Tech on the road was impressive.  Destroying North Carolina was even more impressive.  That is worthy of a 5 spot jump.

8.Virginia Tech (11-6)  Losses to Florida State and Boston College make this a tough week.  If anyone else below had shown signs of life, the Hokies would be lower.  May be playing their way right off the bubble–and in the wrong direction.

9. Wake Forest (10-7) Absolutely destroyed by North Carolina State.  Just not a very consistent team.

10. Miami (9-6)  No conference wins yet.  The opportunity comes this week when they host Clemson.

11. Pittsburgh (11-7)  0-5 in Big East play against a weak schedule so far.  Things get tougher with a trip to Syracuse, although Pitt always gives the Orange fits.

12. Clemson (9-8)  Looked very good against Florida State, but then lost to Boston College.  Loss to Duke was close though.

13. Georgia Tech (8-9)  Nice upset win over NC State, but loss to Maryland made it a split for the week.  There is the potential to slide upwards here.

14. Boston College (7-10)  With wins over Clemson and Virginia Tech, Boston College is now 2-1 in conference.  The way the bottom several teams are playing, the Eagles could end up with a .500 record in conference, which would be a nice recovery.

Agree?  Disagree?  Let us know!

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball, Rankings and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
13 Jan 2012

Duke Survives The Virginia Test

The big game in ACC hoops this week was last night’s matchup between #8 Duke and #16 Virginia.  Although Duke was at home, Virginia came into the game winners of 12 consecutive games.  The game delivered everything that was expected, with Duke only narrowly defeating Virginia, 61-58.

One of the key aspects of this game was going to be whether Duke could establish a fast-paced tempo or whether Virginia’s defense-first philosophy would win out.  Ultimately, while Virginia was able to establish the tempo, Duke still won the the low-scoring affair.

Virginia actually started hot, taking a quick 5-0 lead.  But Duke recovered quickly to take an 8-7 lead around the first TV timeout.  The two teams battled back and forth in the first half, with the lead changing hands several times.  Virginia held the lead at halftime 32-28.  But 38-38 would be the last point at which Duke would not have the lead.  Over the next several minutes, Duke went on a 17-6 run.  Virginia chipped away at that lead to make it 61-58 in the final seconds, even missing a few attempts to tie the game and send it to overtime.

Duke was led by a balanced attack with five players scoring between 9 and 12 points, led by Mason Plumlee’s 12 points.  Virginia’s offensive output was dominated by Mike Scott’s 23 points.  Scott also added 9 rebounds.  Unfortunately, Virginia was hampered by an off night by Sammy Zeglinski, who was 0 for 8 from the field, with five of those attempts being three-pointers.

Both teams are now 14-2.  Virginia will get a full week off before traveling to Georgia Tech.  Duke travels to Clemson on Sunday.

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball, Game Review and tagged , , , ,
10 Jan 2012
1 Comment

ACC Divisional Breakdowns After Expansion

Much has been written or discussed regarding the anticipated divisional breakdowns in the ACC after Syracuse and Pittsburgh are added.  While the Confidential appreciates that the football-elite schools in the Southern portion of the ACC would want to avoid a geographic division, the Confidential believes that there are numerous reasons why a straight geographical breakdown is prudent.

When the Confidential discusses a geographically based breakdown, this is what the Confidential actually envisions:

  • ACC North: Boston College, Syracuse, Pittsburgh, Maryland, Virginia, Virginia Tech, and Miami
  • ACC South: Duke, Wake Forest, Georgia Tech, North Carolina State, North Carolina, Clemson, and Florida State.

Inherent in that process is that, for football, the teams would have “locked-in” rivalries against the team directly above/below in the standings.  This would allow Miami to play Florida State every year and maintain the North Carolina-Virginia rivalry.  With a 9-game conference schedule, that would allow 2 other cross-divisional games.  With 8 games, perhaps there could be some rotation of the cross-over game to allow some variety.

The Confidential anticipates that some will argue that these divisions are not adequately balanced.  How so?  Regardless of the pedigree of Clemson and Florida State, it is Virginia Tech that has carried the ACC flag in BCS games.  Moreover, the ACC Championship game will settle it on the field.

Also, who can say what division in a conference is going to be better?  A few years ago, the SEC East was the powerhouse, with Florida, Tennessee, and Georgia.  Now?  It is the West with LSU, Alabama, and Auburn.  These things are cyclical.

More importantly, let’s say the ACC South is way better than the North.  That just means that the winner of the South will have that much better of a strength of schedule and be appropriately battle-tested for its bowl game.  With a 2-15 record in BCS games, the ACC needs to start caring about BCS bowl-performance.

The other good thing about this division is that it is logical.  Miami has terrible attendance anyway and, as a private school, lacks the graduate bank to fill-up road stadiums.  Plus, with its Big East history, games against its former Big East foes will be logical draws.  Plus, the northern schools have ample Florida retirees to contribute to the attendance at Miami games.  And it is a destination.  If you are living in Boston or New York, a road Miami game is a vacation (perhaps even from the snow).  If you live in Atlanta?  Not quite as much.

But above all else, such as division makes logical sense.  A fan in California or Idaho or Minnesota will be able to easily tell which team belongs in what division.  Quick–are Penn State and Michigan in the same Big 10 division?  You don’t know.  Because it is not geographically based.  While ACC fans may be able to remember who is Atlantic or Coastal, the rest of the country cannot and will not keep track of it.  No need to make it confusing.

Such a division also ensures that the neighboring rivalries are preserved.  Why prevent Maryland, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, and Boston College from playing each other every year?  Historically, these teams played each other quite a bit.  You do not need to create these rivalries–merely resurrect them.  And what is more likely–a Pittsburgh fan driving to Syracuse or Maryland… or a Pittsburgh fan driving to North Carolina State?

In any event, the Confidential challenges anyone to explain why this system would not be better than the proposal to just plop Syracuse and Pittsburgh into one of the Atlantic or Coastal divisions already in place.  Go for it.

 

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Conference Realignment and tagged , , , , , , , , , ,
10 Jan 2012

The Confidential’s Basketball Top 30 for January 10, 2012

With over 300 teams in college basketball, the top 25 is just not enough anymore.  Here is the Confidential’s Top 30 for January 10, 2012:

  1. Syracuse (17-0).  And then there were three.  While nearly everyone has suffered one loss or more, Syracuse remains unbeaten.  Next up: @ Villanova.
  2. Kentucky (15-1).  Kentucky picked up two more wins, but was not tested.  Next up: @ Auburn.
  3. North Carolina (14-2).  The Tar Heels had a bye.  That is, they hosted Boston College.  Next up: Miami.
  4. Baylor (15-0).  15 straight is 15 straight.  Missouri fell to Kansas State on Saturday, will Baylor do better?  Next up: @ Kansas State.
  5. Michigan State (14-2).  The Spartans picked up a huge win at Wisconsin, which is usually a tough venue.  Next up: Iowa.
  6. Indiana (15-1).  The Big 10 is having a great year and Indiana deserves credit for that.  They get the edge of the Buckeyes based on head-to-head.  Next up: Minnesota.
  7. Ohio State (15-2).  Ohio State can get its revenge against Indiana later this week when the Hoosiers visit.  Next up: @ Illinois.
  8. Duke (13-2).  Loss to Temple should have dropped the Blue Devils farther, but everyone else seemed to lose too.  Next up: Virginia.
  9. Missouri (14-1).  Completely handled by Kansas State for loss number one.  They get a pass for now.  Next up: @ Iowa State.
  10. Kansas (12-3).  Kansas easily defeated the team that easily defeated Missouri.  Still avoiding the top teams in conference.  Next up: @ Texas Tech.
  11. UNLV (16-2).  The losses to Wichita State and Wisconsin are not looking as good now.  Big game coming up.  Next up: @ San Diego State.
  12. Virginia (14-1).  Look, there are a lot of good two-loss teams.  But Virginia has only lost once and they’ll be tested right away.  Next up: @ Duke.
  13. Kansas State (12-2).  Hard to move a team up 10 spots when they are blown out.  The big win over Missouri does it though.  Next up: @ Baylor.
  14. Georgetown (13-3).  Home loss to Cincinnati was sloppy and well deserved.  Will stay ahead of Louisville only because Georgetown beat them.  Next up: @ St. John’s.
  15. Louisville (13-3).  The loss to Notre Dame was shocking.  Expect the Friars to give Louisville a run.  Next up: @ Providence.
  16. Seton Hall (14-2).  Only losses were to Syracuse and Northwestern.  Wins over UConn and West Virginia.  Next up: DePaul
  17. Murray State (16-0).  Still rolling.  The latest victim was Austin Peay.  Next up: Jacksonville State.
  18. Michigan (13-3).  Narrow loss at Indiana offset by nice win against Wisconsin.  Next up: Northwestern.
  19. Creighton (13-2).  Wins over Drake and Bradley last week.  Three games this week.  Next up: Northern Iowa.
  20. San Diego State (13-2).  Finally done playing the community colleges.  Will they be looking ahead to UNLV?  Next up: Chicago State.
  21. Gonzaga (13-2).  Nice wins over Pepperdine and Santa Clara.  Tough week this week though.  Next up: @ St. Mary’s.
  22. Mississippi State (13-3).  Conference play woes as the trip to Arkansas resulted in a tough defeat.  Next up: Tennessee.
  23. Alabama (12-3).  Look out for the Crimson Tide!  They rolled through Georgia last week with wins over the Bulldogs and Ga Tech.  Next up: LSU.
  24. Marquette (12-4).  Marquette looked great in losing to Georgetown and even better in the second half against Syracuse.  Still, two losses.  Next up: St. John’s.
  25. Wisconsin (12-5).  Wisconsin lost to Michigan State and Michigan last week.  Not yet though.  Next up: @ Purdue.
  26. UConn (13-3).  Losses to Seton Hall and Rutgers were unexpected, to say the least.  Righted the ship against West Virginia.  Next up: @ Notre Dame.
  27. Florida (12-4).  Loss at Tennessee is disappointing.  Still it was a road game and the Gators have not lost at home yet.  Next up: Georgia.
  28. Dayton (12-4).  What to make of Dayton?  Losses to Miami of Ohio and Buffalo?  Wins over Alabama, Wake Forest, Minnesota, St. Louis and Temple?  Losses to Murray State and Seton Hall?  Next up: @ St. Bonaventure.
  29. Illinois (13-3).  Only losses are Purdue (away), UNLV, and Missouri.  We’ll learn more this week.  Next up: Ohio State.
  30. West Virginia (12-5).  After the upset loss to Kent State, the Mountaineers have only lost to teams ranked higher in this poll.  Next up: @ Rutgers.

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 , , , , ,

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