The Confidential

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16 Nov 2011
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ACC Still Undefeated in Basketball!

After five full days of college basketball, the Atlantic Coast Conference remains undefeated.  2011-2012 is off to an outstanding start.

The Confidential readily acknowledges that this trend is not going to continue.  In fact, no single team has gone undefeated in nearly 35 years.  So the idea of multiple teams going undefeated is unlikely, much less anyone from the same conference. In fact, it is impossible for two teams in the same conference to go undefeated–they all play each other at least once.  At least until the Big East expands to 90 teams.

However worthless this trend might be, it nevertheless gives ACC some early bragging rights over the rest of the basketball landscape.  Consider that the ACC is currently 22-0.  If you include Pittsburgh and Syracuse, that surges to 27-0.

How do the other conferences compare to the ACC this year?  Nobody else is undefeated.  Nobody else even has one loss.  Check it out:

  • The Big East claims to have the best basketball in the land.  Off to a 31-2 start (including Syracuse and Pitt).  Sure, they can blame one of those losses on West Virginia, who is more interested in suing the Big East than representing it.  But Rutgers lost to Miami.  Game.  Set.  Match.
  • The Big XII?  With Kansas, some claim that this is the best basketball in the land.  17-2.  Kansas lost to Kentucky.  And Iowa State lost to someone.  Feel free to look up who.  Doesn’t matter to The Confidential.
  • The Mountain West was sitting pretty heading into yesterday undefeated, but has now dropped to 14-2.  A fade back into irrelevance is now in order.  Also, keep an eye on the back door, the Big East is hunting in your backyard.
  • The Big 10?  20-2.  No, that’s not the halftime score of a Wisconsin game.  That’s the Big 10’s overall record.  And Michigan State’s losses both came to ACC schools.
  • Pac-12?  Not sure why the Pac-12 is credited with having elite anything.  Every year they fail to place enough teams in bowl games.  Every March, the bracketologists wonder whether they will get 4 teams in.  18-6 to start the season.  Ugh.  Stupid West Coast bias.
  • The SEC?  Stick to football.  19-5.

So, there it is.  After five days, the ACC is rather plainly dominating college basketball.

As it should be.  Right?

 

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball and tagged , , , ,
15 Nov 2011
1 Comment

Future ACC Member Syracuse Off to HOT Basketball Start

Syracuse basketball is off to a sizzling hot start in 2011-2012.  Although it is unknown when Syracuse will formally join the ACC, it is clear that it is good for most of the ACC that it is not this year.  While North Carolina has gotten an abundance of attention, including here, this Syracuse team is looking to be quite special in its own regard.  While North Carolina has an outstanding quartet of players, Syracuse is as deep as it has ever been.  Game three for Syracuse was more of the same, as the Orange rolled over Albany 98-74.

Here is the most impressive stat about the win over Albany.  Syracuse’s starting five scored 49 points.  Syracuse’s first five of the bench scored 49 points.

The preseason expectations were that veterans Kris Joseph, Brandon Triche, and Scoop Jardine would be the key to the season.  Against Albany, Joseph did by scoring 19 points in 25 minutes.  But Syracuse got a combined 13 points in 35 minutes from its starting backcourt and still ran away with this game. This is not a fluke either.  Although there is no serious debate about who should be starting for Syracuse right now, the bottom line is that James Southerland, CJ Fair, and Dion Waiters would be starting for many teams across college basketball.  In fact, going into the Albany game, these were three of Syracuse’s five best scorers on the season.  These three may not be starting games, but they are going to be finishing a lot of them.

Of course, what should really excite Syracuse fans is that this kind of depth is conducive to the team playing smarter basketball than the past several seasons.  When you go 6 or 7 deep, there is no room to take out a key player for a “teaching moment.”  In past seasons, careless play would get a stare from Jim Boeheim.  Not a fun thing to endure, but something that can be avoided by playing focused defense and hoping that he would forget about it by the next timeout.  This year, a careless play will land anyone on the bench.  There is no room for mental mistakes anymore.

And what must really have Syracuse fans ecstatic is that this kind of depth will allow Syracuse to play some full court press defense.  Against Albany, Syracuse did this for a large chunk of the first half.  This both dictated tempo and tired down Albany. If Syracuse can use that against some of the more methodical teams on its schedule, this will be a great weapon for Boeheim.  The season is still very young, but it is apparent that this Syracuse team is for real.

The question for ACC fans is this.  How great would it have been to have Syracuse, Pitt, Duke, and North Carolina all mixing it up this year?

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball, Game Review and tagged , , , , , ,
15 Nov 2011
1 Comment

ACC is One of Three Conferences Without a Loss in 2011-2012

So far during this early basketball season, the Atlantic Coast Conference is undefeated!  While it obviously is just a matter of time before this streak ends, it is notable and pride evoking that the current ACC schools are an impressive 18-0.  Add in the undefeated starts by Syracuse and Pittsburgh, and the league record swells to 22-0!

With more than 30 basketball conferences, you might think that a lot of conferences are in the ACC’s position this early in the season.  You would be wrong. With the first few days of the season completed, the ACC is one of just three conferences whose teams have yet to lose.

The Big 12 is undefeated at 14-0.  However, new member West Virginia has suffered a loss.  So, if we are looking at future membership, the Big 12 would be eliminated.  #2 Kentucky plays #12 Kansas tonight, so this is a streak that may end very soon.  The Midwestern Conference is the only other conference that is undefeated.  It’s 8 teams are a combined 13-0. San Diego State plays #11 today, so this is another streak that may be over very soon.

To be fair, if we are not counting West Virginia as a Big East school, that means the Big East would be undefeated at 23-0 (excluding West Virginia, Syracuse, and Pitt).  Given that most observers believe that the Big East and the ACC volley back and forth as the best basketball conference, none of this is surprising.

As for keeping that streak going, there are several important games today:

  • Duke hosts Michigan State.  As you already know, Mike Krzyzewski is searching for win #903 tonight.  As is always the case, Michigan State’s Tom Izzo likes to beat up his team in November.  Following the Carrier Classic with a game at Duke is certainly a great way to do that.  Unlike most seasons, however, Michigan State follows this game up with a series of games against directional schools.  In any event, the big picture is Coach K and his pursuit of the all-time record for wins.  Should be an outstanding environment and a great game.
  • Miami hosts Rutgers in a game between 1-0 schools.  With Jim Larranaga looking to put Miami on the map, and Rutgers’ Mike Rice looking to do for basketball what Greg Schiano has done for football, do not overlook this game.  These two teams could be March participants soon, even if not this year.
  • Virginia Tech’s annual effort to be a bubble team can take a step in the right direction by holding off Isaiah Thomas and Florida International.
  • Syracuse hosts Albany as Jim Boeheim tries to keep within 50 of Coach K on the win front.

While it is of no lasting consequence, it would be a nice feather in the cap for the ACC to be that last undefeated conference.

 

 

 

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball and tagged , , , , , , , ,
14 Nov 2011

The Confidential College Basketball Top 25: November 14, 2011

With college basketball heating up, here is The Confidential’s Top 25  as of November 14, 2011

1.  North Carolina–best quartet of players in the country.

2. Ohio State–the best PLAYER in the country.

3. Kentucky–another absurd recruiting class.

4. Syracuse–as deep as any team Jim Boeheim has ever had.

5. UConn–Lamb is great, but growing paints in the post-Walker era.

6. Duke–Unimpressive against Belmont, better against Presbyterian.

7. Florida–solid returning cast.

8. Pittsburgh–always tough, literally and figuratively.

9. Memphis–best year post-Calipari?  Undoubtedly.

10. Louisville–already an injury.

11. Wisconsin

12. Kansas

13. Baylor

14. Xavier

15. Arizona

16. Michigan

17. Vanderbilt

18. Alabama

19. Cincinnati

20. Marquette

21.  Texas A&M

22. California

23. Florida State.

24. Gonzaga

25. Michigan State

If we are nuts, feel free to tell us.  Sadly, the Internet will store this for future mocking down the road.  But that’s how we see it, as of today.

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball, Rankings and tagged , , , , , , , ,
14 Nov 2011

ACC Football Rankings: November 14, 2011

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 football schools as of November 14, 2011:

1.  Clemson–At 9-1 with a victory over Wake Forest, Clemson guaranteed itself a spot in the conference championship game.  From here, Clemson needs to win out to show that it deserves the top 10 ranking.  The conference NEEDS Clemson at 11-1.

2. Virginia Tech–In beating Georgia Tech, Va Tech has solidified itself of #2.  With games remaining against talented North Carolina and rival/rolling Virginia, it will not be easy for the Hokies to finish 11-1.  The dream matchup of 11-1 Clemson vs. 11-1 Va Tech is still alive though.  While a rematch, this would capture attention.

3. Georgia Tech–Of the three 7-3 teams, The Confidential will give Georgia Tech the nod here.  It beat Clemson… giving it the best win of the bunch.  While Virginia has the head-to-head advantage, Virginia also has the head scratching losses to NC State and Southern Mississippi.

4. Florida State–This young team is rolling now.  With the 3-game losing streak a mere blip in the rear-view mirror, these kids appear to be coming together at the right time.  Head-to-head matchup with Virginia will tell us a lot.

5. Virginia–At 7-3, Virginia could fairly be ranked #3 or #4 here.  But The Confidential will require Virginia to prove it on the field first.  As noted above, the win over Georgia Tech is offset by some poor losses.  A win over Florida State would vault them to #3.

6. Miami–held their own against a hot Florida State team.  On the road.  While an argument could be made for North Carolina here, Miami showed that it belonged here by beating North Carolina on the road.

7. North Carolina– At 6-4, North Carolina gets a huge test against Virginia Tech this week.  Winning at the Hokies is rarely expected, but the Tarheels need to show that they can compete to maintain this slot.

8.  Wake Forest– So many close games for Wake Forest.  Playing Clemson to the wire is just another example of same.

9.  Syracuse–after three losses in a row, it is tempting to drop Syracuse to double-digits.  However, they still have wins over West Virginia and Wake Forest.  The latter is something that North Carolina State could not do.  A week off before taking on Cincinnati.

10.  North Carolina State– Losing to Boston College pretty much sums up this enigma of a team.  With Maryland coming up after the Clemson game, NC State can still get bowl eligible.

11. Pittsburgh— Beating Louisville to get to 5-5 made it tempting to slide Pittsburgh up a few notches.  With games @ West Virginia and hosting Syracuse to finish the regular season, this will be resolved on the field.

12.  Duke—Played Virginia tough before fading.  The Blue Devils get the edge over Boston College based on the head-to-head.

13. Boston College–the win over NC State provided some good news for the fan base.  Upcoming games against Notre Dame and Miami may not make continued good news a safe bet.

14. Maryland- as if it couldn’t get worse, the drubbing by Notre Dame also featured a season-ending injury to Danny O’Brien.  At 2-8, it is difficult to see this team winning either of its two remaining games–both of which are on the road.

What do you think?  Do we have it right?

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Football, Rankings and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
13 Nov 2011

ACC HOOPS: November 13, 2011

After only two days, the ACC remains perfect.  Current ACC teams are now 10-0.  Future ACC teams are 2-0.  12-0!  Send them to a BCS bowl!

In a strange scheduling twist, Duke played Presbyterian the day after narrowly defeating Belmont.  The result was much better for the Blue Devils, as they rolled over Presbyterian, 96-55.  As you may have seen scrolling across your TV yesterday, this win gives Coach K his 902 win–tying him with Bobby Knight for most wins.  Pretty darn amazing.  Fact that you DID NOT know: the Presbyterian nickname is Blue Hose.  Here comes the Blue Hose.  I am thinking Blue Sox might have been a better way to go.  In any event, Duke is 2-0.

Staying within the top 10, Syracuse also won its opener, defeating Fordham 78-53.  Jim Boeheim has a long way to go to catch Coach K, but did you know that if he can win 24 games this year, he will pass Dean Smith?  With this team, winning less than 24 games will be a disappointment.  More depth than he has ever had.  Ask him, he’ll tell you.

Finally, Virginia Tech got the season off to a good start, defeating East Tennessee State 64-53.  Perhaps this is the year that Seth Greenberg gets the Hokies off the bubble.

 

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only and tagged , , , ,
11 Nov 2011

More ACC Basketball Predictions…

ESPN has now released more predictions for the 2011-2012.  Their 15 experts have predicted the major conference champions, the players of the year, the final four teams, and the final game result.

Here is what is noteworthy for the ACC:

  • All 15 experts prediction North Carolina to win the ACC
  • 6 experts predict Syracuse to win the Big East, while 2 pick Pitt to win.  Go future ACC schools!
  • 3 experts predict Harrison Barnes to be the POY.
  • All 15 experts predict that North Carolina will in the final four.
  • No expert predicts Duke or any other current ACC team in the final four.
  • 3  experts pick Syracuse to be in the final four, while 2 experts (different) predict Pitt.
  • Only two experts envision a Championship game without North Carolina.
  • Three more predict that North Carolina will lose the Championship game.
  • The remaining 10 predict that North Carolina will be cutting down the nets.

The pressure is on UNC this year.  Gotta figure that anything short of a title will be seen as a failure with THIS much love.

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball, Predictions and tagged , , , , , , ,
09 Nov 2011

Harrison Barnes, Consensus Pre-Season All-American

The basketball elite at ESPN have made their votes and Harrison Barnes of North Carolina was deemed a consensus Preseason All-American.  All fifteen voters agreed that Barnes should be a first-team All-American.  Three of the fifteen even voted him as the Preseason Player of the Year.

It should also be noted that a few other ACC players received some recognition too.  Barnes’ teammate, Tyler Zeller, was named to the second-team on several ballots.  Two more Tarheels, Kendall Marshall and John Henson, appeared on a second-team ballots as well.  It is easy to see why North Carolina is a consensus preseason #1.

No other current ACC team placed any players on the list.  Instead, it was the North Carolina show.

But in terms of future ACC members, Syracuse and Pitt were represented.  Kris Joseph (Syracuse) and Ashton Gibbs (Pitt) each appeared in several ballots.  Joe Lunardi even placed Gibbs on his preseason first-team.

Congrats to all of these players.  Let’s hope that they all stay healthy and have the opportunity to prove the voters right in providing these accolades.  The pressure is on to live up to the hype.

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Basketball and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , ,
08 Nov 2011
1 Comment

The (New) Carrier Classic!

Syracuse fans will recall that they used to host a Carrier Classic in the–yep, you guessed it–Carrier Dome.  But, alas, that Carrier Classic withered away.  Not sure what is going on with the intellectual property rights, but there is going to be a Carrier Classic this Friday and it has nothing to do with the Orange.

This new Carrier Classic will be a tribute to Veterans Day and take place on an actual aircraft carrier, the USS Carl Vinson.  The game will feature North Carolina and Michigan State, two perennially elite teams.  This game will be attended by many military personnel, up to and including the Commander-in-Chief President Barack Obama.  This, of course, rarely happens.

Also, only a limited number of fans from each school will be present. We will not see many rowdy college students with painted faces.  We will not see the Izzone.  This will not be the Dean Dome.  This will be a very odd basketball game in the sense that few fans will be watching live as these two teams play.

Of course, that is not the most of it.  The game will be outdoors!  This never happens.  Name the last outdoor college basketball game.  See what I mean?  And if you can even find one, I bet it was not on a boat.   So this is historical.

There is even a contingency in case of rain in San Diego.  This carrier is equipped to allow the game to be moved downstairs.  And, amazingly, the contingency plan is looking like a good idea given the forecast.

It gets better… North Carolina is, of course, the preseason #1 team.  While Michigan State is not ranked, you rarely see Tom Izzo get outcoached.  His teams are rarely out hustled.  A win by the Spartans would be a great way to start out the season, so you can guarantee that they will be amped up.

Of course, North Carolina has a few NBA players loitering on campus because there is no point in going “pro” if the “pros” are not even playing.  Tarheel fans can thank the NBA greed for the surplus of talent on campus this year.  The road to the Final Four begins on Friday for these returning players.

If you like college basketball, you’ll want to watch the (New) Carrier Classic.

 

Posted by acaffrey in Baseball and tagged , , ,
07 Nov 2011

ACC Football Rankings: November 7, 2011

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 football schools as of November 7, 2011:

1.  Clemson–With the week off, no reason to demote.  Need to be focused against Wake Forest this week.

2. Virginia Tech–The fact that Miami handled Duke easily makes that narrow victory look a bit worse… but not enough to drop in the standings.

3. Georgia Tech–Florida State appears back on track.  Going to need to play well to hold them out of the #3 spot.  But with a game against the Hokies coming up, the focus is on rising to #2.

4. Florida State–Another dominant win, this time over hapless Boston College.  These are important wins for re-establishing the brand though.  A win over Miami would be huge.

5. Miami–A dismantling of Duke is nice, but let’s see how they do against Florida State.

6. Virginia–At 6-3, the Cavs are now bowl-eligible and looking good.

7. North Carolina State– Everyone else lost.  Not sure anyone deserved to be the #7 team. 

8.  Wake Forest– Played Notre Dame tough, but still a winnable game.   Needs just one win for bowl eligibility.

9.  Syracuse–two road losses in a row have Syracuse still a win away from bowl eligibility.

10.  North Carolina–no excuse for getting shutout.  This team has more talent than that.

11. Pittsburgh— Played Cincinnati tough, but in the end the loss of Ray Graham was too much to overcome.

12.  Duke—After taking the Hokies to the final minutes, Duke did not show up against Miami.  At 3-6, the bowl dreams are down to a flicker.

13. Boston College–they caught Florida State at a bad time, as the Seminoles are on a roll right now.

14. Maryland- dark days in College Park.  

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Football, Rankings and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

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