SB Nation - Sylven Landesberg

ACC Power Rankings: 12.8

MRickman84 — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 16:30:14 -0000

So this probably should have been done yesterday, but I really want to get in the habit of doing power rankings throughout the season. UNC occupies the top spot this week, with Duke coming in second, as both are coming off tough losses last week to strong opponents.

Let's take a look at who is where after the jump...

1.) UNC-- [W vs. Michigan State, L vs. Kentucky] UNC is getting better as was expected. The young guys are playing well and Larry Drew II looks a lot more comfortable. I'm still concerned about the Heels' bench, as Strickland looks a little lost out there and Henson just does not know what to do with his body. The Wear twins are eating up a ton of minutes without a lot of productivity. Tyler Zeller is a great player for them though and really makes the perfect sixth man. UNC gets another tough test when they head to Dallas to play Texas at the Cowboys stadium next week.

2.) Duke -- [L vs. Wisconsin, W vs. St. John's] I thought this Duke team was supposed to be able to shoot? Kyle Singler is looking average at best so far this year and is taking a LOT of shots. You know what you're getting out of Jon Scheyer week in and week out and that is a great stabilizer. Andre Dawkins has been spectacular so far and we are going to be seeing a lot more of him as Duke enters ACC play. Duke's big weakness is still down low--Zoubek and Thomas are just bad, but the Plumlees work hard and are good players.

3.) GT [W vs. Siena, W vs. USC] The Jackets were left out of the Challenge this year because of their finish last season, and that really is a shame as I believe they would have won their matchup and turned the tide for the ACC. Instead, Tech put a whooping on Siena and USC last week. GT is stellar in the frontcourt with Lawal, Peacock and Favors, but losing Iman Shumpert is going to be sidelined for 3-6 weeks with a knee injury.

4.) Clemson [L vs. Illinois, W vs. South Carolina] Clemson is looking like bi-polar Clemson again, surprise! This is a good, solid basketball team. They have 5 players averaging at least 9 points per game and Trevor Booker is almost averaging a double-double (13 and 9). Their problem is that they just lose focus (as seen by the terrible collapse against Illinois). I think they are a better team than Georgia Tech, but they just can't pass them until they show some consistency.

5.) Miami [W vs. Minnesota, L vs. BC] Yes, I know they lost their first conference game. But it was very close and came down to the buzzer. They picked up a great non-con win over Minnesota, but still have not really been challenged other than their last two contests. Dwayne Collins is very good, but there's a lot of pressure on him coming into conference play since two of Miami's three strong guards are newcomers (Malcolm Grant from Villinova and freshman Durand Scott.) James Dews can get it done too, but we will see just how much the 'Canes miss Jack McClinton after the 1st of the year.

6.) Wake Forest [L vs. Purdue, W vs. Gonzaga] After a disappointing loss at home to William & Mary, the Deacs took to the road for two very tough tests. After a hard-fought loss to Purdue, the Deacs looked like they finally clicked in a win over Gonzaga at the Kennel. If the Demon Deacons can use this as a momentum builder, they could enter the new year at 10-2. They will be tested by UNC-W, who has played some good teams tough, as well as Richmond, which received votes in the polls this week. Freshmen C.J. Harris and Ari Stewart are looking like the real deal, but the Deacs absolutely need to get consistency from their bigs and from Al-Farouq Aminu.

7.) Virginia Tech [W vs. Iowa, W vs. Georgia] I like VT. They're better than they look on paper, and their loss to Temple is not a bad one--the Owls almost pulled off the upset against Georgetown a few games ago. They easily could finish anywhere between 6th and 10th, but the combo of Malcolm Delaney and Jeff Allen should be good for at least 6 conference wins.

8.) Maryland [W vs. Indiana, L vs. Villanova] I've seen Maryland play 4 times now this year and I'm sorry, I just don't think they are very good. Greivis Vasquez takes way too many ill-advised shots and he is shooting 32%. Sean Mosley and Landon Milbourne are the strong points to this team and Eric Hayes keeps them calm sometimes, but they aren't deep and I'm not sold on their front court. The Terps were a hot pick to start the season, but they have to prove something to me before they can move up the board.

9.) Boston College [W vs. Michigan, W vs. Miami] Here we go again. It's the same old story every year. BC looks sparse on paper and then Al Skinner does a great job coaching his team to overachieve. It'll probably happen again this year and their last two wins are a big indicator of this. Reggie Jackson could be a great player, and BC gets bumped up a spot just from his nasty dunk against the 'Canes (on a terrible offensive foul call in the last 30 seconds) and his clutch FTs to seal the win. Raji, Jackson, Trapani is a great combo and they get a good effort out of Josh Southern too.

10.) Florida State [L vs. Ohio State, W vs. FIU] Florida State looked downright ugly against Ohio State. And downright ugly against Florida. But that win against Marquette was big, so they have that in them. Alabi, Singleton and Kitchen are a nice 1-2-3, but the 'Noles need to be getting more out of Xavier Gibson and Ryan Reid.

11.) NC State [L vs. Northwestern, W. vs Marquette] After their loss to Northwestern, I didn't think at all that the Wolfpack would beat Marquette. It was the furthest thing from my mind. State is 6-1, but they are a mess and there is just not much there.

12.) Virginia [L vs. Penn State, L vs. Auburn] Hey, at least Virginia has beaten Cleveland State, something Wake wasn't able to do last year. Sylven Landesberg is a heck of a player, but when your next two leading scorers are Mike Scott and Sammy Zeglinski, there's a problem there. Virginia is not very good.

Big Ten / ACC Challenge - can the B10 finally win the challenge?

GopherNation — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 16:22:32 -0000

We all know that the ACC has dominated this "challenge" going a perfect 10-0 through the challenge's 10 year history. The Big Ten is back to being a heavyweight this year. The question is, are they good enough to finally beat the ACC head-to-head? The strength and depth of each conference is put to the test and each and every year the ACC wins. It becomes harder and harder to come up with appropriate excuses as to why the Big Ten is still better/deeper despite being unable to win more than they lose in this "challenge".

The conventional wisdom (especially in the Midwest) is that the Big Ten is arguably the best conference in the country and could go as deep as getting seven or eight into the NCAA Tournament. But unfortunately that may not translate into a B10/ACC Challenge win. I'll breakdown the match-ups in slightly greater detail below but here is how I see things playing out.

ACC Locks

Duke over Wisconsin
Maryland over Indiana
Virginia Tech over Iowa

Big Ten Locks

Purdue over Wake Forest
Ohio State over Florida State (admittedly this is closer than a lock)
Penn State over Virginia (only because it is over)

The Rest

Michigan State @ North Carolina
Minnesota @ Miami
Northwestern @ NC State
Illinois @ Clemson
Boston College @ Michigan

The Penn State win was huge and makes this much more winable. The Big Ten still needs to snag three of the toss-up five and four of those are on the road so...

Here is a brief look at each match-up with some key tempo-free stats.

Penn State @ Virginia - We kick off the Challenge with Talor Battle vs. Sylven Landesberg. And Battle won the battle, will it be enough for the Big Ten to win the war? (that analogy was awesome) Let's not waste time on this game since it is over.

Wake Forest @ Purdue - Here is a lock for the Big Ten and this may be the biggest lock of the entire challenge. Purdue is at home and so far has been the best looking team in the conference. Wake is 4-1 but has four meaningless wins and then a loss to William & Mary (that is one loss, not two).

	Wake Forest	Purdue
KenPom Rank	90	7
Off Eff	1.034	1.101
Def Eff	0.914	0.792
TO%	21.1%	17.7%
Off Reb %	42.2%	32.6%
Def Reb %	69.3%	71.7%

Wake rebounds on the offensive end of the floor very well but they tend to turn the ball over a bit too much, while Purdue forces turnovers to the tune of 28.3% of their opponents possessions. Wake is lead by Al-Farouq Aminu who is averaging 18.8 ppg and 11.2 rpg, he should be fun to watch but Purue's balance and overall efficiency should carry the Boilermakers to the home win here.

Northwestern @ NC State - NU is coming of a big win over the overrated Notre Dame Irish and NC State really hasn't played anybody yet. They did beat Auburn but that isn't a terribly impressive win. After the loss of Kevin Coble the Wildcats have turned to a the combo of Michael Thompson and John Shurna who are averaging a combined 32.7 ppg (48% of NU's offense), 9.4 rpg and 6.2 apg.

	Northwestern	NC State
KenPom Rank	87	46
Off Eff	1.086	1.068
Def Eff	0.978	0.895
TO%	18.4%	22.0%
Off Reb %	29.2%	35.2%
Def Reb %	64.1%	67.2%

This is one of the more interesting match-ups. The Wolfpack should be favored but Northwestern is a unique team to defend and could pose some problems for NC State. Northwestern has been pretty bad rebounding the ball this year and NC State has had their turnover problems. Whichever team can minimize their problem area the most will win this game. I'm calling the road upset here for Northwestern. I think they force just enough turnovers and then shoot their way to a win here.

Maryland @ Indiana -A lock for the ACC. Indiana is just too young, inexperienced and unimpressive to beat a decent but not great Maryland team. The Terps are on a two-game losing streak and really have not beaten anybody significant in this short season but I just don't see a way that Indiana pulls this one out. The Terps have four players averaging double-figures, three of whom are seniors. On the flip side Indiana is led by three players averaging 12 points or more per game but they include two freshman and a sophomore.

	Maryland	Indiana
KenPom Rank	51	189
Off Eff	1.028	0.945
Def Eff	0.868	0.966
TO%	15.2%	22.6%
Off Reb %	29.4%	33.6%
Def Reb %	66.3%	65.9%

This one will be a turnover fest for the Hoosiers. Maryland forces turnovers and Indiana loves to give it up. Add that to the fact that IU already struggles to score and you see why I have Maryland winning.

Michigan State @ North Carolina - My initial reaction is that this is another ACC win. The Tar Heels are just not a great match-up for Michigan State and the Spartans are on the road. Neither team has lived up to their preseason hype but the rematch of last year's NCAA final is the marquee match-up nonetheless.

	Michigan St	North Carolina
KenPom Rank	45	75
Off Eff	1.123	1.075
Def Eff	0.933	0.930
TO%	19.9%	22.8%
Off Reb %	43.4%	43.3%
Def Reb %	69.9%	69.2%

UNC has a turnover issue and they are not scoring nearly as efficiently as we are used to seeing Roy Williams team score. But Michigan State doesn't force many turnovers so I really don't expect that to be an issues. All other efficiency stats are virtually even. Both teams hold opponents to about .93 points per possession, both teams score right around 1.1 ppp and both teams rebound at near identical percentages. Whichever teams boxes out and keeps the Michigan State is probably a more experienced team but UNC is home and until the Spartans actually beat the Tar Heals I'm going with UNC.

Virginia Tech @ Iowa - I don't know that I need to spend much time on this one, Iowa is pretty bad this year.

	Virginia Tech	Iowa
KenPom Rank	145	207
Off Eff	0.915	0.955
Def Eff	0.886	0.995
TO%	16.3%	23.0%
Off Reb %	38.4%	32.6%
Def Reb %	69.3%	73.9%

On the surface and looking at the numbers I just don't see how Iowa gets this one done. Virginia Tech is also not very good and they struggle offensively more than Iowa does but I'd be surprised if they were to fall to the Hawkeyes.

Illinois @ Clemson - This might be the game I'm most looking forward to. Both teams are balanced with good inside/outside threats. Illinois is led by Demetri McCamey on the perimeter and Mike Davis on the interior. McCamey is averaging 12.7 ppg and 6.0 apg while Davis is averaging a double-double with 11.8 ppg and 10.0 rpg. For Clemson they are led by their senior forward Trevor Booker who is averaging 13.9 ppg and 8.7 rpg, but he's not alone as Tanner Smith is chipping in 11.6 ppg from the perimeter. These guys may not exactly guard each other but their match-ups should be a lot of fun to watch (especially if you like the color orange).

	Illinois	Clemson
KenPom Rank	83	10
Off Eff	1.089	1.125
Def Eff	0.967	0.843
TO%	15.6%	21.0%
Off Reb %	35.1%	39.6%
Def Reb %	74.7%	68.6%

Clemson is more efficient on offense but Illinois takes better care of the ball and their defensive rebounding is better. I want to go with Illinois here but after their losses to Bradley and Utah last week they make it really difficult to make that leap. Clemson will likely get the home W here.

Minnesota @ Miami - This is a Gopher blog so I'm going with a Gopher win. Miami is 7-0 but they have not played anybody of even relative significance.

	Minnesota	Miami
KenPom Rank	8	31
Off Eff	1.018	1.042
Def Eff	0.753	0.842
TO%	18.3%	26.5%
Off Reb %	31.2%	43.7%
Def Reb %	71.0%	71.4%

I think the numbers will back me up here. The Gopher offense struggles but this game comes down to defense and turnovers. Miami turns the ball over at an alarming rate and the Gophers offense thrives when the ball is given to them as much as the Hurricanes have been giving it up this year.

Boston College @ Michigan - A couple weeks ago I would have felt this was a lock for Michigan, but the Wolverines have struggled lately and this is going to be another tough match-up for them.

	Boston College	Michigan
KenPom Rank	82	130
Off Eff	1.174	1.034
Def Eff	1.032	0.979
TO%	18.3%	13.8%
Off Reb %	43.4%	29.9%
Def Reb %	70.7%	61.0%

Boston College is pretty efficient offensively but not so much on the defensive end. Michigan has really struggled with rebounding on both ends. The numbers support a BC win but when the lights get bright and when playing at home I expect Manny Harris to lead Michigan to a big win for the Big Ten. He can't do it alone but I think he'll be the catalyst.

Duke @ Wisconsin - I have great respect for Bo Ryan but Duke is just plain too good. I don't need to spend much time on this one. Wisconsin is experienced and it is at the Kohl Center but Duke is just too good.

	Duke	Wisconsin
KenPom Rank	3	50
Off Eff	1.188	1.096
Def Eff	0.809	0.920
TO%	15.5%	18.3%
Off Reb %	41.3%	32.2%
Def Reb %	67.6%	74.8%

The number support a Duke win. They rebound better, they take care of the ball better, they are are more efficient on both ends and they shoot better. This would be a huge shock if the Badgers were to pull this one out.

Florida State @ Ohio State - This also appears to be a really good match-up. Ohio State has been great in the early part of the season largely because Evan Turner has been outstanding. He is leading the Big Ten in rebounds (12.8) and assists (6.7). And also throwing in a decent 19.8 ppg which is third best in the league. He'll be the man the Seminoles should be most concerned about but they can't lose Jon Diebler who is making nearly four three-pointers per game and averaging 15.7 ppg. Florida State is athletic and lead by their own big time forward, Chris Singleton. He is averaging 12.3 ppg and 8.1 rpg. FSU is also big in the middle with Solomon Alabi and Xavier Gibson measuring out at 7-1 and 6-11 respectively.

	Florida St	Ohio St
KenPom Rank	17	25
Off Eff	0.992	1.132
Def Eff	0.758	0.895
TO%	26.4%	15.5%
Off Reb %	40.0%	34.1%
Def Reb %	68.4%	72.4%

Looking at the numbers FSU is very good defensively. They hold teams to just .758 points per possession which is third best in the country. They also hold teams to a 37.8 eFG% and block 22.9% of their opponents shots; both of which are also third best in the nation. This team will defend and it will be interesting to see if Turner, Diebler and Lighty can find some offense in this game. The Achilles heal of FSU is their turnover rate. When you give up the ball on 26.4% of your possessions you will allow good teams to stay in the game regardless of how good you are on defense. Ohio State is very good offensively scoring 1.132 pnts per possession and recording an eFG% of 59.5 (6th best in the country). If FSU continues to turn the ball over then I think OSU's offense will roll. Rebounding should be an important stat, but I think the key will be the turnovers. OSU wins this game at home.

After all of that (and one game in the books) I am seeing a Big Ten win, finally.

Big Ten -6 (PSU, Pur, Minn, OSU, Mich, NU)

ACC - 5 (Mary, Duke, UNC, VTech, Clem)

Around the ACC: 11/26

MRickman84 — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 18:00:26 -0000

Only two ACC teams in action today--Clemson takes on Texas A&M at 4:30 in the 76 Classic and Florida State plays Iona at 9:00 in the Old Spice Classic. The biggest game of the day is Minnesota v. Butler (also part of the 76 Classic) tonight at 8:30. That kind of a game is good for gauging how good a mid-major really is, in addition to what a high end team in a conference like the Big Ten looks like against a good opponent. I'm definitely interested in this matchup.

Maryland 69, Wisconsin 78
Maryland has not looked good. Now, this game wasn't exactly pretty for either team throughout, but it is pretty obvious that the Terps have some questions they need to answer. Vasquez keeps jacking it up but hit a couple more late to give him 18 points. The problems from the Cincy game were not as evident, but MD's perimeter defense really doomed them against the Badgers as Wisconsin hit 10 of 22. Cedar Falls product Jason Bohannon dropped 20 on 5-7 shooting (4-5 on 3PTs).

Virginia 76, Cleveland State 65
Good to see the Cavs pull off a decent win. I honestly don't know what to make of UVA. They don't have a ton of pieces, but they do have Tony Bennett instituting a new philosophy into the team. If they buy in, Virginia could outproduce their talent level. Cleveland State is not a dud team. We know what they can do and they're picked to finish 3rd in the Horizon. So this is definitely a good victory for the Cavs.

Landesberg had 20 points, but the big story was walk-on Will Sherrill's 15 point explosion in the second half.

Miami 77, Florida Gulf Coast 58

Miami beat a team they should beat. The 'Canes forced 23 Eagle turnovers and held FGCU to 1-13 shooting from beyond the arc. DeQuan Jones led Miami with 18 points and 5 rebounds, while Malcolm Grant tossed in 14 points, 4 assists and 5 rebounds. James Dews lit it up with 5 of 6 threes for 15.

Duke 64, Arizona State 53

Oh, Herb Sendek. Your teams never look good, but they always compete. And with 13 minutes to go in the game, they were tied with Duke, who really struggled to find their shot and a rhythm. Kyle Singler really struggled, missing 9 of his first 10, but recovered to hit 4 of his last 6 to finish with 13. Jon Scheyer committed a turnover. That brings him to...one this season. He also had 16 points, 5 assists and 4 rebounds. Nolan Smith added 14. Duke really shot poorly in this game though, especially from deep (4-18) as two of those four came from freshman Andre Dawkins. Former Duke benchwarmer Eric Boateng had 4 points and 9 TOs.

Around the ACC: 11.25

MRickman84 — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 13:58:14 -0000

More photos » by Eugene Tanner - AP

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The biggest story of the day was Maryland's loss to Cincinnati, which will effectively drop them from the rankings. Cincinnati looked pretty strong the whole way and was way more physical and tenacious on the boards. The ACC had a hiccup --with only Wake winning out of the four games. Let's recap yesterday's games in the ACC.

Cincinnati 69, Maryland 57
Greivis Vasquez's struggles to find his shot finally caught up with Maryland. The senior finished with 19 points, but he was 5-17 from the field. He took more than double the shots of every other individual player, so if he is going to dominate that many possessions, he absolutely needs to have better shot selection and make more for Maryland to have the kind of season they are hoping for.

Freshman Lance Stephenson, who the Terps were recruiting pretty heavily before backing off, had an efficient 11 points to go along with 8 rebounds and 4 assists. He isn't pretty at times, but he has shown he is pretty good at cleaning up the trash around the hoop. Oh, and the Terrapins shot 2-14 from beyond the arc. Woof.

Florida 68, Florida State 52
This game was not very pretty. FSU was down 20 at the half and creeped back in it with pressing and quick possessions before the Gators went on a 12-0 run. The 'Noles shot 33% and 3-16 from deep (and people talk about Wake's poor three point shooting...). They also had 23 turnovers. Derwin Kitchen led all scorers with 15, but also had 5 turnovers of his own.

Virginia 52, Stanford 57
In another stinger for the ACC, Virginia fell to Stanford in a close contest till about the 5 minute mark before Stanford went on a run and closed the game out. The Cardinal were paced by Landry Fields' 25 and 13. Sylven Landesberg and Jeff Jones combined for 33 points on 12-21 shooting, but the rest of the Cavaliers shot just 16%.

Wake Forest 76, Winston-Salem State, 52
The story was guard play, with Ish Smith and CJ Harris dominating. You can find a full recap of the game soon, so check back a little later in the day.

Around the ACC: 11.20.09

MRickman84 — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:54:13 -0000

Good morning. Yesterday was sure a shaky day for the ACC. UNC pulled it out after collapsing again in the second half--which they are quickly making a habit of. GT lost a tough one to Dayton (and the CAA is looking rather good so far, with UNC-W knocking off Penn State and William & Mary beating Richmond, not to mention Hofstra putting up a good fight against UCONN the other day.) The conference as a whole is looking pretty strong, especially compared to the struggles of the Pac-10 and the SEC (which is just abismal this year).

UNC 77, Ohio State 73:
UNC dominated early on, with help from Ohio State's horrendous shooting, but a hot streak from the Buckeyes brought them back in the game. UNC obviously has a lot inside, with Deon Thompson leading the way (15 points, 12 rebounds). The rest of the bigs--John Henson, Tyler Zeller, Ed Davis and the Ware twins--combined for 19 points.

This Tar Heel team is tough to figure out. They definitely do not have the poise that previous UNC teams have had, and it is not completely clear who the leader is going to be--Marcus Ginyard (13 points, 3 steals) stepped up after being chewed out by Roy Williams last night and Will Graves and Thompson have the potential to, but there is not guaranteed go-to guy. Evan Turner led the Buckeyes in the loss with 23 points and 10 rebounds, but had a glaring 10 turnovers.

Dayton 63, Georgia Tech 59
This one was never a guaranteed win for Georgia Tech, and actually, I considered them the underdog coming in. GT may have more individual talent, but Dayton is a better basketball team. I don't doubt that the Yellow Jackets will improve this year, but they are going to go through a 2009 Wake Forestesque stretch of games (not to mention they have Paul Hewitt as their coach). Chris Johnson lall scorers with 19 points (7-13 shooting, 4-8 from 3PT). Freshman sensation Derrick Favors had a good game, with 10 points, 6 rebounds and 2 assists. Gani Lawal had 9 and 8, but EIGHT turnovers. The Ramblin' Wreck were doomed by committing 26 turnovers and shooting 55% from the FT line.

Miami 74, Tulane 54
The Hurricanes moved to 3-0 on the year with a 20 point victory over the Green Wave. Dwayne Collins has a monster game, with 23 points, 14 rebounds and 3 assists on 8-8 shooting. Durand Scott also looked impressive, finishing with 10 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists. The 'Canes had a 19-4 run in the second half and will take on UNC-W today at 3 P.M.

Virginia 79, Rider 46
Virginia smoked Rider. Rider had beaten Mississippi State and Lehigh already, so I figured Virginia might have a little trouble pulling away, but good defense (Rider shot 33%) and balanced scoring really helped the Cavaliers. Mike Scott paced the Cavs with 17 and 9 on 8-9 shooting. Sylven Landesberg added 10, Sammy Zeglinski and Jeff Jones had 10, and Calvin Baker and Mustapha Farrakhan had 8. Virginia shot 52% and 44% from beyond the arc.

BtB 2009-10 ACC Preview

Chris Dobbertean — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 17:00:28 -0000

North Carolina claimed the conference's 11th national title last season, but thanks to major personnel losses, they'll be hard pressed to repeat. The Tar Heels aren't alone, as the overwhelming majority of teams in the ACC lost at least one key player during the offseason. Not only will Wayne Ellington, Danny Green, Tyler Hansbrough, and Ty Lawson not be in the league next year; players like Alade Aminu, Brandon Costner, Toney Douglas, Gerald Henderson, James Johnson, Jack McClinton, Terrence Oglesby, Greg Paulus. K.C. Rivers, Jeff Teague, and A.D. Vassallo will be missing as well. But as is traditional, plenty of high-profile recruits have signed on with the league's 12 teams--with Derrick Favors, John Henson, Ryan Kelly, Mason Plumley, Durand Scott, and Michael Snaer the most prominent newcomers.

These freshmen will join several returning stars who have already shown brightly in the ACC universe, like Al-Faroq Aminu, Trevor Booker, Ed Davis, Malcolm Delaney, Gani Lawal, Sylven Landesberg, Jon Scheyer, Kyle Singler, and Greivis Vasquez. Those are the type of impact players who can keep the league at the forefront of the national conversation for yet another season.

The big question is whether one of the teams can get the old and new to mix well enough to claim the conference's 12th crown in Indianapolis in April. More on the 12 contenders after the jump.

Here's a recap of last year's ACC standings.

Atlantic Coast Conference Standings

(updated 4.7.2009 at 12:22 AM EDT)

	Conf		Overall
	W	L	W	L
North Carolina Tar Heels	13	3	34	4
Duke Blue Devils	11	5	30	7
Wake Forest Demon Deacons	11	5	24	7
Florida St. Seminoles	10	6	25	10
Clemson Tigers	9	7	23	9
Boston College Eagles	9	7	22	12
Maryland Terrapins	7	9	21	14
Miami Hurricanes	7	9	19	13
Virginia Tech Hokies	7	9	19	15
N.C. State Wolfpack	6	10	16	14
Virginia Cavaliers	4	12	10	18
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets	2	14	12	19

Now, here are my picks for 2009-10, presented in reverse order. If a team's name appears in red, click the link to visit that school's SB Nation site, where you'll find complete coverage and analysis throughout the season.

NC State (last NCAA: 2006) The Wolfpack could be in for a very long season, as the top three scorers are gone from a team that won only 6 ACC games last season. 6-8 junior F Tracy Smith (10 ppg, 4.5 rpg) is Sidney Lowe's leading returning scorer, and the coach has to settle on a point guard with Javier Gonzalez (6.6 ppg, 3.3 apg), Farnold Degand (4.7 ppg, 2.4 apg), and Julius Mays (4.7 ppg, 1.9 apg) all options. 6-9 senior Dennis Horner (6.4 ppg, 2.8 rpg) joins Smith in the frontcourt, but three freshmen--6-7 Richard Howell, 6-9 DeShawn Painter, and 7-0 Australian Jordan Vandenberg--will see significant minutes. Another newcomer, 6-6 Scott Wood, will get time as a swingman. NC State's schedule includes a home game with Georgia State in the Glenn Wilkes Classic, followed by games with Akron, Austin Peay, and Auburn in Daytona Beach. They face Northwestern in the ACC/BIg Ten Challenge; visit Marquette; and face Arizona and Florida in Raleigh.

Miami (last NCAA: 2008) PG Jack McClinton graduated after a season that ended with a loss to Florida in the second round of the NIT. It was a disappointing end to a year that started with high expectations. Now, McClinton's replacement, Villanova transfer Malcolm Grant, walks into a situation where he'll be the floor general for a team with few hopes. Frank Haith's squad got a major boost when 6-8 senior F Dwayne Collins (10.6 ppg, 7.3 rpg) decided to withdraw from the NBA Draft. That decision really helped the Canes' frontcourt, as 6-9 senior Cyrus McGowan (4.6 ppg, 4.4 rpg) and 6-7 senior Adrian Thomas (5.1 ppg, 2.3 ppg) would have been the most experienced players on the unit. 6-9 redshirt freshman Reggie Johnson will see action this season, as will several backcourt newcomers. 6-6 Garrius Adams, 6-1 Antoine Allen, and 6-5 Durand Scott--one of the top SG prospects--in the country will be called into immediate action to support Grant and 6-4 senior James Dews (8.2 ppg, 2.7 rpg). The Canes will take on Tulane in their first game at the Charleston Classic, then face either UNC Wilmington or NIT champ Penn State. They also host Minnesota in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge and visit Pepperdine.

Virginia (last NCAA: 2007) Tony Bennett was the surprise choice to replace Dave Leitao as head coach during the offseason. Now, while Bennett's arrival won't improve an offense that rated 11th in the league last season, the defense should improve (and it won't be hard as UVa rated 12th in scoring D in the ACC). That should result in more wins for a team that has talent. 6-6 sophomore Sylven Landesberg was a worthy replacement for Sean Singletary, as he averaged 16.6 points, 6 boards, and 2.8 assists a game during his freshman year. 6-8 Mike Scott is a frontcourt talent, but he needs to be more assertive. If he can do that, he'll improve on his already decent numbers of 10.3 ppg and 7.4 rpg. Virginia fans are hoping Bennett is working closely with his guards, as 6-2 Calvin Baker (8.4 ppg, 2.8 apg) and 6-0 Sammy Zeglinski (7.8 ppg, 3 apg) are just about as adept at passing the ball to the other team as they are to feeding teammates. (Both averaged 2.5 TO per game last season.) 5-11 freshman Jontel Evans is ready to take over the point if they don't improve. 6-8 freshman F Tristan Spurlock provides the Cavaliers with a legit inside/outside threat, so he'll see time right off the bat as well. The Cavaliers will be tested in the Cancun Challenge, and not only in the games in Mexico against Stanford, then Kentucky or Cleveland State. They face two difficult opponents, Rider and Oral Roberts, in Charlottesville before they head to the Caribbean.

Virginia Tech (last NCAA: 2007) Seth Greenberg has a major hole to fill, thanks to the graduation of A.D. Vassallo, but the Hokies' roster still features a lot of talent. 6-3 junior PG Malcolm Delaney becomes the face of the program, and he's already one of the best returning players in the league (18.1 ppg, 4 rpg, 4.5 apg). 6-7 FJeff Allen (13.7 ppg, 8.7 rpg) could fill the same role in the frontcourt, if he stays consistent and on his best behavior. 6-6 junior J.T. Thompson (6.5 ppg, 3.7 rpg) should provide more support after struggling through an injury-plagued season, as should 6-8 Victor Davila, who averaged 3.1 points and 2 boards a game in limited action. The Hokies' newcomers will see some time right off the bat--6-4 Erick Green backing up Delaney, 6-4 Ben Boggs at off guard, and 6-7 Manny Atkins in Vassallo's swingman spot. VPI's schedule features games against Delaware and Temple in the Philly Hoop Group Classic; at Iowa in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge; at Penn State; and against Seton Hall in Cancun to kickoff the New Year.

Wake Forest (last NCAA: 2009) The Demon Deacons will be without James Johnson and Jeff Teague, two major losses for a team that faded after a brief stay atop the polls. Even without Johnson, Dino Gaudio's frontcourt is a talented one, thanks to the presence of 6-9 sophomore Al-Faroq Aminu (12.9 ppg, 8.2 rpg). 7-foot senior C Chris McFarland (8.7 ppg, 5.8 rpg) could be more of a factor if he can play more consistently and stay off the bench. After those two, the Deacons' other bigs have a lot of room to improve. David Weaver, Tony Woods, and Ty Walker only managed to average a combined 6.2 points and 6.2 boards a game last season. 6-7 freshman Ari Stewart could see a lot of the minutes Johnson played in '08-09. In the backcourt, Teague's scoring punch will be missed. 6-0 PG Ishmael Smith (6.2 ppg, 3.4 apg) is a good passer, but lacks an outside shot, while 6-4 L.D. Williams (8 ppg) is more of a factor on the defensive end. 6-4 JC transfer Konner Tucker, who committed to Kentucky out of high school, will play shooting guard. Wake's schedule isn't overwhelming. They take on Purdue in the ACC/BIg Ten Challenge, visit Gonzaga, and host A-10 powers Dayton and Xavier around the New Year.

Boston College (last NCAA: 2009) Al Skinner's squad should be OK this year as they learn to play without Tyrese Rice, but expect next year to be even better as 6-7 reserve F Tyler Roche is the only senior on the roster. 6-1 junior Biko Paris (3.4, 1.7 apg) will get the first crack at replacing Rice, while 6-5 swingman Rakim Sanders (12.9 ppg, 4.4 rpg) and 6-3 Reggie Jackson--a 44 percent shooter who only averaged 7 points a game last year--will provide offense from the backcourt. The frontcourt will be pretty good, as 6-8 F Joe Trapani (13.4, 6.6) and 6-6 F Corey Raji (9.9 ppg, 6.1 rpg) have shown they can be a force in the ACC, and 6-10 Josh Southern (6.5 ppg while shooting 50.3% from the floor) could be if he's more assertive. The Eagles will face St. Joseph's in their opening game at the Paradise Jam, with a contest against either Purdue or South Dakota State to follow on day 2. The Eagles travel to Providence and Michigan in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, while they host UMass and South Carolina.

Clemson (last NCAA: 2009) Three key players from last year's squad are gone--swingman K.C. Rivers, big man Raymond Sykes, and sharpshooter Terrence Oglesby, who left to play professionally in Europe, but the top rebounder and field goal shooter in the league, 6-7 Trevor Booker (15.3 ppg, 9.7 rpg) is back for his senior season. The arrival of his brother Devin, a 6-8 F/C, and 6-9 Milton Jennings, a McDonald's All-American, gives the frontcourt an immediate boost. 6-6 Noel Johnson, a swingman who originally committed to Southern Cal, should prove to be a nice replacement for Rivers. The backcourt could be a bit of a concern for Oliver Purnell; however, as 6-2 junior PG Demontez Stitt (8.7 ppg, 3.8 apg) can be a bit inconsistent. That means 5-9 Andre Young (4.4 ppg, 2.1 apg) could see plenty of time at the 1 spot. Overall, the Tigers will really have to do better from the charity stripe this season, as they ranked 10th in the ACC last season. The Tigers will play in the very tough 76 Classic in Anaheim, where they open with Texas A&M. They also take on Illinois in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge and host archrival South Carolina.

Florida State (last NCAA: 2009) The Seminoles' heart and soul of the past few seasons, ACC leading scorer and Defensive Player of the Year Toney Douglas, graduated, as did F Uche Echefu. So that means FSU will be headed back to the NIT, right? Well, thanks to the return of a bunch of key players and one top recruit, don't expect the Noles to fall too far. 7-1 sophomore Solomon Alabi (8.4 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 2.1 bpg), an inside force and the team's leading returning scorer, anchors a frontcourt that also features 6-9 Chris Singleton (8.1 ppg, 4.9 rpg), 6-11 Xavier Gibson (2.3 ppg, 1.4 rpg in 6 mpg), and 6-8 senior Ryan Reid (4.9 ppg, 3.7 rpg). The big issue for FSU's backcourt is finding a replacement for Douglas. 6-4 junior Derwin Kitchen (7.9 ppg, 2.5 apg) could be the answer from a passing and defensive perspective, while 6-5 freshman Michael Snaer--who averaged 28 ppg during a senior year in which he was named California HS player of the year--could replace his scoring. If the returnees kick their scoring up a notch, FSU will be right back in the Dance. The Seminoles will be tested by a schedule that includes the Old Spice Classic--where they should have more of a home advantage than UCF had in 2007. They'll open that tournament with Iona, then face Alabama or Baylor on Day 2. Leonard Hamilton's squad also travels to archrival Florida and faces Ohio State in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.

Maryland (last NCAA: 2009) The equation for the Terrapins is pretty simple. If Greivis Vasquez is healthy and playing well, they'll be pretty good. The 6-6 Venezuelan senior decided to not enter the NBA Draft, and that's a good thing for Gary Williams' side. It not only would have been difficult to replace his 17.5 points, 5.4 boards, and 5 assists per game, but it would have been impossible to replace his heart and spirit. 6-4 Eric Hayes (10.3 ppg, 3.2 apg) and 6-2 drive-first junior Adrian Bowie (9 ppg, 2.5 apg) join Vasquez to form one of the top backcourt units in the league. The frontcourt features 6-7 senior Landon Milbourne (11.4 ppg, 5.2 rpg) and not much else in the way of experience, especially after Dave Neal's graduation. Freshmen James Padgett (6-8) and Jordan Williams (6-9) will be expected to provide instant interior presence for the Terps. Maryland will play in Maui, where they open with Chaminade before facing either Cincinnati or Vanderbilt on Day 2. They visit Indiana in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge and Villanova in DC at the BB&T Classic.

Georgia Tech (last NCAA: 2007) While the Yellow Jackets won't have the services of either Alade Aminu inside or Lewis Clinch outside, they will be a bigger threat thanks to the arrival of a true game-changer, 6-10 freshman Derrick Favors. He'll join a frontcourt that retains 6-9 junior Gani Lawal (15.1 ppg, 9.5 rpg) and 6-8 Zachary Peacock (9.2 ppg, 4.8 rpg). The backcourt could be Paul Hewitt's squad's Achilles heel, however. 6-5 guard Iman Shumpert's (10.6 ppg) assist-to-turnover ratio of 5 to 3.7 was way too high. He may handle the ball less this season, especially since 6-2 Maurice Miller (5.8 ppg, 4.3 apg) and 6-2 freshman Mfon Udofia are both capable point guards. The Yellow Jackets' schedule features some nice matchups, as they face Dayton, then either George Mason or Villanova in the first two days of the Puerto Rico Tip-Off. Tech also hosts Hewitt's former employer, Siena, and USC.

Duke (last NCAA: 2009) In a rarity for a recent Duke team, Mike Krzyzewski's 2009-10 Blue Devil outfit will be frontcourt-oriented, thanks to the departure of Gerald Henderson, Greg Paulus, and Elliot Williams. While 6-5 Jon Scheyer (14.9 ppg, 2.8 apg) and 6-2 junior Nolan Smith (8.4 ppg, 2.2 rpg) are back, and 6-4 freshman Andre Hawkins enrolled early, the Duke backcourt will be extremely thin. It's so thin that Kyle Singler, a 6-8 junior who averaged 16.5 points and 7.7 rebounds a game in '08-09, will spend a lot of time on the wing this season. The frontcourt is talented, but will lack experience. 7-1 senior C Brian Zoubeck (4.1 ppg, 3.7 rpg) and 6-8 senior PF Lance Thomas (5.3 ppg, 3.6 rpg) are the key holdovers from last season, but they'll be pushed hard by two 6-10 McDonald's All-Americans, Mason Plumlee (brother of Duke soph Miles) and Ryan Kelly. They're two players who will cause major matchup problems for opponents, as they love to get out and play on the perimeter on offense. If the new guys live up to the hype, it could be a big year in Durham. Duke's schedule includes the NIT Season Tip-Off. They'll take on Coastal Carolina in their first game, then face either Charlotte or Elon with a ticket to New York on the line. The Blue Devils will play at Wisconsin in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, face Gonzaga in New York, Iowa State in Chicago, and Tulsa in a rare late February non-conference tilt.

North Carolina (last NCAA: 2009) This pick relies on a lot of "ifs." Considering that Roy Williams lost an average of 66.2 ppg when Wayne Ellington, Tyler Hansbrough, Danny Green, and Ty Lawson left Chapel Hill, it won't be easy for the Tar Heels to repeat as NCAA Champion. It will even be tough for them to retain the ACC title. That being said, between the returnees--led by 6-8 senior Deon Thompson (10.6 ppg, 5.7 rpg) and 6-10 Ed Davis (6.7 ppg, 6.6 rpg, but bound to do better when playing more minutes)--and a sterling group of newcomers, the Heels should be able to keep making national noise. Davis and Thompson will be joined in the frontcourt by 6-10 frosh John Henson, who does a lot of everything well. The biggest knock on him is his weight (195 lbs.), but that won't stop him from being a force at this level. 6-5 swingman Marcus Ginyard was out for all but three games last year with an injury, while 6-6 G/F Will Graves (4 ppg, 2.6 rpg) is also back after missing time last season for disciplinary reasons. Freshmen Leslie McDonald (6-4) and Dexter Strickland (6-3) will also see plenty of action in their first season. The revamped Tar Heels will get their first test against in the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic, with a game against Ohio State to start, then one with California or Syracuse to follow the next night. They also host Nevada and Texas; face a rematch with Michigan State (in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge); and visit Kentucky.

The Tar Heels are my pick to repeat in the ACC, though they'll have a more difficult time this season with a younger roster. They'll hold the league's auto bid in my 2009-10 Final Preseason Bracket, which I will release on November 9. Check in then to see which other ACC squads I think have the best chance to go dancing in March.

To wrap up this preview, here is my preseason All-ACC team, featuring the best returning players from last season.

Preseason All-ACC Team

Player of the Year: Greivis Vasquez, 6-6 G, Sr. (Maryland)

Remainder of the Team
Trevor Booker, 6-7 F, Sr. (Clemson)
Ed Davis, 6-10 F, So. (North Carolina)
Malcolm Delaney, 6-3 G, Jr. (Virginia Tech)
Kyle Singler, 6-8 F, Jr. (Duke)

Poll

Who is your pick to win the ACC this season?

Boston College

9 votes

Clemson

1 votes

Duke

35 votes

Florida State

1 votes

Georgia Tech

3 votes

Maryland

37 votes

Miami

0 votes

North Carolina

22 votes

NC State

2 votes

Virginia

1 votes

Virginia Tech

1 votes

Wake Forest

3 votes

115 votes | Poll has closed

N&O Summer Hoops Preview: NC State

Akula Wolf — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 20:45:55 -0000

Today, the N&O's summer hoops preview covered NC State:

Tracy Smith. One of the biggest mistakes media-types make in projections is we forget to factor in improvement. For example (and bear with the UNC reference, State fans), but Ty Lawson and Wayne Ellington were miles better as juniors than they were as sophomores.

Players get older, they get more experience, they learn and they get better. We lose sight of that in college basketball because there are so many prospects that leave after one or two years or we downgrade the ones that stick around because of some bizarro NBA-potential stigma.

The point of that preamble is Tracy Smith is going to be a mile better as a junior. The power forward went from averaging 3.3 points as a freshman to 10.0 last year. In his third season, don't be surprised if Smith's numbers jump another seven points.

He's a no-nonsense player around the basket and he understands how to score points, either by attacking the rim or getting to the foul line (his 123 free-throw attempts were second on the team despite only starting 12 times and playing an average of 18.2 minutes per game.)

It's also important not to mistake an increase in playing time for improvement. Which is not to say that Tracy didn't improve from his freshman to sophomore year--he did--but rather that the improvement in raw per-game figures (from 3 PPG to 10 PPG) is more an indicator of increased PT. Smith was effective in the few minutes he got as a freshman, and his per-minute scoring production in conference play was roughly the same that year (18.1) as it was in 2009 (19.6). The big difference was minutes. If he gets 30 minutes a night this season, he'll probably end up averaging around 15 PPG, though 17 PPG is every bit as possible as JP suggests.

If he really is a mile better as a junior--if he's added a respectable mid-range game and refined his low-block repertoire--well, look out.

Here's a list of returning ACC players who took 24% or more of their team's shots and played at least 40% of the time in conference play last season (i.e., returning go-to types):

Greivis Vasquez
Malcolm Delaney
Kyle Singler
Rakim Sanders
Joe Trapani
Tracy Smith
Sylven Landesberg
Jeff Jones

Among those, only Delaney and Sanders had higher offensive ratings than Smith, and only Sanders had a better effective field goal percentage. I doubt the Macrowave will be in the pre-season first team All-ACC discussion. But he should be.

Sidenote: That both Sanders and Trapani are on the above list is evidence that Boston College will get along okay without Tyrese Rice. Those two guys proved last season that they could contribute efficiently despite moderate-to-heavy workloads. They certainly benefitted from having Rice there to draw the defense's attention and create for them, but I expect they'll adjust fine in his absense.

Moving on:

State ranked last in the ACC in steals and blocks. They have to create more turnovers to create more easy points to take the pressure off the point guards and the halfcourt offense.

Yep. I feel like I've been harping on this forever, so rather than going down that well-worn path again, I'll summarize. Forcing turnovers is critical for this team because: 1) the defense needs to compensate for a turnover-prone offense and lessen the negative turnover margin that's become an annual tradition, 2) our FG% defense stinks, and 3) our defensive rebounding stinks.

Worse, for the first time in probably 6-7 years, we can no longer reasonably expect the Pack to be among the league's best shooting teams. It's been an impressive, underappreciated run, one that's spanned two regimes. From 2005-2009, State finished 3rd, 1st, 1st, 4th, and 1st in eFG% in conference play. Since 2002, State's lowest full-season eFG% is 51.7. Not that you'd suspect we've been that good, because why aren't we going faster, and hey what's with all these threes, and WHY AREN'T WE GOING FASTER????

So the offense could be--and probably will be, at least at the beginning of the year--much worse. If it's business as usual defensively... hello disaster.

Coming and Going - A Look at ACC Basketball in 2009-10, Pt. I

Ben Broman — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 22:25:02 -0000

This is a project that we as a blog have been working on for quite awhile. Yes, it's out of order (shouldn't a football preview be here?), but Maryland's a basketball school first and foremost, dagnabbit! Plus, we got the idea during March Madness and just ran with it. All three of us put in work on it, with homertuck bearing the brunt of it, and there's a boatload of raw data behind it, which you'll see in a few days.

Below, you'll find a team-by-team analysis of what exactly is being lost - through graduation, the NBA, or Europe -and who exactly is coming in - ie, the recruiting class, and their rankings - for each ACC basketball team. A couple of predictions accompany this. We realize that a lot could change between now and November, which is why we include three different possible predictions - a Best Case, a Worst Case, and our own prediction, a fusion of the two.

While we realize that basketball doesn't use the divisions, reading 12 of these reports at once is darn near impossible. For that reason, and the lack of a clear division of basketball teams, we borrowed the divisions concept from football. Today, we break down the six Atlantic teams: Duke, Georgia Tech, Miami, North Carolina, Virginia, and Virginia Tech. Tomorrow, check back to see the Coastal Division. On Thursday, we'll publish a companion piece of sorts - a visual aid, loaded with graphs to help you make sense of all this.

So, without any further ado, make the jump and get to reading.

Duke

2009 Recruiting Class:
Mason Plumlee 6' 11" Center: 98 grade
Ryan Kelly 6' 10" Forward: 97 grade

With Jon Scheyer going into his senior season and Greg Paulus already gone, many Terp fans may be wondering what awkward-looking white player they'll have to root against in the future. Have no fear: Coach K is bringing in two of them for next season in Ryan Kelly and Mason Plumlee. The bad news: Kelly and Plumlee are ranked #20 and #55 overall by Rivals, respectively.

Overall Class Ranking: #9 (ESPN), #9 (Scout)

Players lost to graduation/NBA/Europe:
Greg Paulus (G) - Graduation (4.9 ppg)
David McClure (F) - Graduation (1.9 ppg)
Gerald Henderson (G-F) - NBA (16.5 ppg, 4.9 rpg)

Overall, Duke doesn't lose too much next season, especially when compared with other ACC schools. They only lose 28% of their three-point baskets, 35% of their assists, 24% of their blocks, 30% of their points, 26% of their rebounds, and 24% of their steals. Maryland and Virginia are the only other schools that lose less than Duke, and that is in Maryland's best case scenario of Vasquez returning. Add in the fact that Duke brings in a good true center in Mason Plumlee and a nice forward to replace part of the void lost by Gerald Henderson, and the Blue Devils again look like a possibly scary team in 2009-2010. Duke's only other loses aside from Henderson are back up point guard Greg Paulus and seldom used forward David McClure. Also, watch out for the development of Kyle Singler and Jon Scheyer (pictured with a traditional Scheyerface). The man with the funny faces really improved towards the second half of last season and he'll be counted on to pick up the 16.5 ppg lost by the departure of Henderson.

Best Case - Duke is Duke, Plumlee is actually a good white guy center that isn't a bust for Duke, and the Blue Devils actually show up in the NCAA tournament and make it to the elite eight under the leadership of Scheyer and Singler. The Blue Devils dominate the ACC, and rack up a 13-3 ACC record.

Worst Case - Plumlee and Kelly are two more awkward looking white guy busts, Scheyer quits the team after seeing thousands of pictures of his face again at the Comcast Center, and Duke again fails to make it past the first two rounds of the NCAA tournament after having a 10-6 ACC season.

Testudo Times Prediction - Duke is Duke but doesn't live up to the media hype yet again. The Blue Devils finish with a 12-4 ACC record, continue their dominance and win the ACC tournament, and then bow out of the NCAA tournament in the sweet 16.

Georgia Tech

2009 Recruiting Class:

Derrick Favors 6' 9" Power Forward: 98 grade
Mfon Udofia 6' 2" Point Guard: 93 grade
Kammeon Holsey 6' 8" Power Forward: 92 grade
Daniel Miller 6' 10" Center: 91 grade
Glen Rice Jr. 6' 4" Shooting Guard: 89 grade
Brian Oliver 6' 6" Small Forward: 87 grade

Georgia Tech's recruiting class is highlighted by one name: Derrick Favors (pictured below). Rivals' third best player in the country is most likely a "one and done" but he's joined by five others, including three who are ranked in Rivals' top 80.

Overall Class Ranking: #7 (ESPN), #5 (Scout)

Players lost to graduation/NBA/Europe:
Lewis Clinch (G) - Graduation (15.5 ppg)
Bassirou Dieng (C-F) - Graduation (1.2 ppg)
Gary Cage (G) - Graduation (0.7 ppg)
Alade Aminu (F) - Graduation (11.8 ppg, 8 rpg)
Gani Lawal (F) - Undecided (15.1 ppg, 9.5 rpg)

Georgia Tech had a tough year in 2009-2010, limping to an 11-18 (2-14 ACC) record. But Tech's head coach Paul Hewitt is hoping to erase memories of last season by bringing in a top 10 recruiting class to replace four departing seniors and possibly sophomore Gani Lawal. Hewitt survived the 2-14 ACC performance of last year but if he doesn't start to produce, the natives might become restless and attack - where do you think they'll go first? For Hewitt's head. Whether or not Lawal returns will have a huge impact on the success of the Yellow Jackets in 2009-2010. If Lawal does come back, Tech will lose 33% of their point production from last season but if he doesn't return to school, that number jumps up to 54%. A similar story holds true for rebounding where the return of Lawal means Tech only loses 28% of their rebounding if Lawal is back. But if Lawal leaves, that number will pump up to 56%.

Best Case - Tech's young guys perform at a very high level and bully around some of the other ACC teams to a 10-6 record.

Worst Case - Lawal leaves and Favors doesn't live up to their hype. Tech improves on last year, but finishes 5-11 in ACC play.

Testudo Times Prediction: Paul Hewitt might have saved his job by bringing in a top ten recruiting class following last season's horrible 2-14 ACC finish. Even though injuries might have played a role in that final record, the head coach is normally the one who gets the axe, no matter how valid the excuse might be. With their new recruiting class coming in, this will be a very different Tech team. Expect the Yellow Jackets to improve by 7 wins in 2009-2010, finishing with a solid 9-7 ACC record and returning to the NCAA tournament.

Miami

2009 Recruiting Class:

Durand Scott 6' 5" Shooting Guard: 93 grade
Garrius Adams 6' 5" Shooting Guard: 91 grade
Donnavan Kirk 6' 8" Power Forward: 91 grade
Antoine Allen 6' 2" Shooting Guard: 85 grade

Miami will need help next season filling the void left by first team All-ACC guard, Jack McClinton. They've brought in three shooting guards to do the job including Rivals' 33rd rated prospect, Durand Scott

Overall Class Ranking: #24 (ESPN), #19 (Scout)

Players lost to Graduation/NBA/Europe:

Jimmy Graham (F) - Graduation (4 ppg, 5.9 rpg)
Lance Hurdle (G) - Graduation (7.3 ppg)
Brian Asbury (F) - Graduation (8 ppg, 5 rpg)
Jack McClinton (G) - Graduation (19.3 ppg)
Dwayne Collins (F) - Undecided to NBA (10.6 ppg, 7.3 rpg)

Miami loses a lot of production from their graduating seniors and could be one of the top production-losing teams if junior Dwayne Collins (depicted dunking on Greg Paulus, but really, who hasn't done that yet?) decides to stay in the NBA, but word on the street says he'll be returning next season. Jack McClinton is Miami's biggest loss going into 2009-2010. The Maryland native was Miami's best player and also one of the best players in the ACC. Even if Collins returns, Miami will still be losing 57% of their three-point production for this upcoming season and 52% of their overall scoring from last season. Miami will be looking to build on their 7-9 ACC (19-13 overall) record from last season, but may find that task difficult.

Best Case: Collins returns and shooting guard Durand Scott helps to fill the void left by McClinton. Miami cruises to a 9-7 ACC record (+/- 1 game)

Worst Case: Collins does in fact leave and some of Miami's top 25 recruiting class struggles. Miami finishes with a 6-10 ACC record (+/- 1 game)

Testudo Times Prediction: Miami brings in a strong, top 25 class, but their supporting cast isn't too great, they don't have the home court advantage most ACC schools do, and they lost their best player from last year. Anytime you lose five players, there is an adjustment period. Look for this Hurricane team to be a category 1 storm, enough to cause some trouble, but not strong enough to make you run for higher ground. 7-9 (+/- 1 game) in the ACC and an NIT appearance sounds about right.

North Carolina

2009 Recruiting Class:
John Henson 6' 10" Power Forward: 98 grade
Dexter Strickland 6' 3" Shooting Guard: 95 grade
Leslie McDonald 6' 5" Shooting Guard: 95 grade
David Wear 6' 9" Power Forward: 94 grade
Travis Wear 6' 9" Power Forward: 94 grade

You know when you were younger and your mom made you do some annoying chore? Then, as soon as you got through it, she made you do another one? That's how every ACC coach not named Roy Williams (and maybe Mike Krzyzewski) feels year after year. After losing Tyler Hansbrough, Ty Lawson, Wayne Ellington, and Danny Green, the Tarheels bring in a consensus top three class which is highlighted by Rivals' fifth ranked player, athletic power forward, John Henson.

Overall Class Ranking: #2 (ESPN), #3 (Scout)

Players lost to Graduation/NBA/Europe:
Marcus Ginyard (G-F) - Graduation (1.3 ppg, 2.7 rpg)
Bobby Frasor (G) - Graduation (2.6 ppg, 2 rpg)
Danny Green (G-F) - Graduation (13.1 ppg, 4.7 apg, 1.3 bpg)
J.B. Tanner (G) - Graduation (1.1 ppg)
Jack Wooten (G) - Graduation (0.5 ppg)
Patrick Moody (F) - Graduation (1 ppg)
Mike Copeland (F) - Graduation (0.8 ppg)
Tyler Hansbrough (F) - Graduation (20.7 ppg, 8.1 rpg)
Ty Lawson (G) - NBA (16.6 ppg, 6.6 apg, 3 rpg)
Wayne Ellington (G) - NBA (15.8 ppg, 2.7 apg, 4.9 rpg)

Someone is going to have to explain to me how UNC has so many people on their roster. That's the size of GT's whole team now that they have scholarship reductions. I guess a lot of people want to walk on to UNC to average a point a game. Or does their roster include that JV team they also have? Anyway, UNC has 10 players leaving the team this year, either because of graduation or leaving early for the NBA. UNC is losing 74% of their points scored from last season, 93% of their made three-pointers, 78% of their assists and 56% of their rebounds. That is a whole lot of loss. Fortunately for the Tar Heels, their recruiting class is ranked in the top 3, as forward John Henson will look to fill the big shoes of Tyler Hansbrough. They also return senior forward Deon Thompson, and sophomore bigs Ed Davis (seen right, trying to annoy me by wearing a t-shirt) and Tyler Zeller. The development of Davis and Zeller could go a long way in determining how this Carolina team fares this season. With the departure of so many players, most of UNC's team will be unproven next season, so the Tar Heels could struggle early and could also fade down the stretch.

Best Case: Davis and Zeller ease of the pain of losing Hansbrough and UNC's top three recruiting class excels early. The Tar Heels don't miss a beat after winning it all last season and finish at 12-4 and 2^nd in the ACC.

Worst Case: UNC's new team takes a while to gel and some of the top-billed prospects don't live up to the hype. 9-7 ACC, 2^nd round of NCAA's.

Testudo Times Prediction: One thing you have to give UNC head coach Roy Williams credit for: he's a hell of a recruiter and the guys he recruits are normally slam dunks. But its Roy's in-game coaching that has been his limiting factor in his career. Expect UNC to start struggling a little but come together by midseason. Then expect the team relying so heavily on freshman players not used to the tough competition of the ACC to fade a little in the last few games. 10-6 ACC, 2^nd round of the NCAA tournament.

Virginia

2009 Recruiting Class:
Tristan Spurlock 6' 7" Small Forward: 91 grade
Jontel Evans 5' 11" Point Guard: 87 grade

After Dave Leitao stepped down, new coach Tony Bennett had some significant ground to make up on the recruiting trail. He managed to keep former Leitao commits, Tristan Spurlock (SF) and Jontel Evans (PG), who make up his first Cavaliers recruiting class.

Overall Class Ranking: N/A (ESPN), N/A (Scout)

Players lost to Graduation/NBA/Europe:

Tunji Soroye (C) - Graduation (1.8 ppg, 2.2 rpg)
Mamadi Diane (G-F) - Graduation (6 ppg, 2 rpg)

UVA doesn't lose much this off season and compared to the rest of the ACC; actually, they're losing the least in almost every category we've broken down. The biggest loss they'll suffer this offseason is in blocked shots, where they lose 26% of the shot blocking production from last year. Unfortunately for UVA, what remains on the team is nothing really new from last season and the two recruits coming in aren't exactly superstars. Tony Bennett will have his work cut out with this group and maybe he can catch lightening in a bottle. A lot will also depend on the development of guard Sylven Landesberg (pictured with all his gum-filled smiley goodness). Last year, the freshman led the Wahoos in points, was second in assists, and second in rebounds. Incoming players Tristan Spurlock and Jontel Evans will provide some nice new blood into the program but the undersized Evans might struggle when he gets to ACC play. This could definitely be a rebuilding year in Charlottesville.

Best Case: Sylven Landesberg establishes himself as an elite ACC guard and new head coach Tony Bennett changes the culture at UVA. The team surprises a lot of people and finishes with an 8-8 ACC record and a NIT appearance or a low seed in the NCAAs.

Worst Case: Same old story from last year, with just a little improvement. 5-11 ACC

Testudo Times Prediction: The Tony Bennett hire will help this team a lot - new system, blood into the program. But can the players Leitao recruited fit into and succeed in Bennett's system? Only time can tell. Expect Landesberg to improve and Spurlock to do well, but not well enough to pull UVA out of another unsuccessful season. 5-11 ACC.

Virginia Tech

2009 Recruiting Class:
Erick Green 6' 3" Point Guard: 88 grade
Cadarian Raines 6' 9" Center: 88 grade
Manny Atkins 6' 6" Small Forward: 87 grade
Ben Boggs 6' 3" Shooting Guard: 87 grade

Seth Greenberg's 2009 class isn't filled with any instant superstars but he does bring in four players all rated above an 87. They'll collectively try to offset the loss of last season's leading scorer, A.D. Vassallo.

Overall Class Rankings: N/A (ESPN), N/A (Scout)

Players lost to Graduation/NBA/Europe:

A.D. Vassallo (G-F) - Graduation (19.1 ppg, 6.2 rpg)
Cheick Diakite ( C ) - Graduation (3.8 ppg, 3.9 rpg)

Seth Greenberg will try to offset the loss of A.D. Vassallo by bringing in four solid freshmen and hoping that they can fill the void. This recruiting class seems to be typical Greenberg - nothing too flashy, but a group of solid players who are willing to work to get better. Greenberg might be one of the more under-rated coaches in the ACC when it comes to getting the best from his players. Tech does lose 40% of their made three-point attempts from last season, as well as 41% of their blocks, but other than that and losing Vassallo, they won't lose too much. If Malcolm Delaney and Jeff Allen (seen giving Maryland fans the bird) can step up and be leaders this could be a very good Tech team.

Best Case: Va. Tech builds off last year and rides Delaney and Allen to a surprising 11-5 ACC record (+/- 1 game), with this year's recruiting class tag-teaming to pick up for the production lost by the graduation of leading scorer A.D. Vassallo.

Worst Case: Jeff Allen is more focused on flipping off Terp fans than improving his game and the four incoming players don't adjust fast enough to the learning curve of ACC basketball. The team struggles, especially down the stretch, and limps to a 7-9 ACC record.

Testudo Times Prediction: Greenberg, while he can be obnoxious at times, is a fairly solid coach who gets the best out of what he has. Expect him to do the same this year and will his team to an 8-8 record (+/- 1 game) and sneak in as an NCAA tournament team.

Remember to check back in tomorrow and Thursday for parts II and III.

ACC Tournament: BC vs Virginia Recap

MRickman84 — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 03:45:19 -0000

Well that was trbl. In one of the slowest games I've ever seen with a crowd that looked more dead than Keith Richards, BC was able to hold off Virginia, 76-63, despite Tyrese Rice and Joe Trapani both having off nights.

Rice, who only hit one shot from the field, had nine points (7 for 8 FTs). BC was able to dominate the game inside and even though Virginia was hot from beyond the arc, the points in the paint (36 vs 22) and the free throw differential (36 vs 20) were just too much for the Cavaliers.

Virginia senior Mamadi Diane had 24 points in his final game in a Cavalier uniform. He got a nice ovation from what few fans were in the Georgia Dome late at night when he was taken out of the game with 40 seconds remaining. His performance, as well as some hot shooting from Jamil Tucker and an average game from ACC Rookie of the Year Sylven Landesberg was not enough to overcome Rakim Sanders who went seven for 11 from the floor, good for 25 points and seven rebounds. Josh Southern also had a strong game, finishing with 13 points.

BC, who had about 10 people in the stands, will take on Duke tomorrow. They have already beaten the Blue Devils once this season and if Rice got whatever it was that kept him from having a good game out of his system, he could go off tomorrow. Rice seemed to have trouble handling the ball (as other players have all day--maybe it's the floor or the ball itself), and he wasn't looking for his shot all day.

Yes, Matt Ryan and Doug Flutie were in attendance and Bob Ryan was here to cover the game, but the stars couldn't help the sub-par atmosphere--maybe everyone was just exhausted from a long day of basketball, but it will be bumping tomorrow for the quarterfinals. Goodnight from Atlanta.

Deacons outlast Cavaliers

WakeJake — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 02:19:53 -0000

Wake Forest used a balanced performance to overcome a pesky Virginia squad 70-60 Saturday afternoon in Charlottesville. While it was not a signature performance for the Demon Deacons, any road win in the ACC is huge at this point. Click through for our complete postgame coverage...

While it was not the prettiest victory, Wake Forest needed this one in a bad way. They had not won on the road since the Clemson game on January 17th and needed a win to keep their focus on getting the second or third seed in the ACC tournament.

The Deacs played early well, jumping out to a nine point advantage behind six straight points by junior center Chas McFarland. While it seemed promising early, UVA never let the lead get out of hand and kept it within single digits throughout the game. A couple big dunks by Al-Farouq Aminu that were assisted by Ish Smith and James Johnson helped Wake close out the first half successfully. The second half was more of the same for both teams. Virginia would battle back several times behind some nice shots by Calvin Baker and Mike Scott, but ultimately Jeff Teague's trifecta and McFarland's three-point play closed the game out with around two minutes to play.

This game was different than most Wake games for several different reasons. First, Wake only shot 43.1percent from the field, far worse than their 50 percent average on the season. These problems extended beyond actual game play, as Wake missed 12 of their 30 free throw attempts. Luckily for the Deacons, Virginia only shot 41 percent from the floor and LD Williams once again stepped up big and held Sylven Landesberg to only 10 points on 3-10 shooting.

Also, this game did not feature one big scorer as many of Wake's games do. Aminu, McFarland and Teague all finished with 12 points while Smith and Johnson adding 10 and 8, respectively. Baker and Diane led the Wahoos with 13 and 12. Another big factor in the game was the play of Wake's big men, out-rebounding the Cavs by 14 and allowing only 4 offensive rebounds. Wake will need to continue to crash the boards like this for the remainder of the season if they are going to make some noise in March.

Overall, this game was not pretty by any stretch of the imagination. Poor shooting and a combined 32 turnovers contributed to much frustration on both ends of the court. However, it was nice to see the Deacs grind one out and pick up a big road win on the last day of February on only one day of rest. Unfortunately, it only gets tougher for the Deacons as they head to Maryland on another short turnaround to take on the Terps Tuesday night at nine. This is sure to be a tough game because Maryland is fighting for its tournament life, while Wake is trying to secure a nice seed for both of the post season tournaments. It certainly helps that Clemson dropped another game today against the Seminoles and FSU still has to go to Cameron to take on the Devils. While it would be nice for Wake to get some momentum and beat both Maryland and Clemson next week, it seems that they might only have to win one of those games to get the three-seed.

And just for good measures, here's a little clip of the And One-style performance that is often contributed by James Johnson:

Wake Forest Alley Oop! (via DeaconSports)