Round one done - round 2 Saturday and Sunday

The NCAA tournament wrapped up round one Friday night with some exciting, overtime contests. The ACC has mixed results in round one, which surprised me as I thought the ACC was strong this year and would have lots of teams be able to make runs in the tournament.

UNC - easy win over Radford. Lawson didn't play and didn't need to as UNC just overmatched Radford with talent. UNC next plays LSU. LSU's athleticism could be a small concern for the Tar Heels but I saw nothing out of LSU that will really threaten Carolina. Whether Lawson is able to play or not, I see UNC going away in the second half by around 15 or so.

Duke - solid win over Binghamton in round one. Duke played very well defensively and got good contributions from Lance Thomas and Nolan Smith to add to the offense. Duke faces Texas in round two on Saturday. This gave could be a scary one for Duke if Abrams is hot and Texas can establish Pittman down low. I pick Duke to make their first sweet 16 in three years, but the game could be a close one. Duke by 9.

Wake Forest - pitiful. Only word that comes to mind. Did not look all that interested, offense was pitifully designed and had no flow whatsoever. Cleveland State simply killed Wake Forest. For the ACC's third best team, this was a pathetic performance. I have to question Dino Gaudio's coaching this season. Wake had some good wins (Duke and UNC at home) but some really bad losses and it doesn't seem to me that Gaudio got that much out of this team considering the overall talent level. The jury is definitely still out on Gaudio as a head coach.

Florida State - tough loss for the Seminoles in round one to the 12 seed Wisconsin in overtime. Douglas tried to carry this team but he wasn't enough by himself as the Noles let a lead slip away. Wisconsin was a tough match-up in round one for Florida State but they still should have won this game. Again, I question Leonard Hamilton as a head coach. Too many teams in the ACC lose too many close games or play way below talent level too often. While FSU's season ends on a rough note, overall this season was at least a small success for their program.

Clemson - pitiful. One of the worst performances I have seen from a talented basketball team in a long time. Another late season swoon for the Tigers and Oliver Purnell must be questioned at least a little bit. Clemson has more talent than a seven seed, and definitely more talent than a Michigan team that some thought were on the bubble. Tiger fans must be disgusted.

Boston College - another loss for the ACC in round one. While BC losing to USC is not that bad considering that it is a 7-10 match-up, the way they lost was a little more disheartening. A seventeen point loss is never good when you are the higher seed. Skinner did a great job with this team overall for the year getting the most out of this roster.

Maryland - great win for Maryland as the 10 seed beating seventh seeded California. Vasquez had another stellar game for the Terps. Maryland was also able to defend well, as Cal has a few guys who can fill it up from the perimeter. Maryland was a bright spot for the ACC in round one in an otherwise bleak start to the tournament for the conference as a whole. Unfortunately for Maryland, Memphis awaits in round two. This will be a tough game and difficult to win as Memphis will beat Maryland up on the boards. Nevertheless, this season has to be considered one of Gary Williams' best coaching jobs, getting this roster to the NCAA tournament and winning a game.

The ACC went 3-4 in round one, which is really bad considering many considered the ACC to be very strong this year and the number two conference behind the Big East. Duke and UNC really need to make deep runs to give the conference some credibility nationally. Other conferences, such as the Big XII and Big Televen had much better starts to the tournament, as well as the Big East. I thought many ACC teams would fare much better.

What I have noticed so far in this tournament is that for as good as the ACC basketball tradition is, there are really a number of average or below average coaches in this league. After Krzyzewski, Roy Williams, and Gary Williams the line-up of head coaches in this conference is not good. Leonard Hamilton, until this year, was the longest tenured coach at a program to not take his team to the tournament. Oliver Purnell always seems to do less with more. Al Skinner I consider to be a decent coach. Paul Hewitt might get fired. Dave Leitao did get fired. Seth Greenberg always seems to be close but VT loses SO MANY close games down the stretch it makes me wonder about him. Dino Gaudio, to be blunt, did an awful job with Wake I thought. That team is loaded with talent but they don't defend, their offense looks awful, and they don't play with a ton of heart. Sidney Lowe has done nothing at NCSU. Frank Haith is average but doesn't scream good coach at me ever. I mean does this series of names scare anyone? Purnell, Gaudio, Lowe, Leitao, Hewitt, Greenberg, Haith, and Hamilton?

Some of these programs need to take looks at their head guys. The ACC used to be the best conference in the country for hoops year in and year out but we have sadly dropped. The record in the tournament as a conference fleshes that out. Going back the last two years and round one this year, as a conference we are 22-19. That is average. Duke and UNC are great and can carry a conference, but as a whole this teams need to do better in the tournament and nationally throughout the year in order to regain some credibility and I am not sure that all of these coaches are the best for accomplishing this goal.