Duke vs. Wake - tonight 7pm

Duke and Wake tip tonight at 7pm at Lawrence Joel Memorial Coliseum in a great battle that will feature two of the best three teams in the league. Duke comes in ranked number one in the country and winners of ten games in a row. Wake will start tonight as the number four team in the land, also with only one loss but that coming in their last game against Virginia Tech on their home floor.

My take:

This should be a great game. Wake will come out and be very passionate after losing their last game, also the first game in which they had been ranked number one. Look for them to probably jump on Duke early and build an early lead. Wake has some extremely talented, alebit young, guys and can play with anyone in the nation on a given night. Wake will be eager to knock the team off that has taken the ranking that they held just a week before. Jeff Teague has been the star for the Demon Deacons with some huge games and leading them to a number of victories almost single-handedly at times. Wake could potentially give Duke a fit with their size. Duke has a better post presence this year but they do not have the number of bodies that Wake can put onto the court. Foul trouble could be an issue for the Devils.

With all that said, Duke never seems to come unprepared to any contest. I personally believe that this Duke team is much, much better than their team a year ago that lacked post presence and flamed out in late February and early March. Zoubek, Thomas, and even Plumlee in spurts have given Duke at least a decent post presence this year and have allowed all-ACC candidate Kyle Singler to really move around and showcase his total game. Henderson has been lights out for the Devils in conference play and there is no reason to think that it will not continue tonight. He is super athletic and it is hard to find someone that can lock him down completely because of his ability to score in a variety of ways. Nolan Smith has also allowed Duke to put unbelievable pressure on the ball and be probably the best or at least one of the best two or three defensive teams in the country. They will need it tonight as they go against a fast-paced, high scoring offense in Wake Forest that has a ton of guys that can put the ball in the basket.

I tend to lean toward Wake in this game as far as a prediction goes. They are going to be in front of a raucous home crowd, and have not played in a week since their loss. This is a point that I don't think is being talked about enough. They will have had one week to stew over their first loss, and a week to prepare mentally and physically for Duke. They are also a great team regardless of all of the other factors. This will be an extremely close game throughout. If Wake comes out and turns the ball over a ton under Duke's pressure, something that has been a problem for them at times this year, Duke will leave with a win. But I see Wake playing extremely spirited and trying to make a statement in this game that they are for real this year. It will be around a four point game with a minute or so to go and Duke will be forced to foul.

Final score:

Wake Forest 78 Duke 72

Back from Christmas and New Year - ACC Bowls over

Sorry there have not been many posts recently (a little before Christmas). I will be back to posting more regularly now throughout the basketball season. I want to wrap up my thoughts on the ACC bowl season to finish off the 2008-2009 football season.



Wake Forest beat Navy 29-19 to take revenge from their regular season loss. It was not always pretty for the Deacons this year, but going 8-5 at Wake and considering it a small disappointment shows how great of a job Jim Grobe has done. On a small side note, Rich Belton scored on a 35 yard TD run to ice the game in his last game as a senior. Just wanted to send him a small congrats b/c I played AAU basketball with him growing up and was happy to see him score a TD in his last game at Wake. Player of the game: Riley Skinner, QB Wake: did not throw an incompletion and went 11-11 for 166 yards and a TD. (ACC 1-0)



West Virginia edged UNC 31-30 in the Meineke Car Care Bowl in Charlotte. UNC led entering the fourth quarter for the twelfth time this season but could not hold on as Pat White had a career day throwing the ball against the UNC secondary. UNC finishes the year at 8-5 which is improvement but left some UNC fans questioning some late game play calling as they let four fourth quarter leads slip away this year. Hakeem Nicks turned in an outstanding ball game, catching 8 balls for 217 yards and 3TD's. He has now entered the NFL draft and will not be back at UNC next year. (ACC 1-1)



Florida State bloodied Wisconsin 42-13 to win the Champs Sports Bowl and perhaps catapault them toward a potentially great season next year. FSU started a little slowly but turned it on after halftime and made a statement in this game. They will be my preseason favorite to win the ACC next year with so much returning from this team that finished 9-4 and saw steady QB for the first time really this decade with soph. Christian Ponder. If their running game continues to develop along with the o-line FSU could be really good next year. (ACC 2-1)



California beat Miami 24-17 in the Emerald Bowl. Miami was in the game the whole way but Cal had Jahvid Best and he proved to be too much for the Canes D, rushing for 186 yards and 2 scores. Miami played Jacory Harris at QB the whole way in this one as Robert Marve was suspended and has since transferred from the program. Harris played fairly well and should give UM fans something to get excited about for next season. Miami finished 7-6. (ACC 2-2)



Rutgers came back in the second half to beat N.C. State 29-23 in the papajohns.com bowl. State was in control of the game for the entire first half behind the continued excellent play of redshirt freshman QB Russell Wilson but he was injured on the next to last play of the first half and did not return. State did not have any chance from that point because the QB's behind Russell are not capable of leading the offense. If Wilson had not been injured I think NCSU would have won this game. Never the less, Rutgers did play well and deserved the victory. State finished 6-7 on the year. (ACC 2-3).



Maryland beat Nevada 42-35 to win the Humanitarian Bowl. This was a high scoring game with neither defense playing very well. Maryland got a big effort from running back Da'rel Scott, who gained 174 yards and two scores. This is even more impressive when considering that he did not play until midway through the third quarter because he was benched by Coach Friedgen for breaking curfew. Maryland finished 8-5 on the year (ACC 3-3)

Vanderbilt upset Boston College 16-14 in the Music City Bowl, making BC the most disappointing team for the ACC this bowl season. An ACC division champ could not pull out a win against a mediocre SEC team that sputtered down the stretch. While most ACC teams are looking forward to next season with very few teams thinking they will be worse than this year, BC may be the exception. They are losing their head coach with the firing of Coach Jagodzinski because he interviewed with the Jets (more to come on that later) and don't return as much as other teams in the conference do. BC finished 9-5 on the year. (ACC 3-4)

LSU pummeled Georgia Tech 38-3 to win the Chick-Fil-A bowl. GT was overmatched athletically and their rushing attack could never fully get going as LSU's solid front seven controlled the line of scrimmage. Georgia Tech fans have to be excited however at the direction their program is taking under Paul Johnson and GT should be one of the ACC's most consistent and best teams under Johnson. GT finished the year at 9-4. (ACC 3-5)

Clemson let another fourth quarter lead slip away, losing to Nebraska 26-21 in the Gator Bowl. Clemson had an 11 point lead in the second half before two touchdown passes by Joe Ganz brought the Cornhuskers back. Clemson continued to show the same problems that they had all year (lack of QB play, which was a big surprise with Cullen Harper returning) and came up short. Dabo Swinney has much work to do this offseason to change the culture of Clemson football from someone who expects something to go wrong to a team that knows they are going to do things right. Clemson finished 7-6 on the year. (ACC 3-6)

Virginia Tech beat Cincinnatti 20-7 to win the Orange Bowl and end the ACC's eight game losing streak in BCS bowl games. VT was led by their defense and freshman HB Darren Evans. Evans looks as if he will be one of the ACC's best backs in the coming years. VT should be very good next year with the return of most of their offense along with Bud Foster. As long as he is in Blacksburg and not taking a head coaching job somewhere else, VT will have great defenses. Virginia Tech finished the year at 10-4 and Frank Beamer called this one of his most rewarding seasons. (ACC 4-6)

The ACC finished under .500 as a conference in this bowl season but did win their BCS game and probably would have been 5-5 had Russell Wilson been able to play in the second half for N.C. State. The ACC looks to have plenty of teams that are improving and should continue to get better and more competitive as a league. Every team in the conference looks as though they are committed to winning in football and that will certainly make for a better, more competitive league.

Early 2009-2010 predictions:

Division winners: Florida State and Virginia Tech
Team to watch: North Carolina State
Bold prediction: Duke makes a bowl game under second year coach David Cutcliffe
Player of the year: Russell Wilson, NCSU
Coach of the year: David Cutcliffe, Duke

Bowl Game Number One - Wake Forest vs. Navy

The first bowl game featuring an ACC team this year happens to also be the first bowl game of the postseason.  The newly created EagleBank Bowl kicks off the bowl season Saturday at 11:00 AM and features Wake Forest vs. Navy.  This is a re-match from the regular season for the two teams with Navy upsetting the Demon Deacons in Winston-Salem in their first meeting 24-17.

Strictly by the numbers:

Total offense:  Wake - 300.3 ypg (103rd nationally), Navy - 361.7 ypg (59th nationally)

   

Passing offense:  Wake - 188.7 ypg (84th nationally), Navy - 63.3 ypg (119th nationally)

       

Rushing offense:  Wake - 111.6 ypg (101st nationally), Navy  - 298.3 ypg (1st nationally)

Total Defense:  Wake - 300.3 ypg (19th nationally), Navy - 341.8 ypg (51st nationally)

Passing defense:  Wake - 184.3 ypg (28th nationally), Navy - 215.7 ypg (77th nationally)

Rushing defense:  Wake - 116.1 ypg (21st nationally), Navy - 126.2 ypg (29th nationally)

Game Outlook:

This should be a pretty entertaining game.  Wake Forest has had a lot of great individual efforts this year (Aaron Curry and Alphonso Smith) but could not come together as a great "team".  Wake played many more young guys than they did in previous years due to injury and attrition and therefore were not as fundamentally sound as usual. Riley Skinner was good, but not quite as accurate as last year due to facing much more pressure this year behind a young o-line.  

Navy is its usual self.  Many expected a drop off this year in wins due to Paul Johnson leaving the Midshipmen and taking over at Georgia Tech.  However, first year coach Ken Niumatalolo did a great job and led the team to an 8-4 record, including the win over Wake Forest.  He had spent his previous six seasons at Navy as assistant head coach and offensive line coach.  They led the nation in rushing again.

Prediction:  It is just hard, especially when the teams are pretty evenly matched, to beat a team twice in one season.  Wake will be looking to build momentum for next year and seniors Curry and Smith will not want to go out losers.  I say Wake gets revenge and wins the first bowl game of 2008-2009 by 10, 27-17.  

Sunday Game Recaps

Boston College 67 USC Upstate 55

• A rather sluggish performance from BC but a win none the less. BC was led by Tyler Roche off the bench, who scored 17 points in 17 minutes of action. BC had three other players reach double figures but suprisingly one of them was not all-ACC guard Tyrese Rice. He did not score and only took four shots from the floor. The win puts Boston College at 8-2 on the year through their first ten games.

Wake Forest 66 Wright State 53

• Like BC, Wake probably did not get the performance they were looking for but did win by 13 over the now 2-7 Raiders. The Deacs were led by reserve guard Harvey Hale with 17 points. L.D. Williams and Jeff Teague chipped in 11 and 10 respectively for Wake. Wake did shoot 7-13 from three point range in one bright spot in an otherwise lackluster effort.

#25 Miami 70 Robert Morris 62

• In what was a common theme for the ACC on Sunday, the Hurricanes did not have the kind of night Coach Frank Haith was probably looking for. All-ACC and all-American candidate Jack McClinton turned in a solid offensive night for the Hurricanes, bailing them out on more than one occasion. McClinton scored 24, including 3-7 from three and 9-10 from the foul line. Dwayne Collins(11), James Dews (11), and Lance Hurdle(10) also reached double figures for the Canes. Robert Morris was as close as two at the 6:00 mark of the second half, scoring to make it 57-55, but they would get no closer.

Virginia Tech 79 Longwood 57

• The Hokies were probably the only ACC team to turn in a decent performance on Sunday, easily beating Longwood. The Hokies were led by A.D. Vassallo, who scored 21 and went 3-4 from deep. The win improves VT to 6-4 on the season.

Georgia Tech 60 Illinois-Chicago 66

• The Flames upset the Yellow Jackets, ruining the perfect weekend for ACC hoops and also ruining my prediction of an undefeated weekend for the ACC. GT never could get anything going, shooting 42.1% from the floor and 50% (6-12) from the foul line as a team. Scott VanderMeer led the upset-minded Flames with 19. Georgia Tech led by two at the half, 32-30, but just were not focused today and took the loss from the Horizon league opponent.

Friday & Saturday game Recaps

Miami downs Florida International 76 -50

• Miami came away with an easy win Friday night, downing the Golden Panthers. Miami was led by James Dews with 15 points while all-ACC guard Jack McClinton chipped in 12. Miami also turned in a solid defensive effort, allowing only one Panther player to reach double figures.

Maryland handles Deleware State 86-58

• Maryland went on a 12-0 run midway through the first half to key their rout of DSU Friday night. Maryland was led by Landon Milbourne with 23 points and 7 boards. Maryland had three other players reach double figures with Hayes, Vasquez, and Bowie scoring 12, 16, and 12 respectively. Vasquez also tallied 8 boards and 7 assists. DSU was paced by Kris Douse, who came off the bench to score 14 points in 22 minutes of action.

Florida State survives a scare, beats Georgia State 62-57

• FSU got 23 points from Toney Douglas to outlast Georgia State Saturday. Douglas was 7-13 from the floor and 3-5 from three. Normally the best free throw shooting team in the ACC, the Seminoles struggled slightly on this night, only shooting 68.4% as a team. GSU got a great effort from junior guard Trae Goldston, who scored 24, 12 of which came from 4 3-pointers.

NC State crusies past Winston Salem State 74-46

• NC State won easily while playing in historic Reynolds Coliseum. They were led by Ben McCauley with 14 points and 9 boards.

Clemson wins easily, 90-63, over South Carolina State

• Clemson loafed past SCS, getting 19 points from K.C. Rivers and 18 from Trevor Booker. A bright spot to note for the Tigers was their free throw effort. Typically woeful from the line, Clemson shot 73.7% in this one going 14-19.

UNC scores early, often in beating Oral Roberts 100-84

• One of the nations highest scoring teams kept it rolling Saturday, topping the 100 point mark for the fourth time this year. The formidable duo of Hansbrough and Thompson shined again, combining for 48 points and 17 boards. Coach Roy Williams was probably not thrilled with the defensive effort however, as 4 players reached double figures for the Golden Eagles led by Robert Jarvis with 26.

ACC Bball Standings - 12/12/2008

Team W L Conf. W Conf. L
Clemson 9 0 0 0
North Carolina 8 0 0 0
Wake Forest 8 0 0 0
Duke 8 1 0 0
Florida State 8 1 0 0
Georgia Tech 5 1 0 0
North Carolina State 4 1 0 0
Boston College 7 2 0 0
Maryland 6 2 0 0
Miami (FL) 5 2 0 0
Virginia Tech 5 4 0 0
Virginia 3 3 0 0

This weeks remaining games:
12/12/08: #25 Miami vs. Florida International, 7:30 PM
Maryland vs. Deleware State, 8:00 PM
12/13/08: North Carolina State vs. Winston Salem, 2:00 PM
Clemson vs. South Carolina State, 2:00 PM
Florida State vs. Georgia State, 4:00 PM
#1 North Carolina vs. Oral Roberts, 6:00 PM, ESPN2
12/14/08: Boston College vs. USC Upstate, 1:00 PM
#25 Miami vs. Robert Morris, 1:00 PM
Georgia Tech vs. Illinois-Chicago, 2:00 PM
Virginia Tech vs. Longwood, 2:00 PM
#11 Wake Forest vs. Wright State, 4:00 PM

My Picks: ACC should have an undefeated weekend in college hoops.

Trying this out

I have a ton of free time in the mornings and love following ACC sports (primarily football and basketball) so I thought I would give this blogging thing a try. I will write my opinions on teams, games, players, and anything else in ACC sports.

I also will try, once a week, to update ACC standings in football and college basketball as well as any recruiting updates for any of the schools. I enjoy looking at this stuff and that way, for those of you that stumble upon the blog, you won't have to go to a hundred different websites to get this information. I will post it all for you right here.

Feel free to comment on any postings and hopefully enjoy!

As the bowl games approach, I will give my opinion on each game involving an ACC team. First up will be the EagleBank Bowl featuring Wake Forest versus Navy.