The ACC In Review

While next year the ACC will be adding Syracuse, Notre Dame, and Pittsburgh from the Big East, this year was another down year for the conference. The preseason favorite, North Carolina State, failed to live up to the expectations. While Virginia Tech and Maryland, who dominated the non-conference had the wheels come off in conference. Wake Forest and Clemson did what was expected of them, while Georgia Tech and Boston College showed promise. Then there was Miami, who electrified the conference, and brought national attention with them.

Overall, it was a fun year to cover the conference due to the ever change landscape of it. But overall, it was a down year for the ACC. This continues a trend of lackluster seasons for the once billed “best basketball conference in America”. The Big East split and the disappointing tournament for the Mountain West should help the ACC to move up the conference ranks, along with the three additions. This shift in the college landscape couldn’t have come at a better time for the ACC.

Lets look back on some of the teams and see how their seasons went.

Better Than Expected

Miami – Any talk about the ACC this season needs to start with the Canes. The oldest team in the NCAA this season, and they need their experience. The expectations for Miami were to contend for the top 4. After a slow non-conference, along with suspensions and injuries, there was some worry in Coral Gables. But then sophomore point guard Shane Larkin took over the team. Miami cruised to a first place finish in conference, and an ACC Tournament win. They beat Duke and North Carolina by 20 plus, and held off the Tar Heels in the ACC Final. Coach Larranaga was rightfully named the ACC Coach of he Year, but Shane Larkin was robbed of Player of the Year for the conference. The Canes wrapped up a #2 seed in the NCAA Tournament, but unfortunately lost in the Sweet 16 to Marquette.

North Carolina – The Tar Heels finished an odd season with a loss to Kansas in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The non-conference was a strange period for UNC, as they were attempting to find what line-ups worked. They were beat badly by Butler and Texas, but were able to knock off #19 UNLV in the Dean Dome. Conference play started with a loss at Virginia, but a couple of games later the Tar Heels took off. Coach Roy Williams switched to a 4 guard line up, which really showcased James Michael McAdoo along with Reggie Bullock. The Tar Heels went from a probably NIT team to finishing 3rd in the conference, and playing for the ACC title in Greensboro.

Boston College – Don’t be fooled by their 7-11 record in conference. the Eagles were young this season, but they were one of the toughest match-ups for everyone especially in Chestnut Hill. Boston College was on the wrong side of a lot of close contest during the year, and had chances at knocking off some of the bigger teams in conference. They did put together a great 4 game winning streak at the end of the season, and played a close game against Miami in the second round of the ACC Tournament. Just a look back at some of their games in conference show how close they were to possibly finishing at 500. Second game of the conference season was a 5 point loss to #23 North Carolina State, two games later a 3 point loss at Wake Forest, that was followed by a 1 point loss to Miami, then a 5 point loss at Maryland, later came the heart breaking one point loss to Duke, and two games later was a 3 point loss to Florida State. Like I said, they were a young team this year. Everyone is returning, and returning with a lot of experience, watch out for the Eagles next year.

Below Expectations

North Carolina State – The second team behind Miami that always needs to be mentioned in any discussion about the ACC is North Carolina State. The Wolfpack were a preseason top 5 team, they were picked to win the ACC, and they had the projected ACC Player of the Year, C.J. Leslie. Instead, they struggled throughout the year, and wrapped up the season 5th in the ACC. They made a run to the ACC Semi-Finals, before losing to Miami. They still found themselves in the NCAA Tournament, but lost in the first round to Temple. The talk in the preseason was about North Carolina State being back on the map after so many disappointing seasons, instead they failed to reach the loft preseason expectations and are now feeling the backlash of the NBA Draft.

Maryland – The Terps fall into this category because of the sub-500 record and the up and down play. Maryland was picked to finish 6th in the conference, instead they finished 7th and tied with Florida State. It wasn’t a bad season in College Park, but another missed chance at the NCAA Tournament was the final result. There were positives, beating Duke twice and beating North Carolina State, but then there were negatives like being swept by Virginia, North Carolina, and Florida State.

Virginia Tech – Not many knew how the Hokies would be with first year coach James Johnson, but then they started the season 13-0 including a win over Oklahoma State. They were running an up-tempo fast style and scoring at a rapid rate. As excitement built around the new look Hokies, so did the expectations. Once conference play started, many of the flaws were exposed. Beginning with Maryland putting up 94 points in the ACC opener. Virginia Tech struggled with their identity after this. Erick Green had an amazing season, which finished with him receiving ACC Player of the Year Honors. However, he was the only Hokie with a good season, the rest of the team was not able to find any consistency to help Green. Virginia Tech is in a re-building process, and unfortunately the expectations became too high for them to handle during the season.

A Year in Review; The Back Court

As we continue to look at this past season, we shift our attention to the Maryland back court. In general the guard play for Maryland was great, especially towards the end of the year. However, the point guard play for Maryland was non-existent for the most part. College basketball comes down to how good your guards are. Last night featured two of the best back courts in the country playing for the National Championship. Maryland’s lack of a true point guard was the root of most of their downfalls as a team this year. They were turnover prone, and unable to establish their bigs mainly because they didn’t have a true point guard running the offense. Individually, the guards are really good. Dez Wells in particular was a saving grace, it would be tough to imagine this season going the way it did without Dez Wells. Nick Faust continued his improvement from last year, and freshman Seth Allen was much more than expected.

Similarly to the front court, Maryland will be losing two players. Also like the front court, one of the players that is leaving was a light contributor to the team. Maryland is currently only scheduled to add one player to the back court. While Roddy Petters will be a welcomed addition to the team, many (myself included) are concerned about how much he will be able to contribute right away. While Roddy is highly regarded, it is really tough for freshman to come in and adjust right away and be heavy contributors from day 1, not too mention that Roddy is coming off of shoulder surgery.

Logan Aronhalt

Much respect goes out to Logan for coming out to the 6th annual KMF Classic this past Saturday. Has nothing to do with his play on the court, but great to see him active in the University of Maryland community. Plus it was awesome to see him throw down a Dez Wells style dunk.

While many people will remember his miss against North Carolina in the ACC Tournament, Logan was still a good addition to this team. It didn’t cost the team anything to take on Logan Aronhalt for a year. His scholarship didn’t prevent Maryland from taking a highly touted freshman. He didn’t take away any time from the freshman, and he didn’t create a future log jam at the SG position. One year of Logan Aronhalt helped the team, by having a seasoned player and one who could stretch the floor. He did his job well, he was able to knock down many well timed three pointers during the course of the season. He was also able to space the floor and work as a decoy.

Of course, don’t get me wrong, it would have been great if he had come off the screen closer to three point line and knocked a game tying shot vs North Carolina, but I’ll still take his year of production.

Pe’Shon Howard

Yesterday it was announced that Pe’Shon was leaving the University of Maryland to transfer to a school close to home. Many expected this to happen during the year, I didn’t think he would leave given that he only has 1 year left. Regardless, Pe’Shon is leaving, and that leaves a hole in the back court. I thank Pe’Shon for everything he did as a student-athlete at Maryland, he represented the University well, and I wish him luck in the future. It was unfortunate that he spent his sophomore season injured, and never seemed to recover from it.

Pe’Shon’s production won’t be tough to replace. He scored less than 40 points in 18 ACC games. He couldn’t shoot the three well, couldn’t get to the rim, and was just as turnover prone as the other guards. What will be missed though is the body on the court. With only Roddy Peters joining the back court, Maryland is light on bodies , especially ball handlers. While having Pe’Shon on the court meant that Maryland was playing 4 vs 5 on offense, he still had the ability to the get the ball up court and run some offense. Pe’Shon did progress some towards the end of the season, but not enough to make his loss detrimental to the teams future success. He only had one year left, and just getting a ball handler for a year would have helped Coach Turgeon and the staff get additional time to lock up a future PG.

Nick Faust

After struggling throughout most of his freshman year, Nick Faust began to show us how good he can be down the stretch of last year. This year had similar ups and downs, but for the most part Nick had a solid sophomore campaign from beginning to end. At first he seemed to struggle to adjust to life with his new wing mate, Dez Wells, but once he settled he was an overall solid player this year. Nick expanded his all around game. He was a big help on the glass, worked to get teammates involved, and his shooting improved a lot from his freshman year. Yes, Nick does have to improve his free throw shooting, and quickly. But overall he is beginning to round himself out into a strong overall player. In the last 12 games of the season, he only had two games with single digit scoring. Most notably was his game against North Carolina in the ACC Tournament, when he hit 5 three pointers.

If the trend continues, I would expect Nick to have a great Junior season. This season was a strange one for the returning players. It was unexpected what they would be getting from the freshman, and the transfers. Now with the team knowing what one another are capable of, and having a summer to improve with each other, I would expect Nick to make solid progress. Especially since he will be the most veteran player in Coach Turgeon’s system.

Seth Allen

An unfortunate end to a solid freshman year for Seth Allen, with his season ending early due to injury. Seth showed us so much during the year, his crossover in the Kentucky game, the clutch free throws against Duke at home, and all of threes a long the way. Seth Allen was Coach Turgeon’s first commitment when he got to Maryland. Him and assistant coach Scott Spinelli were recruiting Seth while they were at Texas A&M. Once Coach Turgeon got to Maryland, Seth was ready to commit, and what a get he turned out to be. Seth is an unbelievable athlete, with great handles and good feel for the game. A lefty, who I don’t think has seen a shot he didn’t like.

Seth Allen showed great poise as a freshman, there never seemed to be a moment to big for him. He is a combo guard, but tends to play better off the ball. He was thrusted into the Point Guard role during the season, and struggled with it at times. Its not a bad quality to have, but Seth is a leader and at times he wants to be the one to get the team back into a game. What is bad about that, is poor decision making at times with shot selection. But those are things he will learn. You can teach a player how to be a better decision maker, but its tough to teach players to be more aggressive with their shooting.

Seth has a great future ahead of him at Maryland. Just like Jake Layman, he has a lot of tools right now, and its just a matter of fine tuning everything and learning to play the Point Guard position. He blew people away throughout the season, and I expect that to continue for young Seth Allen.

Dez Wells

What more could you say about the transfer from Xavier. At times he was the lone bright spot of an up and down season. On the road, he was unstoppable, and willed the team to either win or to be in a position to win. His game against Duke in the ACC Tournament will be remembered for years to come. Dez has all of the physical tools. He is strong, has court vision, can finish at the rim, and he knows how to use his body to get to the rim.

Dez could use a more consistent shot, but in the ACC Tournament, he was shooting from everywhere on the court. I would say he needs a low post game, but he showed that against Denver in the second round of the NIT. If Dez plays the way he did in the ACC Tournament, then he will be in heavy consideration for ACC Player of the Year.

Too be fair, Dez will need to be a more consistent shooter, despite that three game stretch. He will also need to cut down on the turnovers. I think experience will help him on this, after playing a season with this team and having an off season to work with them, Dez should be on the same page as his teammates now. That should make a big difference in not just his game, but his teammates game as well.

Both the front and back court will have question marks entering next season. While the Point Guard issue will most likely be there the entire season, it should help Maryland out a lot to not be working to incorporate so many new players. There will only be one guard coming in, and everyone else will have a full off-season together. That alone should make a noticeable difference.

A Year In Review; The Front Court

As we look back on the season, lets look at how the players did over the course of the season, and what the future holds for the team. With Maryland missing the NCAA Tournament, there is a lot to be improved upon, but the team is so young that the future does look bright for Maryland basketball.

One of the biggest differences from the final Gary Williams Maryland teams and the first set of Mark Turgeon teams, is the size and depth of the front court. While the end of the Gary Williams era included the double-double machine, Jordan Williams, it did not include much depth in the front court. Landon Milborne was a small forward who was moved to the power forward position, Braxton Dupree and Shane Walker left the program after a year, Berend Wejis was a rail thin shot blocker at best, and then there was the mayor, Dave Neal. Needless to say the front court was not the strong suit of many Maryland teams.

We fast forward to Coach Turgeon’s second season at Maryland and find not just natural front court players, but skilled players. Alex Len, Shaq Cleare, Charles Mitchell, Jake Layman, and James Padgett were all heavy contributors this season in the front court. They all provided something different, and most importantly, they were all able to contribute positively to the team. We know for sure that James Padgett is leaving, and all signs point to Alex Len declaring early for the NBA draft. Despite both of these loses, Coach Turgeon has Michigan transfer Evan Smotrycz and freshman Damonte Dodd coming in to fill the holes.

James Padgett

The Brooklyn native with the quiet personality won’t be remembered more for his play on the court, but for his presence in the locker room. His 5.2 PPG and 3.7 RPG don’t stand out much when compared to his front court teammates. However, Jimmy P was an important member of the team because of his 4 yer experience in the ACC. He was the most experienced ACC player in the line-up and in the locker room, and had played for both Coach Gary Williams and Coach Mark Turgeon. Giving James a low grade on the season is understandable given his light production, but his steady voice in the locker room was something this young team needed. I’m also a sucker for loyalty, and Jimmy showed that by sticking with the program after Coach Williams left.

Alex Len

From the lightest contributing front court player to the most important part of the 2012-2013 Maryland Front Court, Alex Len. Myself, like many others, give Alex a hard time for his struggles at times during the season. But I think it has more to do with us, as fans, wanting to see this team succeed and get back to the NCAA Tournament. The season started with tons of hype about Alex, potential lottery pick, with some suggesting that he could rise to the number 1 overall pick, there was even mention of him contending for the national Player of the Year award. For us outsiders, it seemed crazy to thing about the player that we saw have a tough time adjusting as a freshman to make such a huge leap. But then came his 23 point 12 rebound opening night performance against #3 Kentucky, which made us all believers in the 7’1″ Ukrainian.

As the season went on, we got mixed performances, at times it seemed he was bored with the inferior competition, and at times overwhelmed with bigger situations (ex @ Duke). But then he would go off for 19 points and 9 rebounds while holding Mason Plumlee to 4 points, in Maryland’s home upset of Duke, and we would all be reminded again of what he could do. But even during his slower nights, Alex’s contributions on the defensive end were extremely valuable to the young Terps. His shot blocking, and threat of blocking shots helped Maryland to secure the paint. His rebounding, especially on the offensive end was another added bonus. If Alex does forgo his remaining two years to goto the NBA, everyone on Maryland is going to have to become committed to rebounding , and the guards are going have to keep players in front of them better. It will be tough to replace his presence in the paint right away.

Shaq Cleare

Now, lets get into the players we know for sure will be back next year. First starting with he highest rated player of last years freshman class for Maryland. It is clear that Shaq is still learning basketball, and is learning it at a high level. The ACC may not be the best conference, but every night he is going against top level competition. It is unfair to say that Shaq is disappointing, and it would be even worse to write him off. Unfortunately, our society is all about now, and how players are playing now as opposed to what they can be. Shaq showed solid progression as the season went along. He battled foul trouble early on, but when he was on the court, he showed promise. He is surprisingly much more athletic than I thought he would be, and he also showed the ability to get up and block shots. Everyone knew he was big coming in, but to watch players struggle to move him on offense and defense was great. Not only is he physically big, but he knows how to impose his size. The sky’s the limit for Shaq once he puts everything together. A full off-season to work on his game and to hit the gym should help him a lot. While he did struggle with foul trouble during many games, I think a lot of it had to do with the speed of the game. The tools are there for Shaq, with some time and practice he should hopefully be able to piece everything together and become one of the better post players in college basketball.

Charles Mitchell

Charles aka Stuck like Chuck Mitchell was one of the pleasant surprises for the front court. He was a late addition to the class, and was an under the radar recruit. But he was one of the most productive players in the front court, and an instant fan favorite. He burst on to the scene with 10 rebounds in 16 minutes vs #3 Kentucky, and from there continued an impressive season on the glass. His offense his limited, although at times he showed us some crafty post moves, but his rebounding is impressive. For a freshman, who was a bit over weight when he first got to college, to come in and rebound the way he did was very impressive to see. Chuck has a great motor on the glass, he is tough to box out, and enjoys banging bodies for rebounds. Charles is also a pleasure to watch play because of his emotion. He always looks like he is having a great time on the court, and is always excited when the team is playing well. His emotions get the best of him sometimes, which leads to poor turnovers and bad shots. As he continues to lose some weight and gain muscle, Charles should continue to be a force on the glass for years to come. Once he learns to control his emotion, then he can really be a top Terp. Maryland great, Greivis Vasquez, struggled with the same problem as a sophomore, when his emotionally displays were costly. But as Junior and Senior, his emotion was one of this best attributes. Chuck need to learn how to translate his emotion into positive play, and how to stay in control.

Jake Layman

After a slow start, the Massachusetts native came on big down the stretch for Maryland. Jake was one of the bigger recruiting gets for Coach Turgeon. Highly sought by top programs including Syracuse and Louisville, Jake Layman committed shortly after Maryland beat Miami in Randy Edsall’s first Maryland game. The 6’10” stretch 4 or small forward has the potential to be a match up nightmare for ACC and Big Ten opponents. Like Shaq, he had an up and down freshman year. He went off for 20 points in his first ACC game against Virginia Tech, but then struggled over the next couple of games before scoring 15 against Boston College. Jake was Mr. Everything on his high school team, and you could see that at times he struggled with finding a way to fit into this deep Maryland team. He showed flashes of being an aggressive player who could use his height to get to the rim, he also showed that he has deep range shooting the ball. Like most of Maryland’s players this year, he struggled with consistency. Jake has many of the tools needed for him to succeed at this level, what he and the coaching staff can work on in the offseason, is not only fine tuning his skills, but figuring out how to get him more involved in the offense. Down the stretch when Maryland started pressing more, and even showed the occasionally 1-3-1 zone, Jake played a key role in disrupting the opposing teams offense. His height and athleticism are things that can’t be taught, but figuring out the best way to use it is key for Maryland to have a successful 2013-2014 season.

A Year in Review; A Look Back At The 2012-2013 Maryland Basketball Season

Now that “One Shining Moment” has played, and the nets in Atlanta have been cut, its time to look back on Maryland’s season. I can’t remember following and being a part of a more up and down season as this one. At times this season was a lot of fun, but then it would take a turn for the worse. There were several rock bottom moments, and just as many moments when it looked like a corner had been turned.

I have been battling with the question of whether this season was a disappointment or a step in the right direction. Its easy to take a look back at the preseason expectations and where Maryland finished and say that this season was a disappointment. The team was picked to finish 6th in the ACC, and once Dez Wells was ruled eligible, many had this team pegged as a NCAA Tournament. With how the ACC schedule looked, it felt as if the team could contend for an ACC Title (Miami not having Reggie Johnson for the lone meeting, NC ST struggling early, Duke twice without Ryan Kelly, and UNC looked middle tier at the start of ACC play).

What ended up happening in conference was a string of inconsistent play. Many of the team’s flaws were exposed, and what they did best in non-conference play was no where to be found. Maryland never had a true point guard running the show throughout conference play. A revolving door of players was used, but no one between Pe’Shon Howard, Seth Allen, Nick Faust, and Dez Wells could find themselves comfortably running the point. The inconsistent point guard play had a trickle down effect. It lead to a league leading turnover rate, inability for the team to fully utilize 7’1″ Center Alex Len, and extended scoring droughts.

All was not lost this season though, there were positives to take with us into the off-season. At times in ACC play we saw what this team was capable of, and they looked great. Wins against Duke (twice), North Carolina State, at Alabama, and at Wake Forest showed us promise for a bright future.

Maryland started this season with a lot of question marks. Not all have been answered, but next year will have significantly less. Dez Wells has emerged as the teams go-to scorer and leader, especially on the road. Jake Layman and Seth Allen grew up throughout the year, but both really came on down the stretch. Both show us how good Coach Mark Turgeon an his staff can be on the recruiting trail, and solid building blocks for the future. Front court mates, Charles Mitchell and Shaq Cleare also look to be a strong combination for the future. Once the game slows down for Shaq he could develop himself into one of the top big men in the nation. For now we know for sure that we are getting a wide body big who can defend one on one in the post. As for Charles Mitchell, his ability to rebound was one of the constants throughout the year. Like Shaq, once the game slows down for Charles and he controls his emotions, he can go down in history as one of the top rebounders in Maryland history.

There is still a lot to improve upon for this team and the Maryland basketball program. We all knew that once Coach Gary Williams left, that the next coach would have to do some rebuilding to get Maryland back to a top program. While the results this year weren’t exactly what we wanted as fans, Coach Turgeon has shown us that we are closer than before. The freshman progressed, and look to be one of the best classes Maryland has had in awhile, and the mix of transfers has shown the staff’s ability to always be looking to take advantage of opportunities to improve.

ACC Power Rankings

1) Miami: Is there any question the right now Miami is the best team in the conference? They are the most well balanced team, and they have a killer instinct. Miami can attack inside and outside, in the half court or in transition. They also don’t take their foot off the pedal, instead of giving teams a chance to make a run, they continue to attack.

2) North Carolina State: They hit an odd point, when they lost at Maryland and at Wake Forest. But they found their offense again last night vs UNC. The Wolfpack are still an up and down team, some nights they looks like a top team, and other nights they struggle. This week will tell a lot about them. How do they handle the stout Virginia defense, and can they match the energy of Miami?

3) Duke: Strong bounce back on Saturday beating Maryland. They still have plenty of holes without Ryan Kelly, but on Saturday they were able to get anything they wanted against one of the better defense in the conference. Wednesday night showed how vulnerable Duke can be. Miami brought more energy and was never afraid of them, they left Duke exposed.

4) Virginia: Took care of business this week, in impressive fashion also. Double digit wins at Virginia Tech and home vs Boston College. I’m still not sure how UVa can compete against the top teams in conference, but as long as they take care of business against the bottom teams, they can hang around the top of the conference. Tuesday night will be a big test, luckily they get NCST at home.

5) North Carolina: Tar Heels took care of business against Georgia Tech, but then followed it up by getting out played at NCST. Similar to their game against Butler, where they were out of it the entire way and came back at the end to make it look closer. The next three are winnable, and games that they should take care of business before a tough back to back at Miami and at Duke.

6) Florida State: Tough call to put them here after tonight’s game, but they beat Maryland in College Park, which gives them the edge. Not sure what to make of the Noles. They came back during the week to beat Clemson, but struggled mightily at Miami. They had no answers on defense for the Canes, and on offense couldn’t get anything going. They welcome Maryland then Duke to Tallahassee this week, which will tell us a lot more about them moving forward. I think tonight raised a lot of questions about toughness and the offense.

7) Maryland: The Terps looked to be finding some offense after struggling for a couple of games with scoring. Unfortunately they weren’t able to put together a good defensive effort at Duke. Maryland is one game below 500 right now, and they have two games this week that can get wins and get over the 500 mark. It won’t be easy beating FSU on the road, but with how they looked tonight and after how the game at Maryland went, this one the Terps should take advantage of. They return home to face Wake Forest on Saturday.

8) Wake Forest: Odd to put Wake Forest up so high, but after the came back from double digits to beat NCST, they deserve some credit. Unfortunately they lost by 20 at Georgia Tech to follow it up. We haven’t hit the half way point yet of conference play, and Wake Forest has three wins. They need something to cheer about in Winston-Salem.

9) Clemson: Tigers got a great game today from Milton Jennings who had 28 points and 14 rebounds, and hit 16 free throws to beat Virginia Tech. Clemson needed this home win after giving up a lead and losing to FSU on a buzzer beater earlier in the week. Just like Maryland, Clemson is at 3-4 and the next two are both winnable games that can get them to 4-3. Clemson host Georgia Tech and then goes on the road to Boston College.

10)Georgia Tech: The Yellow Jackets finally got their first win of the ACC season, beating Wake Forest by 20. That gives them a slight edge out of the bottom three teams in my eyes. BC and Virginia Tech had rough weeks. Lets see how Georgia Tech follows up the win vs Wake Forest when they go on the road to face Clemson, before they welcome a possibly surging Virginia team to Atlanta.

11) Boston College: Tough stretch for the Eagles, they just played Miami, Maryland, and Virginia. They were close in the Miami and Maryland games to grabbing upsets. At Virginia they couldn’t hang on in the second half and lost by double digits. Doesn’t get any easier for BC with the Tar Heels coming up to Boston this week.

12) Virginia Tech: Hokies can’t find defense or another scorer besides Erick Green. Despite his 35 points against Virginia, they still lost by double digits and only managed to score 58 points in the game. Today, the game got away from them at the end, they were close with Clemson, but once again, no one could step up to lead the team to victory.

Games To Watch

Tuesday: NCST at Virginia – A battle of contrasting styles, can Virginia get enough offense to match North Carolina State or can they slow them down enough to get a marquee win at home.

Saturday: NCST at Miami – Big week for the Wolfpack, how will they respond in back to back tough games, and how does Miami play now they have the target on their back.

Maryland at Duke Preview

The only thing bigger in College Park then when the Terrapins travel to Durham, is when the Blue Devils make their visit to Maryland. While Duke loves to chant “not our rival” at the Terps, there is still a mutual dislike between both schools. Sure, when Gary Williams left Maryland, it hurt the rivalry, but everything picked right back up when Maryland announced their decision to leave the ACC for the Big Ten. This is the last year of the annual home and home between Duke and Maryland, which means there is more on the line with the teams likely to play just once more next year.

Now if Maryland wants to leave Cameron Indoor with a win, there are three important match-ups and factors that they will need to win.

1) Limit Seth Curry’s open shots – Everyone knows the Curry family for being filled with deadly three point shooters. Seth is currently at 43% from deep. At home, Curry can ignite the crowd and create runs with his shooting. Maryland has improved their three point defense, most notably when they frustrated Scott Wood and prevented him from getting open looks. The combination of Pe’Shon Howard, Dez Wells, and Nick Faust were able to chase Scott Wood off the three point line and force him to become a secondary option instead of a go to scorer. Maryland will need to do that again with Curry. Finding him in transition, and chasing him through double screens will be key for Maryland. When Duke goes to a line up without Plumlee in the game, it will be even more important for Maryland to limit Curry’s involvement in the game.

2) Strong PG play/Limit Turnovers – Duke is one of the more fundamental teams in the conference. They aren’t going to give up too many possessions to turnovers, so it will be important for Maryland not to do the same. At Cameron Indoor, it is even more important to limit turnovers, Duke’s students will feast off of Maryland turnovers that get converted to easy lay ups and open transition threes.

Maryland is young and very inexperienced. They have only played in a handful of road games together. Cameron Indoor is a different type of place then any other road environment Maryland has played in. Point guard be committee isn’t a great situation to be in, but that’s the one the Terps are currently in. Dez, Nick, and Pe will have to do their best to run the offense with ease and set up easy baskets for the rest of the team and themselves.

3) Start each half quickly – In order for Maryland to quiet the crowd and feel more comfortable, they will need to get out to a good start in each half. You can’t win games in the first 5 minutes, but you can play yourself into a hole. When Maryland played North Carolina State, they came out of the gates quickly, and jumped out to a 10-0 lead and forced an early timeout by the Wolfpack. This got the crowd energized and the players pumped. On the flip side, Maryland could barely get the ball over half court at North Carolina, and the Tar Heels made them pay with easy looks that got the crowd and players into the game.

If Maryland gets to halftime with a lead, or within 6 points of the Blue Devils, it will help the players believe that they are capable of winning. Maryland hasn’t had to battle too much for wins, and today will be a battle. Any confidence that they can pick up along the way will go far for this young team. I’m too nervous to give any type of prediction for this game. I feel comfortable that if Maryland can do the above, that they can win. Regardless of what happened in Duke’s last game, they are going to want to beat Maryland badly. Losing to Miami doesn’t give them an extra incentive, they don’t want to call Maryland a rival, but it is a rivalry, and with Maryland heading to the Big Ten, they won’t want the Terps to get the better of them before they leave.

ACC Power Rankings

A little bit later on my power rankings for the second full week of ACC play. Lets get right into everything.

1) North Carolina State – Beating Duke is huge for the Wolfpack, especially at home. They took care of business early on in the week by beating Georgia Tech. This is where they expect themselves to be in conference, now how do they respond?

2) Miami – It was a close call between them and NC ST for the top spot. Miami has looked really strong even without Reggie Johnson. What is most impressive about Miami, which should have the rest of the conference nervous, Miami makes winning plays. They pulled away late at UNC during the week, and when Maryland cut the lead, they didn’t hesitate, and made two back to back buckets to ice the game. They would have overtaken NC ST if they had scored more than 19 in the first half vs Maryland.

3) Duke – Tough break for the Blue Devils to lose Ryan Kelly, and have the lingering injury to Seth Curry. Kelly is such a large part of what makes Duke such a tough match up. At times on Saturday they struggled in finding a goto player to end runs by North Carolina State. It’s tough to lose players in conference because of the short turn around between games, tough to practice the new game plan.

4) Florida State – They lost on Saturday to a desperate North Carolina team, doesn’t excuse it, but they still look like one of the better teams in conference. The defense has been on point since conference play started, most notably was in the comeback at Maryland. Okaro White is coming along as one of the most underrated players in the conference, and Snear is emerging as the player everyone thought in the preseason.

5) Maryland – The offense is struggling right now for the Terps, but they are still one of the better defensive teams in the conference. The collapse vs Florida State was bad, and the lose at Miami was even worse. Maryland is young, and wasn’t tested in the non conference, it was a tough week, but I would expected the Terps to bounce back.

6) North Carolina – The Tar Heels responded to a game they had to win at Florida State to avoid an 0-3 start. They have to week off before they host Maryland on Saturday. It will be interesting to see how they respond after having a long break in conference.

7) Wake Forest – I know, I’m shocked also to see them this high. However, they have put together back to back wins in close games. They came back against Boston College on Saturday and edged Virginia during the week.

8) Virginia – Two bad loses for Virginia after they beat North Carolina to open conference play. Losing to Wake Forest even on the road isn’t a good sign, to then lose by 15 at Clemson is worse. Virginia already struggled on offense, and now they travel to Florida State. That win against North Carolina might have just been the Cavilers catching the Heels at the right time.

9) Clemson – Tigers had to grab a win during the weekend and did so with a big win. Beating Virginia by 15 might be able to give Clemson some momentum. They are currently playing Wake Forest in a winnable game, and then travel to North Carolina State. Crazy things happen in conference, and if Clemson gains some confidence they could catch North Carolina State napping.

10) Boston College – The Eagles put together a good effort against North Carolina State, unfortunately they couldn’t get the win. They bounced back and played Virginia Tech tight, before they pulled away down the stretch. They had a good chance to go on the road Saturday and steal a road win from Wake Forest but they weren’t able and it might cost them later.

11) Virginia Tech – They not only grabbed a win on Saturday, they held an opponent to under 70. A good sign for the Hokies going forward even if it was against Georgia Tech. Next three will tell a lot about them, vs Wake, vs Virginia, at Clemson. These three games that Virginia Tech could win, and they are three teams that struggle to score.

12) Georgia Tech – They only team left in conference without a win. They blew a big opportunity on Saturday when they lost Virginia Tech. Free throws cost the Yellow Jackets down the stretch. For a team that doesn’t score a lot, they can’t leave points at the free throw line.

Maryland’s Starting Lineup

Maryland’s Starting Lineup

In the past few games there have been a couple changes to the Maryland starting five. After Mitchell came down with 14 boards and 19 points in the Delaware State game he earned a spot in the starting lineup over James Padgett. No surprise with this move considering Mitchell’s great play. Jake Layman got the start in the Virginia Tech game over a banged up Nick Faust. The move paid off well as Jake came up with a season high 20 points (18 first half).  Jake’s success in the starting lineup will make a case for him to possibly be a starter in any given game.

When I think of my ideal starting five from the 10 man Maryland rotation I have a hard time coming up with a single answer because the team has so much talent (never a bad thing). Below are a few starting lines ups I see being ideal for the next several games and for the down the road depending on match ups.

Option 1 – 1^st half of ACC schedule: Maryland plays a team with a stronger frontcourt than backcourt.

1 – Pe’Shon Howard

2 – Dez Wells

3 – Jake Layman

4 – Alex Len

5 – Charles Mitchell

Option 2 – 2^nd half of ACC schedule: Maryland plays a team with a stronger frontcourt than backcourt.

1 – Seth Allen

2 – Dez Wells

3 – Jake Layman

4 – Alex Len

5 – Charles Mitchell

Explanation:

When the Terps are going against a team with either good size in the frontcourt or experience they are going to have to counter that with size. Luckily the Terps have plenty of size between Len, Cleare, Padgett and Mitchell. Right now Mitchell is playing better than Cleare and Padgett. I have Layman in this starting lineup over Faust for two reasons. First, Layman brings size inside and out, meaning he can draw some of the larger competition out of the paint opening up some lanes and room for Len/Mitchell. Second, Layman has shown that he can be effective in the starting lineup and I don’t think Turgeon should shy away from using him. I think there will be some mixing and matching for different teams but this lineup (at least the bigs) stays relatively consistent.

The only difference between my early and late ACC play lineup is Seth Allen replaces Pe’Shon Howard. Right now Pe is sporting an impressive assist to turnover ratio but that’s against mediocre talent. Allen, who only averages a few less minutes of playing time, has been less productive in terms of distribution compared to Pe. For the time being offensive production isn’t an issue and the team can afford to keep PeShon in the starting lineup. However If Pe doesn’t start taking open shots he is going to be more of a liability than anything else.

Option 3 – 1^st half of ACC schedule: Maryland plays a team with a strong backcourt than frontcourt.

1 –Pe’Shon Howard

2 – Nick Faust

3 – Dez Wells

4 – Alex Len

5 – Charles Mitchell

Option 4 – 2^nd half of ACC schedule: Maryland plays a team with a strong backcourt than frontcourt.

1 –Seth Allen

2 – Nick Faust

3 – Dez Wells

4 – Alex Len

5 – Charles Mitchell

Explanation:

Faust and Wells both give Maryland good size on the perimeter with good defense against strong guard play. As the season goes on it will be interesting to watch if Jake Layman can improve his defense. If Layman can improve his defense he might start challenging Faust for his spot in this starting lineup. As it stands, each of these lineups would have impressive size and defensive ability against guard play.

The same as my other lineup, the only difference between the early and late part of the season is the exchange of Seth for Pe. Unless Pe can show he can be an offensive threat while limiting turnovers, this change is going to come sooner than later.

While I enjoy thinking about what the starting lineup should be, the reality of the situation is that it doesn’t matter that much with this team. Maryland is 10 deep with little drop off in skill for the backups at any position. Turgeon loves mixing and matching lineups for different games. I look forward to seeing this chess game played out through the remainder of the schedule.

Game Prediction: Maryland 72 Miami 64.

Making Sense Of A Crazy Saturday

Any time an undefeated Duke team goes down it’s a big day in the conference. North Carolina State asserted themselves as a legitimate ACC title contender yesterday. Duke on the other hand is left holding their breath again after another injury, this time to Seth Curry. But lets go over yesterday’s games and find out just how big of an impact it will have on each team, and how I blew my pick for the game.

Never a good sign when a week before you goto Las Vegas, you manage to be wrong on every ACC pick you make for the day. I should probably stay clear of the sports book and avoid betting on Maryland to win the championship.

Duke: No team is going to go through conference play undefeated, it’s not possible with an 18 game schedule and true road games. The bigger question for Duke is just how serious the injury to Seth Curry is. Duke really struggled at times yesterday without Ryan Kelly, which is understandable given how much he means to them. Losing Curry will hurt Duke’s ability to go inside-out.

Why I messed up in taking Duke? Ryan Kelly was out and they were playing one of the top teams in conference on the road, I didn’t realize it at the time, but I put my trust in the hands of Josh Hairston, that wasn’t going to end well.

North Carolina State: It is always important to protect your home court. Beating a rival and the team considered to be the best in the conference goes a long way towards building your confidence. CJ Leslie played one of his best games, and after a slow start on the boards, the Wolfpack turned it around. The frontline of Howell and Leslie were too much for Duke to handle.

North Carolina: The Heels needed this win, and they needed to do it with a team effort. North Carolina was sinking quickly, which makes this an important win for the young Tar Heels. Grabbing a road win to avoid an 0-3 start and over one of the better defensive teams in the conference should give them momentum to build off of.

Florida State: No reason to sell any stock on the Seminoles. However, you never want to drop home games, but Florida State is still a major player in conference. They faced a North Carolina which is better than advertised, and had their backs against the wall. How Florida State responds this week will be very telling of who they are.

Virginia: I was nervous before the season started if Virginia would be able to play great defense over 18 games to make up for their lack of scoring. The North Carolina game was very telling about what Virginia could be. However, in their last two games they haven’t been able to get enough scoring to beat two of the worse teams in the ACC. Virginia needs to find offense, and they need to find it quick, or else they will have a tough time competing with the best teams in conference.

Clemson: The Tigers were just like North Carolina, a team in need of a win to help build confidence and grab momentum. Scoring is still an issue for Clemson, but a win is a win. They protected their home court and now have their first win in conference. They now have a road game against Wake Forest, a winnable game that could get them to 2-2.

Virginia Tech: Defense came through big yesterday. Sure it helps when your opponent shoots 13-21 from the free throw line. Virginia Tech was one of the teams with their back against the wall, and they went on the road to get a win. They finally held someone to under 70 in what feels like forever. Now for the Hokies they need to make sure they play strong defense every night.

Georgia Tech: I’m selling my shares of the Yellow Jackets. I thought they were a strong enough team to contend in the middle of the conference, but they are now 0-3. They are the only team without a win in the ACC. I still think they are a tough out, but right now they can’t quite put together a full 40 minutes of great basketball. They left too many points on the floor with missed free throws yesterday.

Boston College: Hard fought game for the Eagles, they are still very young and have played in two really close games so far in conference. Boston College is building confidence slowly. With how young they are, grabbing a road win in a close game is a lot to ask for. Wake Forest isn’t great, but Boston College still hasn’t learned how to win close games.

Wake Forest: I said it yesterday, and I still can’t believe I’m typing it again. Wake Forest might be able to go on a 4 game winning streak. They now have back to back wins in close games. They protected their home court and came from behind to get themselves to 2-2. The level of competition doesn’t matter when Wake Forest looked like one of the worst teams in the ACC in the preseason.

Maryland at Miami: This is a big game in the conference. It will be really important to see how a young Maryland team responds from losing at home to Florida State. The Terps blew a 12 point lead, and were at one point held without a FG for 6 plus minutes. How Maryland comes out will tell a lot about them. Miami on the other hand, lost Reggie Johnson and hasn’t skipped a beat. They have risen to the challenge of playing without one of their best players and still getting positive results. They were able to close out North Carolina on the road, and blew out Georgia Tech on the road. This win would go a long way in establishing Miami as a team to beat in the ACC.

I can’t make a pick for this game. Even though I’m in a great place to clear my head for this game, I can’t bring myself to remove myself from the game to make a prediction. So I’ll leave you with this picture of beautiful Miami! Go Terps! Fear the Turtle!

ACC Weekend Preview

It’s been a rough couple of days getting over the Terps game from Wednesday. I am still struggling to find the words to describe that game. It was the first time in awhile that I left the stadium feeling disappointed by Maryland.

Luckily, I am currently sitting on a balcony enjoying a beautiful Miami morning. This is one of the few things that could help me get over that Maryland game.

Regardless, this post is supposed to be about the games today, not me attempting to find positives and make sense of Wednesday night. Today features a good slate of games across the board. They do have to go head to head against the NFL Playoffs, but it should make for some fun checking into during commercials.

Duke at North Carolina State – 12:00 ESPN: Not much time to really settle into your day before this game starts. It’s a young season, but this is the biggest game to date, which became even more interesting when Duke lost Ryan Kelly. The Blue Devils don’t go very deep, and don’t have anyone else on the roster who brings what Ryan Kelly did to the table. North Carolina State gains a huge advantage at the 4 spot, with CJ Leslie now getting to go up against PJ Hairston or Amile Jefferson. Lorenzo Brown will have his hands full at both ends with Quinn Cook who is coming off a 23 point game against Clemson.

This game is tough to pick because of the injury to Ryan Kelly, but also how will North Carolina State deal with the pressure. Both on the court and off, Duke will make sure to pressure the ball, as they always do but also to prevent the ball from getting inside to CJ Leslie. If they can force him to catch the ball outside the paint, Duke will have a chance of being able to slow down Leslie and force him to be a passer. On the other hand, North Carolina State hasn’t responded well in high pressure games, is today the day they change that around? Can Scott Wood get enough open looks to extend the defense and free up Leslie?

My Pick: Duke: They are still the team to beat in conference, and Coach K is still the best coach in conference. It will be tough, but if any coach can get their team ready after losing someone to injury, it’s Coach K.

Virginia at Clemson – 12:00 ESPN3: This is the weakest game of the day, Virginia in true fashion, followed up their win against North Carolina by losing at Wake Forest on Wednesday night. Clemson scored 10 points in the first half at Duke on Tuesday. Virginia will look to keep the score low, Clemson will undoubtedly help with their poor shooting. It’s do or die time for Clemson, who could drop to 0-3 with a loss. As for Virginia, a win would get them back on track at 2-1 to stay in the hunt for an upper half of the conference finish.

Clemson struggled on Tuesday with Duke’s guard, primarily Quinn Cook. Granted he was coming off an 0-11 shooting night the game before. Either way, Clemson will have to find a way to slow down Joe Harris if they want to protect LittleJohn. Joe Harris will get his numbers, but most importantly if he is comfortable, then he will be able to execute the Virginia offense and set up high percentage looks for his teammates.

My Pick: Virginia: I have more faith in Coach Bennett getting his team to respond from a road loss than I do with Coach Brownell getting his team to play with urgency.

North Carolina at Florida State – 2:00 ESPN: Duke at NC ST will get most of the headlines, but this game is just as important to the conference race. After pulling out two road wins, the Noles return to Tallahassee to face a now in desperation mode Tar Heels team. Florida State has improved their defense over the past two games, and the win at Maryland should give them the confidence that they can compete with anyone in the conference. What should give them even more confidence heading into this game is the emergence of Okaro White in the post. White has elevated his game since conference play started, most notably on Wednesday with 20 points 9 rebounds and 6 blocks. For the Tar Heels, how will Reggie Bullock respond from an off shooting night against Miami? Bullock has to be a consistent scoring threat for a UNC team who lacks many scoring options.

My Pick: Florida State: Coming home with confidence is key for the Seminoles. The seniors on this team know that they can beat anyone in conference, and the freshman were just a part of them stealing a road win with great defense. Florida State should have everyone bought into Coach Hamilton’s defensive scheme now.

Virginia Tech at Georgia Tech – 2:30 ESPN3: Ok, maybe I was a little too high on the Yellow Jackets at the start of conference play. Saw their games against Illinois and Saint Mary’s and felt confident they could steal a couple of games in conference. Georgia Tech doesn’t have many high volume scorers, but Virginia Tech’s poor defense and small line up can turn anyone into a big time scorer. Daniel Miller is coming off a great game in a loss to North Carolina Sate, so I would look to him to continue his solid play. The Virginia Tech bigs wouldn’t be as difficult as some of the other front lines in conference. Marcus Georges-Hunt is only a freshman, and he will have his hands full trying to slow down the nations leading scorer, Erick Green. Hunt’s numbers haven’t been great, but if he can make Green work for his baskets he will give Georgia Tech a chance to win.

For Virginia Tech, the key will be defense. They are giving up an average of 90 points in conference, and don’t have the type of scoring to match that. Georgia Tech isn’t a high scoring team, but if they are getting easy baskets in transitions and off of poor rotations, then the Hokies will be in an uphill battle to get a much needed win.

My Pick: Georgia Tech: It’s not just about being big on the Jackets at the start of conference play, it’s about believing that to win a game of basketball, you need to play defense. Don’t think Virginia Tech can get enough stops to keep this game within striking distance.

Boston College at Wake Forest – 4:00 ESPN3: A surprisingly good match up now that both teams won on Wednesday night. Boston College has shown a lot of heart so far, they battled North Carolina State to the very end, and then went on the road an put up 84 in a double digit win at Virginia Tech. Wake Forest was able to protect their home court against what looked like a surging Virginia team. By no stretch should you be turning off the NFL Playoffs to catch this game, but it’s one to keep an eye on. Boston College is about to enter a tough stretch of their schedule, and they can’t afford to drop winnable games, with not very many on the schedule. I can’t believe I’m typing this, but Wake Forest can potentially go on a 4 game winning streak. Trust me, I don’t get it either, and it won’t be easy for them. However, they have BC at home before going on the road to Clemson and Virginia Tech. If there was ever a time for Coach Bzdelik to grab some momentum to keep his job, this is the time.

My Pick: Boston College: Typing that last sentence about a Wake Forest 4 game winning streak did me in. I can’t see that happening one bit, better to grab the road team who just put up 84 in their previous road outing.

I’m going to do my best to keep up with the games, however can you really expect me to while this is my current view?