Two questions I’ve been pondering the entire season and a couple of gigantic match-ups in the ACC provided me the answers to both.
Is the ACC (which has sent a record nine teams to the NCAA’s the past two seasons) the best league in the country once again? After watching two Top 10 clashes between Duke-Virginia and Virginia-North Carolina over a three day period, this would have to be a Marv Albert, “Yes, and it counts.” Both games were played at a Final Four level and all three teams are good enough to win it all. Three other ACC teams — Louisville, Florida State, and Virginia Tech — are ranked in the Top 25.
Second question: can anybody beat the No. 2 ranked Duke Blue Devils when they are shooting the ball accurately from the three-point line? A definitive no to this one after watching Duke’s Saturday night air raid over Charlottesville and destruction of No. 4 ranked Virginia. Duke entered the game at the bottom of the ACC in 3-point shooting at 29% but made 13-of-21 from the arc in an impressive 71-61 road win over the Wahoos.
With the way Duke was shooting, Virginia was in trouble from the jump ball. The Blue Devils made their first six three-pointers on the way to an early 10 point lead. Freshman sensation RJ Barrett, known for an electrifying slashing game that is rivaled only nationally by his rookie teammate Zion Williamson, made his first 5 treys on his way to a game-high 25 points. Virginia probably had a pretty good idea which way this game was going when Duke’s best shooter, freshman Cam Reddish, banked in his first 3-point attempt midway through the first half.
Meanwhile, Williamson’s stat line was a feast for a glutton, with 18 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals, and 3 blocks. His final block might have been the best close out of the season. Looked like Williamson was bouncing off a trampoline when he extended into the air to block De’Andre Hunter’s corner 3 in the second half.
With all the ESPN highlights the Blue Devils have provided on the offensive end, it’s easy to overlook their defense. But Duke is absolutely an elite defensive team, and when freshman point guard Tre Jones (who missed the first meeting against Virginia) is leading the charge with his ball pressure, the Blue Devils are a nightmare to play against. Duke has the rare distinction of leading the country in steals and blocked shots. I have to confess I was stumped by Google, trying to find out if this has ever been done before, but I would be surprised if it has.
On a night when Duke’s defense was causing Virginia all kinds of problems, who would have imagined the Blue Devils shooting nearly 62% percent from the arc against a team has the best 3-point percentage defense in the country. But this did not happen by accident. After the Wahoos’ two-point loss at Duke two weeks before, Virginia Coach Tony Bennett decided to pack his Pack-Line defense in even more and challenge the Blue Devils to make 3’s. Duke had gotten to the basket at will in its earlier victory over the Wahoos, and considering the Blue Devils’ shooting percentage entering the game, Bennett’s choice looked like a wise one.
For any team that hopes to beat Duke (college basketball’s best at attacking the basket ) when it’s shooting 3’s accurately, consider it a fantasy.
Meanwhile, let’s give Virginia credit for the grit it showed bouncing back for a 69-61 win on the road against No. 8 ranked North Carolina two days later. The Tar Heels came into the game riding a seven-game winning streak. Virginia held off a strong North Carolina surge that saw the Tar Heels turn a seven-point halftime deficit into a seven-point lead with 8:58 remaining. North Carolina’s 6-5 freshman point guard Coby White (who might have the best hair in the country) has quietly emerged as a star and finished with a team-high 17 points. For the first 12 minutes of the second half, the Tar Heels looked like a team that could win a national championship. Then White, along with his teammates, struggled to find good shots against Virginia’s elite defense. The Wahoos’ Kyle Guy, who scored a game-high 20 points along with teammate Hunter, drained back-to-back 3’s that put the game away in the final 1:30.
All of which now puts us in a place where the ACC regular season title is up for grabs. A North Carolina win over Virginia would have put Duke, 9-1 in the ACC, in position to win its first outright regular-season title since 2006. It’s hard to believe that Hall of Fame Coach Mike Krzyzewski has gone that long without winning one. Now the Blue Devils are just a half of game ahead of Virginia and North Carolina, both 9-2. Duke still must play North Carolina twice and also has road games at Louisville, Virginia Tech, and Syracuse, which handed the Blue Devils their only league loss. With Virginia having an easier schedule, the Wahoos still legitimately have a chance to win their fourth ACC regular season title in the last six seasons. And don’t count North Carolina out either, as aside from the home and away with Duke, probably the Tar Heels’ toughest game is a road contest at Clemson.
Not that any night playing in the ACC is easy. The league is surely top heavy with Duke, Virginia and North Carolina, as no other conference in the country has three teams in the Top 10. But the ACC also has five other teams — Syracuse, Virginia Tech, North Carolina State, Florida State, and Louisville — with 17 or more wins. With Clemson having won its last five games to push its record to 15-8, the ACC could have a record nine teams in the NCAA’s for a third consecutive season. Seems like bragging rights for the claim as college basketball’s best conference runs through Tobacco Road these days.
Great stuff Jim…please keep it coming…always a great read!!!