My best thoughts on the world of hoops today:
- To me, Kansas showed that they're probably the best team in the country right now. One week after #1 Texas couldn't win in the Octogon of Doom, the Jayhawks went on the road against a highly motivated and very good Kansas State team, took their best shot, and won in OT in gutsy fashion. Kansas can go inside with Cole Aldrich and outside with Sharron Collins, and then they can throw Xavier Henry, Tyshawn Taylor, and the Morris twins around on the wing. They just have so many ways to hurt you. For me, that's enough to make them my #1 team in the country right now.
- That said, there's no doubting Kentucky's ceiling. They, too, showed today just how good they can be, dismantling Vanderbilt- albeit at home- with a double-digit win. John Wall is easily the most dynamic player in the country, and when he's running and DeMarcus Cousins is trying as hard as he can, the Wildcats are probably the team with the most potential. I think I'd take Kansas in a best-of-7 series, but I'd take Kentucky's best effort over anyone. As much as me and my secret Calipari hate don't want to say it.
- Syracuse, on the other hand, I do not know what to make of. The Orange look nearly unbeatable at times, and then there are times when they fall behind to a 1-8 DePaul team by 18 before snapping out of it and winning by 2. The thing that worries me about the 'Cuse is that I'm not sure they have a true go-to guy at this point, which is absolutely what you need to have come March. Kentucky, Kansas, even Texas with Damian James, Michigan State, West Virginia- they all have that one guy who they can go to for a big bucket when they need to stop a run. I don't know if Wesley Johnson is ready to be that guy, but I also didn't see the game today. Maybe when they fell behind DePaul by that much, they went to Johnson and he pulled them out of it. I truly do not know. But I do know that either way doing that against DePaul isn't THAT impressive.
- Bob Huggins CANNOT be serious with his windsuit.
- As much as I like to watch Duke lose, this was not a good game for the ACC. The conference most likely won't have any teams left in the top 10, and we had our flagship school get pounded by the 4th-ranked team from the Big East. Watching the Blue Devils today was the same as it's been for the past 5 years- they're just a step too slow to contend with teams that have more elite talent. Chris Wright and Greg Monroe got whatever they wanted when they wanted it offensively. If you don't believe me, look at the numbers- those 2 plus Austin Freeman went 23 for 31 from the field. Coach K's signature has long been tight man-to-man defense, but it seems like the past several years they just haven't had the personnel to execute it, and today they certainly didn't. Now, that said, there's plenty of time for Duke to turn it around, and this is only one game. So they might prove me wrong. But today that's sure what it looked like.
- In related information, how can Obama and Joe Biden be in the same place at the same time? Isn't that against some rule?
- Charlotte is 6-1 in the A-10 and beat Temple this week. There we go 49ers!
- Looking ahead, big game tomorrow night for the Heels. I thought North Carolina did a lot of good against NC State, but they need to prove to themselves and to the rest of the conference that they can play like that for 2 games in a row. Plus, a win would get them to .500 in conference play, which I think would be huge for their confidence, which has sagged a little bit during the 3-game losing streak. I think a sneaky big key going forward for Carolina will be the play of Dexter Strickland. He's the best on the team by far at creating easy offense in transition, and playing offense just gets easier when you're getting some points off layups instead of grinding for them in the halfcourt. Watch for that tomorrow night, in addition to watching whether or not Tony Bennett can keep this game ugly enough to win it 62-60 in Chapel Hill. We'll see what happens.
- Another game I'll be watching tomorrow: Maryland at Clemson. If the Terps can win in Littlejohn, I'll start to believe that they can contend for the ACC regular season title. Clemson may be inconsistent, but they're tough at home, and Maryland doesn't have many other impressive wins on their schedule. This would be a start.
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Leadership
Found brings up an interesting point about this year's Heels basketball team, and I think it's a great one. I try to stay away from message boards and the like as much as possible, but when I do occasionally succumb to the temptation, I've noticed that a lot of people are calling out Larry Drew as the main problem with this year's team. And when I read this, I can't help but thinking that these people are watching different games from me.
Don't get me wrong- Larry Drew is certainly not an elite point guard on the level of Ty Lawson or Raymond Felton. But that's okay. The thing is, he's been at least as good as I expected this season- I never thought that he was going to be great. I do think he is going to be good, and if you take out a few games there's a solid argument that he has been good this season. Carolina fans are unbelievably spoiled (one of the main reasons there are so many ABCers out there) and think that every PG that walks through the door has to live up to the likes of those 2 guys. They're not going to, and we need to all be okay with that. Has Drew struggled the last two games? Sure. But he's also had several solid games this season, and at times he has been by far the most controlled player on the court.
As Found said, the biggest surprise for me with this year's team, and the main reason why I think they're struggling so much, has been the play of the guys I expected the most from. Marcus Ginyard and Deon Thompson, the two senior leaders who have started for Final Four teams, have been disappointing so far. Neither has stepped up to the level that they need to if this team is going to contend for a conference title and second-weekend birth in the NCAAs. To some extent, too, you could throw Ed Davis in that mix as well- he's been solid for sure, but in the two losses to Clemson and Georgia Tech he has been an afterthought on offense. Again, that sounds like the same thing I said about Drew, but Ed Davis is supposed to be an elite player- he's our "star." And he just hasn't played like it.
All of this leads me to another thought- leadership. It seems like as a Carolina fan I've heard that word a lot over the past 3 years. Any time a Carolina team is struggling (including last season following that 0-2 conference start), it seems like everyone wants to talk about how there's not enough leadership. What does that even mean? It's hard for us as fans to comment on whether or not there is enough vocal leadership in the locker room of any team. So I think I'm going to stay away from that. However, I will say that this team is missing that one (or two) guy(s) who, when the game is going south quickly, can get the ball in his hands and stop the bleeding. Hansbrough, clearly, was that guy. Also, toward the second half of last season, Lawson was that guy. This year's team has no one like that. Maybe that is leadership, I don't know. But I thought that Ginyard, Davis, or Thompson could be that guy. When Clemson starts pressing and they open up an 8-point lead, I want Deon or Ed Davis to post up and call for the ball, get it, and then power a move to the basket for 2 to stop the momentum. Great teams have that guy who can do that. This team doesn't. And maybe that's okay. You know, this team is very inexperienced and maybe they'll struggle. Realistically, that's fine. But I just think that this type of problem points to what Found said, that the struggles of this team have much more to do with guys like Ed Davis and Deon Thompson than with Larry Drew or Dexter Strickland.
Which leads me to tonight. Wake Forest comes to the Dean Dome. Clearly, this is an important game to me personally as a student at Wake for medical school, but it's an important game for the Heels as well. After tonight, UNC will have a 6-day break to get things right in practice and at the trainer's table (another understated problem with this year's team has been injuries) before two winnable games against State and Virginia. If Carolina can find a way, any way, to edge this one out tonight, I'll feel a lot better about our chances this season.
As for how the game might actually go, watch how UNC chooses to guard Ish Smith in this one. If he struggles, Wake becomes very inconsistent offensively, as Duke showed in forcing Smith to go 3-12 on Sunday night. In the second halves of the Virginia Tech and Georgia Tech games, the Heels played the kind of defense I believe they're capable of, and if they do that for 40 minutes tonight, I think they'll win easily. If they lose focus a little bit, Smith could really hurt them, and it will open up the Deacons' offense for their several other options as well.
Don't get me wrong- Larry Drew is certainly not an elite point guard on the level of Ty Lawson or Raymond Felton. But that's okay. The thing is, he's been at least as good as I expected this season- I never thought that he was going to be great. I do think he is going to be good, and if you take out a few games there's a solid argument that he has been good this season. Carolina fans are unbelievably spoiled (one of the main reasons there are so many ABCers out there) and think that every PG that walks through the door has to live up to the likes of those 2 guys. They're not going to, and we need to all be okay with that. Has Drew struggled the last two games? Sure. But he's also had several solid games this season, and at times he has been by far the most controlled player on the court.
As Found said, the biggest surprise for me with this year's team, and the main reason why I think they're struggling so much, has been the play of the guys I expected the most from. Marcus Ginyard and Deon Thompson, the two senior leaders who have started for Final Four teams, have been disappointing so far. Neither has stepped up to the level that they need to if this team is going to contend for a conference title and second-weekend birth in the NCAAs. To some extent, too, you could throw Ed Davis in that mix as well- he's been solid for sure, but in the two losses to Clemson and Georgia Tech he has been an afterthought on offense. Again, that sounds like the same thing I said about Drew, but Ed Davis is supposed to be an elite player- he's our "star." And he just hasn't played like it.
All of this leads me to another thought- leadership. It seems like as a Carolina fan I've heard that word a lot over the past 3 years. Any time a Carolina team is struggling (including last season following that 0-2 conference start), it seems like everyone wants to talk about how there's not enough leadership. What does that even mean? It's hard for us as fans to comment on whether or not there is enough vocal leadership in the locker room of any team. So I think I'm going to stay away from that. However, I will say that this team is missing that one (or two) guy(s) who, when the game is going south quickly, can get the ball in his hands and stop the bleeding. Hansbrough, clearly, was that guy. Also, toward the second half of last season, Lawson was that guy. This year's team has no one like that. Maybe that is leadership, I don't know. But I thought that Ginyard, Davis, or Thompson could be that guy. When Clemson starts pressing and they open up an 8-point lead, I want Deon or Ed Davis to post up and call for the ball, get it, and then power a move to the basket for 2 to stop the momentum. Great teams have that guy who can do that. This team doesn't. And maybe that's okay. You know, this team is very inexperienced and maybe they'll struggle. Realistically, that's fine. But I just think that this type of problem points to what Found said, that the struggles of this team have much more to do with guys like Ed Davis and Deon Thompson than with Larry Drew or Dexter Strickland.
Which leads me to tonight. Wake Forest comes to the Dean Dome. Clearly, this is an important game to me personally as a student at Wake for medical school, but it's an important game for the Heels as well. After tonight, UNC will have a 6-day break to get things right in practice and at the trainer's table (another understated problem with this year's team has been injuries) before two winnable games against State and Virginia. If Carolina can find a way, any way, to edge this one out tonight, I'll feel a lot better about our chances this season.
As for how the game might actually go, watch how UNC chooses to guard Ish Smith in this one. If he struggles, Wake becomes very inconsistent offensively, as Duke showed in forcing Smith to go 3-12 on Sunday night. In the second halves of the Virginia Tech and Georgia Tech games, the Heels played the kind of defense I believe they're capable of, and if they do that for 40 minutes tonight, I think they'll win easily. If they lose focus a little bit, Smith could really hurt them, and it will open up the Deacons' offense for their several other options as well.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Heels in the League
It's NFL conference championship week, and in honor of my boy (former Hawkeye) Shonn Greene being ridiculous all over the Chargers, here's the topic: rank your favorite former Tar Heels in the NFL. Doesn't have to be based on skill, success, talent, whatever, though those probably contribute.
My list:
1. Hakeem Nicks - could be a stud eventually
2. Vonnie Holliday - sick name, sick long career, still getting it done
3. Jeff Reed/Connor Barth (tie) - want to be out at a bar with them after they hit a game winning kick
4. Alge Crumpler - past his prime but that prime was nasty
5. Sam Aiken - Da Bills
6. Fast Willie Parker - loses points cause he didn't get much UNC time, plus how many years does he have left in the tank? But love what he brings to the Steelers
Middle. Dre' Bly - love the guy, feel bad he has been stuck on bad teams for a large part of his career
Last. Gerald Sensabaugh
My list:
1. Hakeem Nicks - could be a stud eventually
2. Vonnie Holliday - sick name, sick long career, still getting it done
3. Jeff Reed/Connor Barth (tie) - want to be out at a bar with them after they hit a game winning kick
4. Alge Crumpler - past his prime but that prime was nasty
5. Sam Aiken - Da Bills
6. Fast Willie Parker - loses points cause he didn't get much UNC time, plus how many years does he have left in the tank? But love what he brings to the Steelers
Middle. Dre' Bly - love the guy, feel bad he has been stuck on bad teams for a large part of his career
Last. Gerald Sensabaugh
Friday, January 15, 2010
"Senior" and "leader" - not synonymous
Oh sorry Oltz, I must still have been on my victory lap from the second straight bowl pick off win. Funny how that happens. I almost celebrated by proposing to Rachel Glandorf at midfield of Texas Memorial Stadium. Seems like someone got there first.
But my post today focuses on this: the fact that Marcus Ginyard and Deon Thompson are one of the larger reasons this Tar Heel team has underperformed so far.
There's nothing negative than can be said about Ginyard's personality, his devotion to the team to come back for another year, his well spoken-ness, or by all accounts, his work ethic. But there's plenty negative to be said about his performance on the court and his lack of in-game leadership with the team.
Ginyard absolutely needs to be the steadying force, the good decision maker, the ball protector and the organizer of the team when he's on the floor. I'm not sure he's any of those. He turns the ball over way too often, hasn't really figured out how to get himself easy baskets, and doesn't seem to organize the team on the floor the way a senior is expected to.
The problem, really, though, is the turnovers. Besides the point guard, who leads most teams in turnovers by virtue of handling the ball the most, which Tar Heel has the most giveaways on the team? Marcus Ginyard. Guess who's second. Deon Thompson. Assist-turnover ratio is a crude measure, but it's fairly telling in this case.
Against Clemson: Ginyard 1 assist, 5 turnovers. Thompson 1 assist, 5 turnovers. No one else on the team (aside from the point guard) had more than 3 turnovers.
By no means is it the only problem for the team or the most glaring one, but it's the one for which there is little excuse. These guys are seniors and tremendous people...but unless they lead their younger teammates by example with good decision-making, this team's ills won't be cured very fast.
But my post today focuses on this: the fact that Marcus Ginyard and Deon Thompson are one of the larger reasons this Tar Heel team has underperformed so far.
There's nothing negative than can be said about Ginyard's personality, his devotion to the team to come back for another year, his well spoken-ness, or by all accounts, his work ethic. But there's plenty negative to be said about his performance on the court and his lack of in-game leadership with the team.
Ginyard absolutely needs to be the steadying force, the good decision maker, the ball protector and the organizer of the team when he's on the floor. I'm not sure he's any of those. He turns the ball over way too often, hasn't really figured out how to get himself easy baskets, and doesn't seem to organize the team on the floor the way a senior is expected to.
The problem, really, though, is the turnovers. Besides the point guard, who leads most teams in turnovers by virtue of handling the ball the most, which Tar Heel has the most giveaways on the team? Marcus Ginyard. Guess who's second. Deon Thompson. Assist-turnover ratio is a crude measure, but it's fairly telling in this case.
Against Clemson: Ginyard 1 assist, 5 turnovers. Thompson 1 assist, 5 turnovers. No one else on the team (aside from the point guard) had more than 3 turnovers.
By no means is it the only problem for the team or the most glaring one, but it's the one for which there is little excuse. These guys are seniors and tremendous people...but unless they lead their younger teammates by example with good decision-making, this team's ills won't be cured very fast.
Lot Going On
A LOT has been happening in sports this week without much comment here. This must be changed. Here are my random, not-very-connected thoughts on all that has been occurring:
1) The whole Lane Kiffin-to-USC thing: wow. Maybe some of you out there expected this, but I sure didn't. With Kiffin's 1 year of experience plus the fact that USC is undergoing serious investigations, I thought that the Trojans' brass would go with someone new, outside of the Pete Carroll mold, which they could use potentially in talks with the NCAA. Not sure how it's going to look now when USC goes into their meetings having just hired a coach who has himself been investigated for recruiting violations.
On the other side of this, people need to stop with the all-out hatred of Kiffin for this move. If you want to hate him for what he said and whose feathers he ruffled while at Tennessee, then fine, but we all need to get off our high horse when criticizing him for leaving UT after one season now. If USC is where Kiffin really wants to be, then he has to take the job whenever he is offered it. What did you want him to say? Sorry, guys, USC is where I've always wanted to be, but I can't take the job because I've only been here one season? No. That would be ridiculous.
2) In the world of college hoops, there are some interesting games to watch out for this weekend. On the local front, the Heels have a big stretch coming up, with 3 of their next 4 at home and the one road game at NC State. If UNC expects to make a move in this year's ACC, it really HAS to win 3 of those games, and we should hope to win all 4. Sure, the loss to Clemson was disappointing, but that's a tough matchup for a young backcourt against that press, especially in Littlejohn, where Clemson is 10 times as hard to beat. On the other hand, Georgia Tech and Wake Forest, at home, should be games that this team can win, and they really need to in order to start building some momentum.
Elsewhere in the ACC, Wake Forest has a great opportunity Sunday night to make their first in-conference statement against Duke. NC State gets Clemson at home, where the Tigers are prime for an emotional letdown against a Pack team that suddenly has life after a surprising win at Florida State. And the only currently undefeated ACC team, Virginia, has a chance at 3-0 in C'ville against an inconsistent Miami squad.
And then on a national stage the Syracuse-West Virginia game certainly has intrigue, as the Fighting Huggie Bears struggled in their last elite matchup against Purdue. At home, if WVU wants to be considered serious on the national stage, they absolutely need to knock off the Orange in that one.
3) And then there's the NFL playoffs. If the Colts were to lose to the Ravens this weekend, the criticism of Jim Caldwell this offseason will be deafening for the first-time coach. I don't personally think that's going to happen, but it certainly wouldn't be a shocker. I think my favorite right now might be the Chargers, but I don't know if I trust Philip Rivers et al to make that final step after getting deep runs in the playoffs each of the last two seasons before falling short. It's also hard not to like the Cowboys with the way they can run the ball, but everyone and their mother is jumping on their bandwagon, which probably means they're going to lose. Easily the game I'm most looking forward to is the Cardinals-Saints, because Drew Brees and Kurt Warner are two of the best quarterbacks to watch on TV, and they'll be playing on the same field. That Arizona-Green Bay game was probably the best NFL game I've seen since St Louis-Tennessee in the Super Bowl in 2000, and now they get to go against the Saints? Yessir!
If asked to pick the games, I think I'd take the Colts over the Ravens, the Chargers over the Jets, the Cowboys over the Vikings, and the Saints over the Cardinals.
I think I had 2 partners in writing this blog. Not really sure though. Boys? Any thoughts????
Saturday, January 9, 2010
ACC Basketball
With the end of the national championship on Thursday night, it's now time to turn our full attention to college hoops, a move that coincidentally corresponds with the Heels' ACC opener this Sunday night against Virginia Tech. In that vein, thought I'd offer my top 5 thoughts on both Carolina and then a thought on the ACC in general.
5 Thoughts on Carolina basketball:
1) One of my early pet peeves with this season is desire of many to compare this team to the '06 team. Literally the only similarity between the 2 is the fact that they lost a lot of players from a national championship team the year before. If you look at that team in '06, one of the main reasons they were able to be so successful is that, for the most part, that team was made up of a lot of role players- Danny Green, Bobby Frasor, Marcus Ginyard, Wes Miller, David Noel, etc all had well-defined roles and didn't really ever try to get too far outside those roles- plus one very special freshman who was the consistent go-to guy in times of crisis (Tyler Hansbrough). This team, on the other hand, is made up of a lot high school studs who are struggling with finding their roles, most of the time in reduced minutes from what they're used to. Also, this team really lacks a go-to scorer in the vein of Hansbrough. If anything, I think this team is more similar to the '07 squad, which had a lot of young studs who struggled to find a consistent rotation where everyone knew what they should do. Of course, that '07 team still had Hansbrough, and if this season needs to be another time for Carolina fans to reflect on how special he was and just how many games he won for us by himself, then so be it, because he was and he did.
2) As frustrating as it was to watch the Heels blow it against Charleston, I don't think in the long run that game matters too much. The great thing about college basketball is that the identity of a team is really formed in conference play. At the end of this season, no matter how Carolina finishes up, I significantly doubt that the thing you will remember is that game. If you don't believe me, look back at past teams. When thinking about the '03 team, I doubt many of you remember that they won the Preseason NIT including a win over a Roy Williams-coached top-10 Kansas team (that would ultimately play for the NCAA championship). When thinking of '05, you probably don't spend too much time thinking about the Santa Clara loss. Nobody remembers too well the blowout loss by the '06 team on the road against a mediocre USC team. And the frustrations we all have when thinking about the '07 team probably have more to do with losing the lead against Georgetown than they do getting owned by Gonzaga in the Preseason NIT. My point is, for better and worse, our memories of this team will be shaped during conference play and then the postseason. So focus on that more than on the past loss.
3) With that said, this team has a lot of issues that need to be fixed soon. Virginia Tech as a team always plays us tough, and then after that we travel to Littlejohn, which has been the site of some nailbiting games for Tar Heel fans. With a young but dangerous Georgia Tech team after that, I think it's easily possible that UNC stands at 0-3 or 3-0 following the start to ACC play. But I think the road will get a lot easier if we can pick up the W tomorrow night against the Hokies.
4) Along those lines, the key for the Virginia Tech game I think is going to be getting off to a good start. With a young team, you don't know how they'll respond to such a bad loss. They might take it too easily or too harshly. Either way, I think an early run against the Hokies that gets that home crowd into the game early is just what we need. So watch for the first 5-10 minutes in that one as a key to how it might turn out.
5) Prediction for tomorrow night's game- I think Larry Drew plays more minutes at the 1, and I think Dexter Strickland plays more minutes at the 2, especially with Ginyard still out with the ankle injury. Strickland is a much different player in the Dean Dome than away from it, and he'll remind us of that. I think Ed Davis builds on one of his best games as a Heel in defeat on Monday and has a monster game against an average Virginia Tech frontcourt. And as long as the defense can focus for at least most of the game (or maybe most of a half?) I think the Heels will be fine at home against the Hokies.
1 Thought for the ACC:
1) Before the season, I felt very strongly that this was going to be an interesting year in the ACC. For the first time in 4 years, there is some uncertainty at the top of the conference. Duke has been solid so far (in all honesty, they've been much better than I thought), and they're clearly the favorite to win as of today. But there are a host of teams that have a unique opportunity this year to grab the limelight. NC State has been looking for traction under Sidney Lowe, and they've looked good at times this year. Virginia has a new coach, and although they haven't been playing well so far, I'm a huge Tony Bennett fan and I wouldn't be surprised if they surprise some teams in conference play. Wake Forest has some very talented players but I'm not sure Dino Gaudio is the answer as a coach. Clemson has been steadily building a winner. Florida State and Miami have had flashes over the past 2 years. The point is, with North Carolina in a bit of a rebuilding year, many of these teams could have a unique opportunity this season to take that next step within the conference. It will be interesting to see if any of those teams can step up and do so.
5 Thoughts on Carolina basketball:
1) One of my early pet peeves with this season is desire of many to compare this team to the '06 team. Literally the only similarity between the 2 is the fact that they lost a lot of players from a national championship team the year before. If you look at that team in '06, one of the main reasons they were able to be so successful is that, for the most part, that team was made up of a lot of role players- Danny Green, Bobby Frasor, Marcus Ginyard, Wes Miller, David Noel, etc all had well-defined roles and didn't really ever try to get too far outside those roles- plus one very special freshman who was the consistent go-to guy in times of crisis (Tyler Hansbrough). This team, on the other hand, is made up of a lot high school studs who are struggling with finding their roles, most of the time in reduced minutes from what they're used to. Also, this team really lacks a go-to scorer in the vein of Hansbrough. If anything, I think this team is more similar to the '07 squad, which had a lot of young studs who struggled to find a consistent rotation where everyone knew what they should do. Of course, that '07 team still had Hansbrough, and if this season needs to be another time for Carolina fans to reflect on how special he was and just how many games he won for us by himself, then so be it, because he was and he did.
2) As frustrating as it was to watch the Heels blow it against Charleston, I don't think in the long run that game matters too much. The great thing about college basketball is that the identity of a team is really formed in conference play. At the end of this season, no matter how Carolina finishes up, I significantly doubt that the thing you will remember is that game. If you don't believe me, look back at past teams. When thinking about the '03 team, I doubt many of you remember that they won the Preseason NIT including a win over a Roy Williams-coached top-10 Kansas team (that would ultimately play for the NCAA championship). When thinking of '05, you probably don't spend too much time thinking about the Santa Clara loss. Nobody remembers too well the blowout loss by the '06 team on the road against a mediocre USC team. And the frustrations we all have when thinking about the '07 team probably have more to do with losing the lead against Georgetown than they do getting owned by Gonzaga in the Preseason NIT. My point is, for better and worse, our memories of this team will be shaped during conference play and then the postseason. So focus on that more than on the past loss.
3) With that said, this team has a lot of issues that need to be fixed soon. Virginia Tech as a team always plays us tough, and then after that we travel to Littlejohn, which has been the site of some nailbiting games for Tar Heel fans. With a young but dangerous Georgia Tech team after that, I think it's easily possible that UNC stands at 0-3 or 3-0 following the start to ACC play. But I think the road will get a lot easier if we can pick up the W tomorrow night against the Hokies.
4) Along those lines, the key for the Virginia Tech game I think is going to be getting off to a good start. With a young team, you don't know how they'll respond to such a bad loss. They might take it too easily or too harshly. Either way, I think an early run against the Hokies that gets that home crowd into the game early is just what we need. So watch for the first 5-10 minutes in that one as a key to how it might turn out.
5) Prediction for tomorrow night's game- I think Larry Drew plays more minutes at the 1, and I think Dexter Strickland plays more minutes at the 2, especially with Ginyard still out with the ankle injury. Strickland is a much different player in the Dean Dome than away from it, and he'll remind us of that. I think Ed Davis builds on one of his best games as a Heel in defeat on Monday and has a monster game against an average Virginia Tech frontcourt. And as long as the defense can focus for at least most of the game (or maybe most of a half?) I think the Heels will be fine at home against the Hokies.
1 Thought for the ACC:
1) Before the season, I felt very strongly that this was going to be an interesting year in the ACC. For the first time in 4 years, there is some uncertainty at the top of the conference. Duke has been solid so far (in all honesty, they've been much better than I thought), and they're clearly the favorite to win as of today. But there are a host of teams that have a unique opportunity this year to grab the limelight. NC State has been looking for traction under Sidney Lowe, and they've looked good at times this year. Virginia has a new coach, and although they haven't been playing well so far, I'm a huge Tony Bennett fan and I wouldn't be surprised if they surprise some teams in conference play. Wake Forest has some very talented players but I'm not sure Dino Gaudio is the answer as a coach. Clemson has been steadily building a winner. Florida State and Miami have had flashes over the past 2 years. The point is, with North Carolina in a bit of a rebuilding year, many of these teams could have a unique opportunity this season to take that next step within the conference. It will be interesting to see if any of those teams can step up and do so.
Friday, January 8, 2010
One last miss
Sorry I forgot to post my pick yesterday. For the record, I took Texas +4.5 for $200. So that's another miss for me. Surprise, sur-frickin-prise.
I have to say, that was one of the more brutal non-covers I have experienced. I felt good at kickoff, then conceded defeat when McCoy went down. Then Bama went into a shell, the freshman grew a pair, and miraculously I'm covering again with just 3 minutes to go! All I needed was Texas to not turn the ball over in its own redzone.
Of course, that is EXACTLY what happened. So I felt like I lost the same bet twice in one night. Brutal.
What a shame that the game played out the way it did. Anyone with a pulse has to feel awful for Colt McCoy, who started nearly 50 games in college and didn't get hurt until the most important and final game. Just tragic.
I also thought the last TD by Saban was needless and classless. I wouldn't expect anything else.
Hook 'em.
I have to say, that was one of the more brutal non-covers I have experienced. I felt good at kickoff, then conceded defeat when McCoy went down. Then Bama went into a shell, the freshman grew a pair, and miraculously I'm covering again with just 3 minutes to go! All I needed was Texas to not turn the ball over in its own redzone.
Of course, that is EXACTLY what happened. So I felt like I lost the same bet twice in one night. Brutal.
What a shame that the game played out the way it did. Anyone with a pulse has to feel awful for Colt McCoy, who started nearly 50 games in college and didn't get hurt until the most important and final game. Just tragic.
I also thought the last TD by Saban was needless and classless. I wouldn't expect anything else.
Hook 'em.
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