Just two more days of regular season ACC basketball
In Tuesday night’s ACC Action, Virginia nipped Wake Forest, 75-70, UNC survived Clemson, 67-63, Virginia Tech thumped BC, 72-63, and Louisville handled Syracuse, 77-62.
We honestly didn’t think that Wake Forest could keep up with Virginia in this one. First, UVA has vastly more size than Wake, and second, the Cavaliers were bound to be furious about what Duke did to them Saturday.
Well, not so much, as the Demon Deacons never really let Virginia pull away.
Not surprisingly, Omaha Biliew and Cooper Schwieger struggled inside, with 0 points and 5 rebounds. Biliew picked up four fouls in 11 minutes.
Mekhi Mason had 26 and Juke Harris had 21. The other four starters besides Harris combined for 15 points and Wake shot just 32% from the bonusphere and 39% overall.
Virginia’s bigs, Thijs De Ridder and Johann Grunloh, combined for 28 points and 16 rebounds, and Virginia had 9 blocks for the game.
Great effort by Wake, but just not enough to get it done.
With the win, Virginia wraps up the #2 seed in Charlotte.
Carolina was still without Caleb Wilson, out with a broken hand, and Clemson pushed them to the last few minutes.
Luka Bogavac hit six 3-pointers and finished with 20 to help UNC survive a tough challenge from the Tigers.
UNC was up 64-63 when Bogavac went to the line with 12.2 left. He hit both to give UNC a 66-63 lead. Clemson needed a three but got a two-point attempt from Dillon Hunter instead. Seth Trimble got the last rebound and was fouled by Jestin Porter with time running out. He hit one of two for the final 67-63 margin.
Jarin Stevenson was the unsung hero for UNC, finishing with 9 points and 10 rebounds. Henri Veesaar called it a night with 12 points and 6 rebounds, while Seth Trimble and Derek Dixon finished shooting 2-10/1-4 and 3-7/3-4.
RJ Godfrey did well against UNC inside with 22 points on 10-13/1-1 from the floor and 9 rebounds. Carter Welling managed 13 points and 8 boards.
Virginia Tech had its way with Boston College, but the Eagles made a late push to make things more respectable.
Boden Kapke had a statement game with 25 points and 8 rebounds. He’s scored in double figures in the last four games for BC.
Fred Payne is underappreciated: the 6-1 sophomore from Louisiana has hit double figures in every game since January 6th. He’s the kind of guy who may get picked off in the portal if coach Earl Grant is let go, as expected.
Virginia Tech has had some injuries and other issues this year, but they are healthy now and dangerous. Tobi Lawal had 20 points and 7 rebounds, Amani Hansberry had 11 and 7 while Neoklis Avdalas had 15 and 6. The Hokie frontcourt also had 6 assists.
If they can pull off a big win at Virginia, they’ll roll into Charlotte with major momentum. It’s a team to keep an eye on.
This sounds harsh, but it’s true, and also sad: Syracuse is functionally irrelevant.
This is not a team devoid of talent. There are some solid players here. But this team has not come together and has taken another solid beating Tuesday at Louisville.
To their credit, the Syracuse players did show more effort than they have for most of the season, but the ‘Cuse still lost, and now falls to 15-15, which will lead to more questions about coach Adrian Autry. Bad enough to be at .500 at a legendary basketball school, but when headlines slam your team’s effort, well, it’s just bad news.
More bad news, really.
Before we forget, Mikel Brown was out again with his back issue.
On Wednesday, Miami visits SMU, Cal is at Georgia Tech, Florida State heads up to Pitt, and Stanford is at Notre Dame. The first game is far more important for SMU and a loss there would be damaging to its March prospects. Miami could afford a loss if it came to that.
Cal is still hoping and a loss in Atlanta would be devastating. FSU vs. Pitt is not entirely irrelevant, but if either team gets to the NCAA tournament, it’ll have to win the ACC Tournament to do it.
Stanford? Seems unlikely, but a win over Notre Dame and a strong run in Charlotte could conceivably do it. There would be a lot of variables, though.
Wednesday’s ACC Action
- Miami at SMU || 7:00 || ACCN
- Cal at Georgia Tech || 7:00 || ESPNU
- FSU at Pitt || 9:00 || ACCN
- Stanford at Notre Dame || 9:00 || ESPNU
- No. 13 UVA bounces back, holds off Wake Forest
- Virginia Clinches No. 2 Seed In ACC Tournament With Win Over Wake Forest
- Recap: Wake Forest Bested by #13 Virginia 75-70
- No. 17 UNC men’s basketball takes down Clemson, 67-63, on senior night to finish unbeaten at home
- Clemson head coach Brad Brownell postgame following loss to No. 17 UNC Chapel Hill
- Grinding it out: UNC basketball outlasts Clemson for perfect home record
- Virginia Tech Men’s Basketball Beats Boston College 72-63 In Home Finale
- Kapke’s 25 Not Enough as BC Falls, 72-63, to Virginia Tech on the Road
- Virginia Tech hangs on to defeat Boston College
- In Louisville, Syracuse played best when desperate — the story of its season
- Pat Kelsey discusses Louisville basketball’s win over Syracuse in home finale
- In Syracuse’s forgettable season, freshman Sadiq White proves he’s a keeper
- REACTION: Syracuse Basketball Shows NO EFFORT in Loss to Louisville
- CRAWFORD | Louisville bounces back with toughness, slams Syracuse 77-62 in home finale
Category: General Sports
