by Nick Roby
We have a 7 game slate in the ACC this weekend. Here are the matchups Saturday and what we are looking at:
Boston College 10-11 (4-6) at #7 Virginia 15-3 (7-2) 12pm ACCNX
The 1st matchup this weekend has two teams on winning streaks. Despite being 2-3 in their last 5 games, Boston College has won their last two. Virginia comes into Saturday on a 5 game winning streak looking to keep place with the Tigers.
The big question in this game is, can Boston College score enough points on the road to keep pace in the game against a tough Virginia defense that is only giving up 60.3 ppg? I can see this one being close for a bit, but then Virginia makes some typical half-court baskets to pull away from the Eagles.
Louisville 2-18 (0-9) at Notre Dame 9-12 (1-9) 12pm ESPN2
Both teams in the other 12pm game have not gotten off to the best start in league play. Louisville is still looking for their 1st ACC win and Notre Dame is going for their 2nd.
Laszewski has been having a nice season for the Irish averaging 13.8 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. I look for Notre Dame to establish him in the post and then look for shooters like Goodwin to knock down some outside shots. Another big factor in this game is that it is in South Bend. The Irish are 9-12 overall, but they are 9-5 at home. Louisville is 0-5 on the road.
NC State 16-5 (6-4) at Wake Forest 14-7 (6-4) 1pm ACCN
The NC State at Wake Forest is one of the biggest games of the ACC weekend. Both teams are 6-4 in league and looking to add to their resume. NC State has won 4 of their last 5 while Wake Forest has now lost 2 in a row. However, Wake is still 10-1 at home with their only loss to #7 Virginia last weekend.
With both teams averaging close to 80 points, look for this to be a fast paced game led by guards Smith for State and Appleby for Wake. A big key in this game is the 3-point shooting. Wake Forest is shooting 37.4% while NC State is at 33.9% for the season. State will need guys like Morsell and Smith to shoot it well from the outside to keep pace with the Demon Deacons. I have this one being a one-possession game when all is said and done.
Duke 14-6 (5-4) at Georgia Tech 8-12 (1-9) 3pm ACCN
Duke is coming off a tough road loss Monday night to then 1-7 Virginia Tech. To make things worse, Dariq Whitehead injury his leg and was not able to put weight on it. On the positive side, they are facing a Georgia Tech team who last lost their last 6 games and Whitehead is still traveling with the team to maybe even play.
Duke is still trying to get back into rhythm after having Jeremy Roach out for a few ballgames. If Whitehead is out, look for the Blue Devils to feed the ball even more to freshman big man Kyle Filipowski. He is averaging 21.4 points and 12.4 rebounds over his last 5 games, including 4 straight double-doubles. Georgia Tech will try to throw the 1-3-1, along with some different looks, on defense to get Duke to settle for jumpers. If Filipowski gets going early, I see Duke pulling away in this one.
#20 Miami 16-4 (7-3) at Pitt 14-7 (7-3) 4pm ESPNU
This game is an interesting one between two 7-3 teams in the ACC. You have #20 Miami, who until Tuesday vs. FSU was in 3 consecutive close battles. On the flip side, Pitt has won 3 of their last 4, but their only loss during that stretch was a 71-64 defeat to said Florida State.
Style wise, Miami many times wants to get out an run with guards like Wong and Miller. Pitt often likes to feed big man Hinson in the post and let Burton create with tough drives to the basket. Miami is the ranked team, but Pitt has not been easy to beat at home either. I would circle this game as one to watch for sure.
#24 Clemson 17-4 (9-1) at Florida State 7-14 (5-5) 5pm ACCN
1st place Clemson travels on the road to Tallahassee to face a Florida State team still trying to get the taste over losing by 23 to rival Miami Tuesday night. Clemson won Tuesday at Georgia Tech, but now will be without starting guard Brevin Galloway. This makes it now 3 Tigers (Chase Hunter, Alex Hemenway, and Brevin Galloway) who could be potentially out. Hunter is listed at day-to-day so he could be available, but it could take him a couple games to get back to form.
A key in this one is can Florida State capitalize on Clemson’s lack of depth at the guards and keep the Tigers uncomfortable? One would expect that Clemson will feed PJ Hall and Hunter Tyson more in this one and put an emphasis on the post play. Florida State has 4 guys averaging in double-figures and is still getting highly rated freshman Baba Miller back into the fold after his suspension.
Syracuse 13-8 (6-4) at Virginia Tech 12-8 (2-7) 7pm ACCN
In the final ACC matchup of the night, Syracuse travels to Blacksburg to face a Virginia Tech team coming off a huge win Monday night over Duke. Syracuse lost a tough one to UNC after have a lead in the final minutes. This game is intriguing because both teams have the ability to go on a run in the 2nd half of ACC play.
The biggest key for me is can Virginia Tech hit outside shots like they did against Duke? The Hokies were 10-19 (52.6%) from three Monday night. With the zone that Syracuse plays, Virginia Tech will have some chances to hit shots. Syracuse was able to go 8-18 against UNC and Girard had 18 points himself. However, they turned the ball over 16 times and had bigs Edwards and Mintz foul out. Turnover margin will be a big factor in this matchup.