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Posted 02/16/2009 at 03:06 PM
The two tops teams in the ACC both had tough games yesterday with Duke losing at Boston College and North Carolina barely squeaking by Miami. It was a brutal loss for Miami as the Hurricanes have a talented team that can play with anyone but has continued to endure close losses. Jack McClinton may be the best shooter/scorer in the nation from the guard position, Blake Griffin should runaway with the player of the year awards but had Miami pulled out a few more wins McClinton would be a much bigger name as he is posting huge numbers. Miami probably would have won the game had they simply got the ball to McClinton even more as his teammates forced a lot of bad shots early in the game and North Carolina’s suspect defense had few answers.
Tar Heel fans should be worried as UNC does not look like a legitimate national title threat. North Carolina has incredible talent and very well could end up with a #1 seed but expect a flameout prior to the Final Four as a lot of teams have shown how easy it can be to score on UNC. North Carolina’s offense can also put up big numbers but if teams avoid transitional situations and can get back on defense the Tar Heels can look lost at times and the injuries have taken away depth and toughness. Marcus Ginyard may have been the best defender in the ACC and his loss will loom large even if he rarely filled the box scores.
Duke on the other hand is proving to be who most thought they were. Not long ago the Blue Devils were the #1 team in the nation but the ACC season has taken a toll and the Blue Devils lack the inside toughness and athleticism to make up for off-shooting games. Duke is now tied with five other teams for second place in the ACC in the loss column with four conference losses and the schedule will not get any easier. Top to bottom the ACC is still the top conference in the nation but the top teams in the Big East and even some teams in the Big 12 and Big Ten could be threats for deeper NCAA tournament runs as overall, the top teams do not appear to be as strong as we may have thought.
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