THE ACC/NCAA WEEKLY DIGEST — EPISODE 1 (NOV 7–13, 2022)

STANDINGS AND RANKINGS

ACC RESULTS FROM LAST WEEK

• Check out this Google Doc for a look at all of last week’s scores, rankings, and a few game notes from me.

BEST WINS FROM LAST WEEK

Honestly, with the lack of big games (and ACC teams losing most Power-6 matchups (Clemson lost to South Carolina, Pittsburgh got smoked by WVU) this is a pretty lackluster list for this week.

1. (78) Wake Forest 81, (92) Georgia 71 — Wake Forest was the only ACC team to win their Power-6 matchup this week. The Demon Deacons were in control of most of the game, but don’t get too excited — Georgia is one of the lowest ranked Power-6 teams in the country.
2. (15) Duke 71, (172) Jacksonville 44 — Jacksonville could challenge Liberty in the ASUN this season and got obliterated against Duke. Also, Duke didn’t have two of their starters. Solid win for the Blue Devils.
3. (45) Miami 79, (100) UNCG 65 — UNCG is another potential NCAA-tournament team. The Hurricanes used a late run in the second half to pull away for the win.

SURVIVORS

• (74) Boston College 79, (281) Cornell 77 — The Eagles went on a 12–1 run late in the half to comeback and get the win over Cornell.
• (41) Notre Dame 79, (288) Radford 76 — The Fighting Irish also had a comeback run to steal a win against Radford.
• (80) Boston College 70, (257) Detroit Mercy 66 — BC had some more late game heroics to get a win against Detroit-Mercy. The Eagles are 2–0, but they’ve had to scrape for two wins against
• (115) Georgia Tech 59, (229) Georgia State 57 — the Yellow Jackets broke a tie with a basket with 4 seconds to go to escape Georgia State and grab a road win.
• (70) NC State 73, (196) Campbell 67 — this was a 2-point game with around 30 seconds to go before the Pack hit a jumper and game sealing free throws.

WORST ACC LOSSES FROM LAST WEEK

FSU is 0–2 after losses to Stetson and UCF

1. (313) Stetson 83, (65) Florida State 74 — Nobody really saw this one coming. FSU was almost a 20-point favorite in this and are traditionally very good at home. This was certainly an eye-opening loss.
2. (244) Bellarmine 67, (91) Louisville 66 — Given their struggles in their exhibition games, I thought this might be a close game…and I’m not particularly shocked Louisville took the L here. However, it’s still one of the worst losses this week. It’s early, but Louisville could be the worst team in the ACC
3. (202) Wright State 73, (103) Louisville 72 — Louisville responds to their loss against Bellarmine by giving up a 10 point lead at home and losing at the buzzer to Wright State. Not a great look.

BIGGEST COMEBACK/BLOWN LEAD FROM LAST WEEK

• Comeback — Notre Dame was down by 9 against Radford with 10:23 left in the game and came back for the win.
• Comeback — Georgia Tech was down by 9 with 10:21 left in the first half, but won on a last second shot against Georgia State.
• Blown Lead — Louisville blew a 10-point second half lead in their loss to Wright State.

TOP 3 ACC OFFENSES

The Jon Scheyer Era has begun

KenPom national rank in parentheses

1. Duke (4)
2. UNC (7)
3. UVA (8)

TOP 3 ACC DEFENSES

1. UVA (8)
2. UNC (31)
3. Duke (34)

A QUICK LOOK AROUND THE NATIONAL COLLEGE HOOPS LANDSCAPE

Here is some information to keep you in the loop with what’s happening around the country — things like Top 50 Matchups, KenPom rankings, big games this week, etc.

After a pretty boring (outside of a few upsets) first week, the action REALLY heats up this week with some bigtime matchups.

WHAT HAPPENED LAST WEEK?

• (16) TCU needed a 20-point comeback to eek out 73–72 win over (360) Arkansas-Pine Bluff
• (92) Temple lost to (282) Wagner…and then proceeded to beat (19) Villanova a few days later.
• (159) Sam Houston State upset (28) Oklahoma State with a 52–51 win
• (36) USC and their coach who used to coach at Florida Gulf Coast….lost to (258) FGCU 74–61
• (100) Georgetown needed overtime to beat (329) Coppin State
• (103) Davidson came back from being down 21 to get a double overtime win over (200) Wright State. Wright State then went on to beat Louisville later in the week.
• (3) Gonzaga survived (32) Michigan State, 64–63
• (62) Colorado lost to (298) Grambling on Friday…and then beat (7) Tennessee on Sunday. Who knows?!?
• (245) East Carolina was down 19 points to (270) Presbyterian…and won the game by 20 points.

TOP 50 MATCHUPS THIS WEEK

TUESDAY

• (9) Kansas vs. (10) Duke — in Indianapolis
• (26) Michigan State vs. (1) Kentucky in Indianapolis
• (29) Memphis at (40) Saint Louis

WEDNESDAY

• (3) Gonzaga at (2) Texas
• (18) Iowa at (35) Seton Hall

FRIDAY

• (6) Baylor vs. (5) Virginia — in Las Vegas
• (8) Indiana at (37) Xavier
• (11) UCLA vs. (28) Illinois — in Las Vegas
• (25) Villanova at (26) Michigan State

SATURDAY

• (48) Maryland vs. (40) Saint Louis — Mohegan Sun

SUNDAY

• (1) Kentucky at (3) Gonzaga
• (4) Houston at (45) Oregon

UPSET WATCHES

• (85) Florida Atlantic at (31) Florida
• (110) Vermont at (55) USC
• (115) Colgate at (49) Syracuse
• (65) Furman at (32) Penn State
• (89) VCU at (29) Memphis
• (93) James Madison at (12) UNC

TOP 8 (KENPOM)

Ranking last Sunday in parentheses

1. Kentucky (1)
2. Texas (2)
3. Gonzaga (3)
4. Houston (7)
5. Virginia (5)
6. Baylor (6)
7. Tennessee (4)
8. Indiana (12)

MID-MAJOR TOP 8

Is Furman a future Cinderella in March? We’ll learn more this week.

Note: These are the top 8 teams NOT in the ACC, Big East, American, PAC-12, CUSA, Big Ten, Big 12, MWC, and SEC…I also took out the WCC because they have Gonzaga, Saint Mary’s, and BYU.

1. Furman (65) — they’ll get their chance to prove themselves in The Charleston Classic this week. They open with (32) Penn State and, if they win, would likely play against (20) Virginia Tech the next day.
2. Drake (73)
3. Toledo (76)
4. Towson (84) — The Tigers travel to (106) UNC-Greensboro, who is just outside our MM Top 8, this week.
5. Liberty (86)
6. Southern Illinois (91)
7. UC Santa Barbara (92)
8. James Madison (93) — The Dukes have a MAJOR test on the road at (12) UNC on Sunday.

THE BOTTOM DWELLERS — THE WORST 8 POWER-SIX TEAMS

This is not a list you want to be on the top of.

1. Minnesota (119)
2. Georgia Tech (117)
3. Louisville (114)
4. Nebraska (113)
5. Washington (106 — sorry, Hop)
6. Pittsburgh (103)
7. Georgia (94)
8. Florida State (90)

THE BOTTOM BOTTOM DWELLERS — THE WORST 8 TEAMS IN THE COUNTR

Is this the worst college basketball team in the country?

Is this the worst team in the country?

In a big-time matchup this week, (363) IUPUI travels to (360) Chicago State for some great basketball.

1. IUPUI (363)
2. Delaware State (362)
3. Mississippi Valley State (361) — they play Miami on Tuesday
4. Chicago State (360)
5. Florida A&M (359)
6. Incarnate Word (358)
7. Lamar (357)
8. Green Bay (356)

THIS WEEK IN THE ACC

Note: I’ve left comments on the most interesting matchups and some potential upsets

MONDAY

• (83) Boston College vs. (351) Maine
• (90) Florida State vs. (206) Troy — The Seminoles will try to get on track after opening the season with losses against Stetson and UCF (does this make FSU something like the 3rd or 4th best team in FL?)
• (5) Virginia vs. (132) Northern Iowa — This one is mildly intriguing due to the similar styles of play.

TUESDAY

• (114) Louisville vs. (205) Appalachian State — This is a game Louisville absolutely needs to win. If I said that 5 years ago, would you have ever believed me?
• (74) Wake Forest vs. (139) Utah Valley — This is an underrated tough game for the Demon Deacons. Don’t be surprised if Utah Valley pushes WF to the brink (or wins)
• (49) Syracuse vs. (115) Colgate — Colgate broke a 50+ game losing streak last season and return a strong team to the Dome
• (44) Miami vs. (359) Florida A&M — FAMU is one of the absolute worst teams in the country
• (63) Clemson vs. (312) South Carolina Upstate
• (12) UNC vs. (197) Gardner-Webb
• (71) NC State vs. (227) Florida International
• (10) Duke vs. (9) Kansas in Indianapolis — The marquee matchup of the night in college hoops

WEDNESDAY

• (103) Pittsburgh vs. (31) Michigan (in Brooklyn) — tough matchup for the Panthers
• (59) Notre Dame vs. (200) Southern Indiana

THURSDAY

• (103) Pittsburgh vs. (77) Arizona State/ (89) VCU (in Brooklyn) — Pitt will get the loser of these two — regardless, they’ll be the underdogs
• (20) Virginia Tech vs. (166) Old Dominion (in Charleston, SC) — I don’t expect too much resistance from ODU, but they’re not TERRIBLE and it’s a neutral matchup against a state rival so this one could be interesting
• (117) Georgia Tech vs. (290) Northern Illinois

FRIDAY

• (20) Virginia Tech vs. (65) Furman/ (33) Penn State (in Charleston, SC) — The Hokies will be the favorite regardless, but both matchups are very interesting.
• (74) Wake Forest vs. (186) LaSalle
• (5) Virginia vs. (6) Baylor (in Las Vegas) — the game of the night
• (10) Duke vs. (179) Delaware
• (59) Notre Dame vs. (190) Lipscomb
• (63) Clemson vs. (232) Bellarmine — can Bellarmine beat their 2nd ACC team of the season?
• (90) Florida State vs. (32) Florida — FSU desperately, desperately needs some good things to happen after a rough first week; this could help
• (82) Boston College vs. (96) George Mason (Paradise Jam) — The Eagles have scraped by in their opening week; they won’t be able to play that poorly against GMU and still win

SATURDAY

• (20) Virginia Tech vs. (107) Colorado State/ (83) South Carolina/ (111) Davidson/ (187) Charleston (in Charleston, SC) — super exciting, huh?
• (82) Boston College vs. (136) Belmont/ (203) Tarleton State (Paradise Jam)
• (71) NC State vs. (323) Elon
• (49) Syracuse vs. (253) Northeastern
• (44) Miami vs. (61) Providence (Hall of Fame Tip-Off) — Miami will get a chance for some solid early season competition in this tournament

SUNDAY

• (82) Boston College vs. (72) Drake/ (209) Buffalo/ (80) Wyoming/ (247) Howard (Paradise Jam)
• (44) Miami vs. (48) Maryland/ (38) Saint Louis (Hall of Fame Tip-Off) — good early matchup for Miami regardless of who they get here; these are the types of games that help or hurt when the bubble comes calling
• (12) UNC vs. (93) James Madison — this is my upset special…UNC has been struggling and JMU has absolutely manhandled their opponents so far scoring 123, 106, and 97 points in their first 3 games
• (103) Pittsburgh vs. (348) Alabama State

And what you’ve all been waiting for…

The SU Hoops Central ACC Power Rankings

Note: These are 100% based on my opinion and observations.

1. DUKE (+1) — Right now, I just think they have the most talent. We’ll see how it holds up.
2. VIRGINIA (+1) — Almost moved UVA up to #1, but it’s too early to tell. They scored 80+ in a game and that’s always a good sign for the Cavaliers.
3. NORTH CAROLINA (-2) — The Tar Heels won both their early games, but they’ve looked far short of impressive. Hell, Hubert Davis even called them “soft” this week.
4. VIRGINIA TECH (-) — We’ll know a little more about the Hokies at the end of this week…even though they’ll be the favorite in all their games.
5. MIAMI (-) — They’re just here by default and because it’s so early in the season
6. SYRACUSE (+1) — Syracuse had a good win against Lehigh, but they are up this high because Notre Dame stole a win against lowly Radford last week
7. NOTRE DAME (-1) — The Fighting Irish are very lucky they are 1–0 after using the last few minutes to steal a game from Radford
8. CLEMSON (-1) — The Tigers looked okay against The Citadel, but dropped a game to lower ranked in-state rival South Carolina
9. NC STATE (+3) — The Wolfpack almost won by 50 against Austin Peay, but squeaked by for a win against Campbell.
10. WAKE FOREST (-) — I just don ’t trust Wake Forest. Their schedule is so bad. But they are 2–0.
11. FLORIDA STATE (-3) — FSU, like Louisville, had a pretty rough week with losses to in-state opponents Stetson and UCF.
12. BOSTON COLLEGE (+2) — BC is 2–0; FSU is 0–2. But BC also verrrrry barely got wins over lowly Cornell and Detroit-Mercy. Until they beat somebody good, they’ll stay low in the rankings…although FSU could keep losing and bump the Eagles up.
13. PITTSBURGH (-2) — The Panthers were manhandled by WVU last week. And will probably get handled by Michigan this week as well.
14. GEORGIA TECH (-1) — GT was tied with Clayton State at halftime and needed a last-minute bucket to beat Georgia State this week.
15. LOUISVILLE (-) — woof, what a rough few weeks for the Cardinals. After losing both their exhibition games, they dropped home games (by 1 point each) to Bellarmine and Wright State. Bellarmine and Wright State are both ranked in the 200s on KenPom. Not ideal.

Did you enjoy this? Please become a follower on Medium, check me out on Twitter, or subscribe to my free newsletter!