With six games down, the ACC vs. Big 10 classic is all tied up at three a piece. Of course, the Big 10 has been the Susan Lucci of this “tournament” losing year after year after year. In fact, the ACC is a cool 10-0 against the boys from the north.
However, this year things were suppose to be different, with most “experts” predicting a better second decade for the Big 10, starting with a win this season in the ACC/Big 10 Challenge.
So what did I see?
PENN STATE 69 VIRGINIA 66
I saw a Cavaliers team unable to stop Talor Battle (32 for the game), while struggling to get to the line. Virginia got only 13 freebies at the stripe and only once in the games first 26 minutes.
PURDUE 69 WAKE FOREST 58
Wake actually led at halftime, but the Boilermakers went on a 27-9 second-half run to take control. Strangley, Purdue only shot 34% from the floor, including 1-15 from three, yet still won easily. Wake’s Aminu was okay at best. He scored 12 (with 10 boards), but shot only 3-11 from the floor as he battled foul trouble throughout the night (playing only 27 total minutes).
NORTHWESTERN 65 NORTH CAROLINA STATE 53
The Wolfpack fell behind early and every time they got too close, the Wildcats had an answer. For the game, NC State’s Javier Gonzlazez was 2-6 from three, but the rest of the team was shutout, going 0-12 from downtown, helping to lead NC State to their first defeat of the season.
MARYLAND 80 INDIANA 68
Greivis Vasquez continued to struggle from the floor (4-13, shooting 32% for the season), but he went 13-14 from the charity stripe, helping the Terps pull away from the Hoosiers in the second half. Good thing too…a third non-conference loss and the screams to fire Coach Williams would have returned.
VIRGINIA TECH 70 IOWA 64
With six minutes left, the Hokies finally pulled away from a pesky Iowa team, finishing the game on a 16-10 run. Still the Hokies let a bad (2-5) Hawkeyes team hit 12 three pointers. Tech’s strength was in the paint, as they hit 23 of 43 two-pointers, so why shoot 15 three-pointers (when you’re only hitting about 30% of them)?
NORTH CAROLINA 89 MICHIGAN STATE 82
The final score says UNC got a seven-point win, but in reality this game was never close. The Tar Heels led by as much as 19 points, while the Spartans struggled with UNC’s length. Can I go ahead and throw a thought out there? There is no question it is a down year for guards in the ACC. Having said that, is Larry Drew II the best point guard in the ACC?
Yeah, it’s early…but his last two game against solid foes (Nevada/Michigan St) have been impressive. He has 30 points (10-14 shooting, 3-5 from three) and an impressive 16 assists, improving on what was a less-than-impressive assist-to-turnover rate (after six games he was at 1.85/1, but in his last two games, he’s had a 4/1 assist-to-turnover ratio).
Just wanted to put that out there.