There is a lot of games to still be played this season but the Duke basketball team has emerged as the class of the ACC and it would be shocking if this team does not win the conference’s regular season title.
Anything can happen in a conference tournament, but the Blue Devils could be playing for the ACC Tournament Championship in March and its next opponent, SMU, could be its opposition in the hypothetical title game in just its first year in the league.
There are still many questions to answer about the Mustangs, the first being if the team is any good, but it’s 11-2 (2-0 ACC) record proves that it at least has a chance to make the NCAA Tournament in a conference that will struggle to send five teams to the dance.
Led by former USC head coach Andy Enfield, SMU’s only losses have come on the road against Butler and on its home floor against Mississippi State.
Duke, however, will be a completely different challenge and bring a wild atmosphere.
SMU has already announced that Saturday’s game is sold out and it’s conceivable to say that this is likely the biggest game in the modern history of the program with only two NCAA Tournament appearances since 1994 and its last Final Four coming in 1956.
A lot will be learned about how good this team really is in its next two games, hosting Duke and traveling to Chapel Hill to face the Tar Heels – it’s only matchups against the ACC blue bloods during the regular season.
If the Mustangs can prove they are for real in these next two matchups and continue to rack up victories around the rest of the league, there is a real possibility that SMU could land a Top-4 seed in the ACC Tournament and contend for a league title in its first season.
The school played for an ACC Championship in football this year as a forgotten new member of the conference, so why can’t they make the same amount of noise on the basketball court?