ACC Roundup - Saturday Should Feature Some Excellent Games
Three, maybe four, should really stand out
As ACC teams get ready for an interesting Saturday, the dominant story is still Kenny Payne’s fate at Louisville. There is no official word on that yet but he seems to be losing support rapidly. The Cards play Pepperdine on Sunday and a loss there would be hugely damaging to Payne.
But that’s Sunday. First we have Saturday and Saturday offers some very interesting games. But let’s start with the lame games first:
Georgia Tech plays Penn State, but that’s not a big deal. Nor is Pitt hosting South Carolina State, Georgetown at Notre Dame, Vermont at Virginia Tech or Northeastern at Virginia. SMU at Florida State is a preview of the future ACC, but it probably won’t be that great.
LaSalle at Miami could be compelling but the good games are likely to be the rest: Clemson vs. Memphis, UNC vs. Kentucky and NC State taking on Tennessee in San Antonio.
We’d like to say something good about the dog games, but what can you say? They’re either between bad teams or one good team and a bad team. Don’t blow it, Virginia.
Now on to the good stuff.
Kentucky and UNC should be really interesting. UNC has come back alive to some extent but so has UK and John Calipari has one of his big men, freshman Aaron Bradshaw, back. Bradshaw had a foot injury and his first game back was against Penn this past Saturday. He did well, with 17 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks, but that was against Penn. UNC’s Armando Bacot has been in Chapel Capel Hill for about 15 years (okay it just seems that way) and he’s a grown man who plays rough. That gives UNC an edge inside but UK’s guards will probably have a size advantage.
We don’t know a whole lot about Memphis this year but we do understand that they have one of the oldest rosters in college basketball, including former Florida State guard Caleb Mills.
However, Penny Hardaway’s time there has been nothing if not erratic and we expect that will continue because it’s the defining characteristic of his program.
Clemson is a smart and disciplined program and that will give them a shot here. The Tigers have played a solid schedule, with wins over Missouri, Michigan, Arkansas, Villanova, VCU and Texas A&M.
The losses came against Villanova and Chris Beard’s Ole Miss.
It won’t be easy for the Tigers - the ACC’s version, that is - but not impossible either.
Fun times - Memphis plays Virginia on Tuesday.
NC State and Tennessee is really interesting. DJ Burns is the sort of player that Rick Barnes would love to have, a battering ram around the basket. The question is whether NC State can put more pressure on UT’s perimeter or the Vols can put more pressure on Burns and State’s front court. That’s simplified, but that’s still the heart of it.
Finally, it’s too early to say for sure that LaSalle and Miami will be a good matchup but LaSalle showed us some stuff in Durham before Duke pulled away. And keep in mind that Fran Dunphry is a very solid coach.
The Explorers are not particularly big but neither is Miami. However, the ‘Canes are going to be in a sour mood after getting hammered by Colorado last weekend and they’ve had plenty of time to chew on that.
Saturday’s ACC Action
- LaSalle @ Miami || 12:00 || CW Network
- Georgia Tech @ Penn State || 12:00 || BTN
- SC State @ Pitt || 2:00 || ACCN
- Georgetown @ Notre Dame || 2:15 || CW NETWORK
- Clemson @ Memphis || 3:00 || ESPN+
- Vermont @ Virginia Tech || 4:00 || ACCN
- UNC vs. Kentucky || 5:30 || CBS
- Northeastern @ Virginia || 6:00 || ACCN
- SMU @ FSU || 8:00 || ACCN
- NC State @ Tennessee || 10:00 || ESPN2
- Late-night stakes: NC State gets one last shot at a resume-building nonconference win
- Why NC State guard D.J. Horne is playing with a ‘big chip on his shoulder’
- NC State basketball vs. Tennessee: Score prediction, scouting report
- UNC basketball vs. Kentucky: Scouting report, prediction
- The untold story of Edwin Okoroma, UNC’s first Black varsity athlete
- What UNC basketball needs from Jae’Lyn WithersACC
- The youngest, smallest Deacon serves as big inspiration for team
- ‘Boopie’ making a name for himself in his first season at Wake Forest
- Penn State, Georgia Tech clash at Madison Square Garden
- Penn State basketball | Nittany Lions face Georgia Tech at Madison Square Garden Saturday
- College Basketball Legend Shouts Out Pitt Freshman
- Pitt recruitment report: Panthers hoops hope they landed another hidden gem in Amdy Ndiaye
- Pitt PG Named Top 10 Freshman in College Basketball
- Pitt-South Carolina State preview: Panthers look to respond after last week’s wakeup call
- Top 5 moments from Notre Dame men’s basketball series with Georgetown
- Notre Dame hosts Georgetown, seeks to shake off disappointing loss
- Clemson Men’s Basketball: Tigers take on Memphis
- Memphis welcomes No. 13 Clemson after long road trip
- Why Caleb Mills is confident Memphis basketball’s game plan for No. 11 Clemson is sound
- Memphis basketball coach Penny Hardaway calls for sellout vs. Clemson
- Vermont men’s basketball: Catamounts at Virginia Tech of ACC
- America East champ Vermont up next for Virginia Tech men’s basketball
- Men’s Basketball Begins Three-Game Road Trip Saturday at Virginia Tech - University of Vermont Athletics
- Virginia Tech Basketball: Future Hokies opponent Vermont stuns Yale
- Point/Counterpoint: Reviewing the UVA Men’s Basketball Season So Far
- Five things to watch for UVA basketball vs Northeastern
- GAME PREVIEW: Virginia basketball takes on Northeastern in first game after exam break
- Offense and defense clicking early on for Virginia basketball
- Warley Leads Seminoles Against SMU Saturday At 8:00 p.m.
- Basketball Power Rankings: What’s the latest with Louisville