Three games on Tuesday as Boston College goes to Virginia, Louisville visits SMU and UNC checks in with Wake Forest.
BC and Virginia is a weird one. Virginia has lost five straight and really only the SMU game was close.
As for the Eagles, they’ve lost four straight, none of them particularly close although they did play fairly well against a much better Duke team.
We’d probably go with Boston College here because the coaching is more stable. And Virginia seems a bit demoralized in general, which isn’t helpful.
Louisville and SMU is a very interesting game. After getting smacked around by Duke, SMU has played very well against Georgia Tech and Miami. Only Virginia, ironically, gave them a good game, but the Mustangs still won.
However, Louisville is playing with not just confidence but swagger and Chucky Hepburn is likely going to strangle Boopie Miller defensively. And as Al McGuire taught us, if you cut off the head, the body dies.
Pat Kelsey has done a tremendous job to date. It’s not that Andy Enfield hasn’t done a great job at SMU – he really has. But Louisville was really in the crapper emotionally – and we mean players, fans, everyone – and he’s completely turned that around. It’s really impressive and you can see that team growing before your eyes. In fact, the Cardinals are now ranked: Louisville is #25 in this week’s AP Poll.
UNC and Wake Forest should be interesting. The Tar Heels just lost to Stanford at home and part of the reason for that was that they couldn’t control Maxime Raynaud. It won’t be quite the same thing with Effron Reid, but he’s still big and strong.
The real question is whether Wake’s guards can stop UNC’s perimeter. And here’s another major concern for UNC: they had been improving their NCAA resume before the Stanford loss. They can’t afford many more at this point. There’s a lot more pressure on the Tar Heels than there is on Wake Forest in this one.
Tuesday’s ACC Action
- Boston College @ Virginia || 7:00 || ACCN
- Louisville @ SMU || 9:00 || ACCN
- UNC @ Wake Forest || 9:00 || ESPN
The ACC has been full of surprises this season, but one team that has been turning heads recently is Louisville. After a strong start to the season, the Cardinals have continued to impress with their play on both sides of the ball.
With wins over tough opponents like Duke and Virginia, Louisville is making a case to be considered a serious contender in the ACC. Led by standout guard Carlik Jones, who is averaging over 17 points per game, the Cardinals have shown they have the talent and depth to compete with the best teams in the conference.
But the question remains: is Louisville for real now? Some fans and analysts are still hesitant to fully buy into the Cardinals’ success, citing their inconsistent play at times and lack of signature wins against top-ranked opponents.
However, with a strong finish to the regular season and a solid showing in the ACC tournament, Louisville could prove their doubters wrong and make a deep run in March Madness. Only time will tell if the Cardinals are truly a force to be reckoned with in the ACC, but one thing is for sure – they are a team to keep an eye on as the season progresses.
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