The ACC Sucks

Is Maryland…….good? I say no. And that goes for the rest of its once-mighty league.

The recently-ranked Terrapins (22-7, 12-3 ACC) all but clinched a share of the Atlantic Coast Conference regular season title with a 79-72 win over the universally hated Blue Devils on Wednesday night. But what exactly does that mean? Maryland’s best non-conference win this year was against Fairfield, a team outside the top 100 in RPI, and the school also has loses against Cincinnati, Wisconsin and Villanova on neutral courts.

And the rest of the ACC’s bubble teams have a resume a lot like a fat chick – fun to mess around with, but sucks to be stuck with when your friends start to judge you. Let’s look at the league’s teams and their best non-conference wins. Clemson? A one-point win over Butler. Virginia Tech? An overtime win against Seton Hall. Florida State? A one-point win over Marquette. Wake Forest?  A two-point win at Gonzaga. Georgia Tech? A win over Charlotte.

Solid, but nothing spectacular. A handful of victories over good mid-majors and other bubble teams is the best most of this league can tout. Even Duke doesn’t have much to tout its horn about: it’s best win is over an NIT-bound UConn team on a neutral floor, or a neutral floor beatdown against Gonzaga. The Blue Devils, however, fell victim to Wisconsin during the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.

Entering Championship Week, this much is clear about the ACC: it’s a good thing for Gonzaga they play in the West Coast Conference and it’s a good thing for the ACC that Wisconsin isn’t in their league. Because their  teams aren’t in the same one as the Badgers.

   3  Duke                    =  92.75   25   4   79.65(   6)    3   2  |   10   3  |   91.04    5 |   95.32    1
  14  Maryland                =  87.41   20   7   77.75(  40)    1   4  |    5   5  |   86.17   24 |   88.68   13
  20  Clemson                 =  86.63   21   8   78.03(  32)    1   4  |    5   6  |   85.39   30 |   87.88   15
  27  Florida State           =  85.90   20   8   77.78(  38)    1   6  |    4   7  |   84.92   33 |   86.73   21
  33  Georgia Tech            =  84.60   18  10   78.93(  16)    2   3  |    3   7  |   83.49   43 |   85.60   25
  34  Virginia Tech           =  84.41   21   7   76.06(  64)    1   2  |    2   4  |   84.69   35 |   83.83   42
  35  Wake Forest             =  84.28   18   8   78.42(  24)    2   2  |    5   4  |   84.63   36 |   83.65   43
  60  North Carolina          =  81.61   16  14   79.61(   7)    2   6  |    4  11  |   80.78   63 |   82.20   54
  66  Miami-Florida           =  80.59   17  11   75.57(  76)    0   3  |    3   6  |   79.22   79 |   81.84   57
  72  Boston College          =  79.70   14  14   78.39(  25)    1   4  |    2  10  |   78.41   86 |   80.83   63
  74  NC State                =  79.53   16  13   77.34(  48)    2   3  |    4   7  |   78.95   81 |   79.82   71
  77  Virginia                =  78.98   14  13   77.45(  47)    0   3  |    2   8  |   77.92   91 |   79.83   70

No teams with a below .500 record.  Most competitive conference in the nation.

I see your angle, but which conference is it that is so much better.  Probably think the Big East like everyone else. 

Was on that bandwagon til I realized Pitt has beat the top 3 B.E. teams.  Not that Pitt is that bad, but how do you lose to Indiana?  I hate to judge any team on one game, but that is BAD.  Not like Texas is that great either.  I really expect the tourney to show a more evenly matched field than expected.  Wouldn't be surprised to see just 1 B.E. left in final four.  Watch out for Wisc, Duke, Mary, Kentucky, And Vandy.  Wouldn't be a reach to see any of these around late.  IMO