Observations

Another week is in the books, and a lot of teams are taking a break for Christmas. The 12 ACC teams are playing a total of 12 games this week, with no conference games.

For me the most interesting game was the conference opener between Georgia Tech and Florida State. The Seminoles led most of the way, controlling the paint on defense. They choked a bit in regulation, with two missed free throws, but won it in overtime. I thought this was a really significant game for both teams.

For Florida State, I think it proved that they are building the program. They had so many years of being stuck at 8-8 in conference with an NIT bid. The Noles took a step forward last year, and despite losing Toney Douglas appear to be in it for the long haul. I expect them to go back to the Tournament this year.

But what I took away from this game the most was how Paul Hewitt will probably not be at Georgia Tech much longer. Hewitt has proved to be a great recruiter, getting top NBA talent to come to Atlanta (even if only to play for one year). But I don't think he's a very good in-game coach. His teams, no matter the personnel, seem to still have the same issues. They are very sloppy ballhandlers, and rack up the turnovers. And they don't seem to have a good gameplan on offense that gets the ball in the hands of their best players. For several years now, their strength has been inside, but they have really under-utilized those players. A guy like Derrick Favors would be putting up a lot better numbers at most other schools.

Don't get me wrong -- I really like Paul Hewitt. But he should have a much better record with the level of talent he has. I don't see Georgia Tech earning that preseason top 25 ranking.

In other ACC news, North Carolina lost another game, but I wouldn't panic if I was a Tar Heel fan. They lost to a very good Texas team and I still think the Heels will compete with Duke for the league crown.

This week, check out two games: UMass at Boston College and NC State at Arizona. Both games are on Wednesday.