Season in Review

Georgia Tech

13-18 (5-11 ACC)

The season went about as expected for Georgia Tech. They lost a lot of talent from the previous year, especially down low, and didn't have the horses to really compete in the ACC. That ended up marking the end for Coach Paul Hewitt. Hewitt had some success at Georgia Tech, making it to the championship game in 2004, but he couldn't win with the talent he recruited and couldn't keep that talent in school for more than a year or two.

As for this past season, it was a struggle from the beginning. Georgia Tech lost their second game to Kennesaw State by 17 points. In Kennesaw's only other game against a major conference team, they lost by 40 points to Iowa State. The Yellow Jackets couldn't really pick up any momentum all season. They had a decent non-conference win against Richmond, but followed that up with a loss to Siena.

In conference, Georgia Tech had a couple good home wins, against UNC and Virginia Tech. But they once again couldn't win on the road, with their only conference road win coming against Wake Forest. At one point they lost 8 of 9, with the only win being a non-conference game against Chattanooga. The one bright spot for the team this year was Iman Shumpert. He averaged more than 17 points per game, 5.9 rebounds and 3.5 assists. He was Georgia Tech's best offensive and defensive player. Georgia Tech's main problem was a complete lack of inside scoring. Their top six scorers on the year were all guards, and you have to go to Daniel Miller's 4.4 points per game to see the top scorer on the inside.

Biggest Win:

78-58 vs. UNC on 1/16

This one was a head-scratcher. North Carolina was playing very well, but had a real hiccup here in a 20 point loss down in Atlanta. Georgia Tech held UNC to 27% shooting for the game, and got 30 points out of Shumpert. They were able to follow this up with a 35 point win over Wake Forest.

Worst Loss:

80-63 at Kennesaw State on 11/15

How could this not be the worst loss? I mentioned earlier how bad Kennesaw State was this year. They only won 8 games, and this was their second largest margin of victory all year. You could tell after this game that Georgia Tech was not headed for a good season.

Postseason Play:

Georgia Tech's stay in the postseason was very brief. They played Virginia Tech in the first round of the ACC Tournament, and had a terrible effort. The team had no life, got down big early, and managed only 43 points in a 16 point loss.

Looking Ahead:

Georgia Tech is starting fresh next year with a new coach. The hiring of Dayton's Brian Gregory brought mixed reviews. Gregory had some success with the Flyers, but had been an NIT team of late. He will need to change the culture of losing and fanbase apathy in Atlanta. How successful Gregory is in his first season will depend largely on what Shumpert decides. He has entered his name for the NBA draft but has not hired an agent. If he leaves, that leaves a big hole in the backcourt. If he stays, most of the team remains intact. The only other seniors that had significant playing time were Maurice Miller and Lance Storrs, who combined to score 8.6 points per game. If Georgia Tech can find some frontcourt players they can have a decent year.

Season in Review

Florida State

23-11 (11-5 ACC)

If you are Florida State fan you have to be pretty happy with how this past season went. For years Florida State had a tough time breaking through that NCAA Tournament barrier: they went 8-8 or so every year and just missed out. Then, they started making it to the tournament but couldn't win a game. This year, though, they were able to win two games, and made it to the Sweet 16. You have to give Leonard Hamilton a lot of credit for the job he did. They were without their best player, Chris Singleton, for much of the ACC season, but held it together very well.

It wasn't the smoothest of runs for FSU. They lost two big home games in a row in November, then lost a stretch of 3 out of 4 at the start of the ACC season. But a win over #1 Duke catapulted them to 5 wins in 6 games. The only home game they lost in conference was to UNC, and they went a respectable 4-4 in the ACC on the road. When Singleton was out, players like Bernard James and Derwin Kitchen really picked up the slack. It was really a team effort, with only Singleton averaging more than 11 points per game.

Biggest Win:

57-50 vs. Texas A&M on 3/18 (NCAA Tournament)

This was the win that got FSU over the hump of not having won a game in the NCAA Tournament. They were coming off a heartbreaking loss to Virginia Tech in the ACC Tournament and not much was expected of them in the Big Dance. But the Seminoles responded, even without a healthy Singleton, and this win propelled them to an upset win over Notre Dame.

Worst Loss:

65-60 at Auburn on 1/3

Florida State got a lot of grief for this loss to a really terrible Auburn team. There's not much to say about this one except that the Seminoles shot 35% against a team that went 11-20 this year.

Postseason Play:

The postseason was a mixed bag for FSU. They lost in crazy fashion in the quarterfinal of the ACC Tournament, on a basket by Kitchen that was disallowed at the buzzer against Virginia Tech. Rather than letting that ruin their season, though, the team responded. As a 10 seed, they beat Texas A&M by 7 and Notre Dame by 14. In the Sweet 16, bad possessions at the end of regulation and overtime doomed the Seminoles to a one point loss against VCU.

Looking Ahead:

The question about Florida State now is whether they will be able to sustain success. They have turned into the third best school in the ACC behind North Carolina and Duke, and will be looking to make their fourth straight NCAA berth. They obviously suffer a big loss with Singleton leaving early for the NBA. Kitchen, the second leading scorer, leaves as well. But the only other seniors on the squad never played. They should be quite good with Michael Snaer running the show in the backcourt, and James and Xavier Gibson in the frontcourt. The team's strength will continue to be defense, and if they can develop some consistent 3-point shooters they can make another Sweet 16 run.

Season in Review

Duke

32-5 (13-3 ACC)

The expectations were sky high for Duke this year, coming off a National Championship run and returning nearly all of their players. Nothing they did at the beginning of the season did anything to dampen these expectations. Then, ironically, the season took a turn during the Butler game. Star guard Kyrie Irving got injured, forcing him out for the rest of the regular season. Duke still played pretty well without him, losing only 4 games. There were some signs of weakness, though, especially in their losses.

One of their main problems was the relative ineffectiveness of Kyle Singler. With all the buildup, Singler really had a disappointing year. He especially had a rough stretch near the end of the ACC season. Singler ended up scoring 16.9 points per game, but he only shot 32% from the 3 point line. A positive for Duke was the emergence of players like Seth Curry. Curry ended up averaging 9 points per game but came up big in some big games (especially their home game against UNC).

Of course any discussion of Duke starts and ends with Nolan Smith. He had a monster year, carrying the team on his back in some games, and was really a star for the Blue Devils. Smith ended up with 20.6 points per game, shooting nearly 46% from the field and leading the team in assists. Duke has to be disappointed with the way they ended the season, and I think most of that goes back to Irving. He returned for the NCAA Tournament, and that had a big impact on the team's chemistry. They struggled in a close win against Michigan and then were flat out demolished in the second half against Arizona.

Biggest Win:

75-58 vs. North Carolina on 3/13 (ACC Tournament Final)

Duke always gets up for the ACC Tournament, and played that whole week like they had something to prove. Many people thought UNC would be able to beat them for the second time in a week, but the Devils were having none of that. They controlled this game from start to finish and looked great in building a comfortable lead against their hated rivals. You could tell that the team really wanted that game in their postgame interviews.

Worst Loss:

93-78 at St. John's on 1/30

You could put the loss to Arizona in this spot, but I look at the January non-conference game against the Johnnies. This was the game where you really could see a chink in the armor. Duke was down by 21 points at halftime in a game that most people expected them to win. This was only the second loss of the season and the first one in blowout fashion.

Postseason Play:

As I said before, Duke played very well in the ACC Tournament, rolling to fairly easy wins over Maryland, Virginia Tech and UNC. Their smallest margin of victory was 14. Then the team took a #1 seed into the NCAA Tournament. They had no trouble with Hampton, but had to survive a last-second shot attempt to beat Michigan by 2. Then came the game against Arizona. They played solidly in the first half but it all fell apart for Duke in the second half and they ended up losing by 16. Definitely a bitter end to a season that had a lot of promise.

Looking Ahead:

There is no such thing as rebuilding at Duke, and to think that they will be anything other than great next year is foolish. The team definitely loses a lot, with Singler and Smith graduating and Irving leaving early for the NBA. That represents the top 3 scorers. There is still a lot of talent remaining, though, with Curry and Andre Dawkins in the backcourt. They will be joined by the highly touted Austin Rivers (son of Doc), who will be a freshman. The frontcourt will basically be all Plumlees, and Ryan Kelly. Look for Duke to be in the preseason top 10.

Season in Review

Clemson

22-12 (9-7 ACC)

Like Boston College, you'd have to say this season was a pleasant surprise for Clemson. Even coming off a string of three consecutive NCAA Tournament berths, not a whole lot was expected of this team. They had a fairly unknown commodity in Coach Brad Brownell, who was coming from Wright State. Their best player, Trevor Booker, was gone. And the Tigers came out of the gate a bit cold - they lost four games early in the season. But Clemson was able to turn it around by the end of the year. They played very well down the stretch, going from a team off the bubble to one that played its way into the NCAA Tournament.

The best player for Clemson this year was Demontez Stitt. The senior guard led the team in scoring and had the ability to knock down big shots. The team wasn't just about one player though: six players averaged at least 7.8 points per game. And Clemson was able to play lockdown defense, changing from that pressing style of Oliver Purnell to a more tight man-to-man.

Biggest Win:

70-47 vs. Boston College on 3/11 (ACC Tournament Quarterfinals)

What I had as BC's worst loss is Clemson's biggest win. Many people saw this game as a winner is in, loser is out of the NCAA Tournament. And that's how it ended up playing out. Clemson played perhaps its best game of the year in this one, beating up on BC from the very start. They used this momentum in another solid game against UNC in the semis, just running out of steam at the end.

Worst Loss:

49-47 at Virginia on 2/2

It's not the fact that they lost in Charlottesville, because Virginia was not that bad of a team. But this game was ugly with a capital U. Clemson was actually down big with horrendous offensive numbers for much of the game before mounting a late rally to make it close. I'm sure Coach Brownell would agree this was probably their worst performance.

Postseason Play:

Clemson played very well in the postseason. After earning a #4 seed in the ACC Tournament, they beat up on #5 seed Boston College. Then they took on UNC in a virtual road game and had a great game, only to fall in overtime. Clemson then got into the dreaded play-in game in the NCAA Tournament and beat up on a UAB team that was overmatched. They had a very quick turnaround against #5 seed West Virginia and actually had a healthy lead through much of the first half but tired down the stretch and ended up losing by 8.

Looking Ahead:

You have to like what Coach Brownell did this year with a group that wasn't his own players. Next year should be set up pretty well, as the Tigers don't lose too much. Stitt and Jerai Grant do graduate. They represent the team's top two scorers this year. But the Tigers do return an emerging talent in Milton Jennings. Andre Young needs to continue to grow as a shooter, as he will be the main outside game next year. And expect a good year out of Devin Booker (Trevor's brother). If Tanner Smith can become a more consistent scorer in the backcourt Clemson should be in good shape to make a fifth consecutive NCAA Tournament.

Season in Review: Boston College

The dust has settled on the ACC season and it's time to look back and see how each team did. Did the season perform up to expectations? Or was it a disappointment? We start with Boston College.

Boston College

21-13 (9-7 ACC)

You have to say this season was a pleasant surprise for BC. They were coming off a bad season, lost their best player from the year before (Tyrese Rice) and had a new coach. But you have to give Steve Donahue credit. He took what was a fairly experienced team that was used to playing the flex offense and got them to buy into his system. The team started off well, beating Texas A&M and Cal in Orlando. They started the ACC season with a road win over Maryland and put up some solid wins from there on out.

The season did end in disappointing fashion for BC. They lost by a wide margin in a key ACC Tournament game against Clemson, and didn't make the cut for the Big Dance. They ended up losing in the second round of the NIT, at home against Northwestern. For the Eagles this year, it was all about Reggie Jackson. Jackson ended up scoring more than 18 points per game and ran the point efficiently.

Biggest Win:

67-65 vs. Texas A&M on 11/25 (in Orlando)

This was the game where people started to take notice of Boston College. They played a tough Texas A&M team that was a quality tournament team and got out to a hot start. This was the opening game in the Old Spice Classic, which ended up being a 2-1 week for BC.

Worst Loss:

70-47 vs. Clemson on 3/11 (ACC Tournament Quarterfinals)

This was probably the game that kept BC out of the NCAA Tournament. They had losses to worse teams than Clemson, but there wasn't a more important loss. And it wasn't just the fact that they lost - they got blown out. After this game, the team really didn't have an argument for getting left out of the tournament.

Postseason Play:

You'd have to say that the postseason was disappointing. BC won their first round game in the ACC Tournament over Wake Forest before losing to Clemson. In the NIT they went down to McNeese State and won before losing to Northwestern before a sparse home crowd on a Saturday morning.

Looking Ahead:

Much of what happens with BC next year depends on what Reggie Jackson does. Right now, he has declared for the NBA Draft but has not hired an agent, leaving open the possibility that he comes back. Even if Jackson does come back, there isn't much around him. BC loses seniors Joe Trapani, Josh Southern, Biko Paris, Corey Raji, Courtney Dunn and Josh Cahill. That represents four of the top five scorers this year. The next best player left is Danny Rubin, who averaged four points per game. I think Donahue is a good coach who will do well at BC, but next year will probably see some growing pains.

Coming Soon!

Sadly, the college basketball season is over. What was a very interesting tournament ended in a lackluster championship game, with Butler turning in one of the worst final game performances I've ever seen. That shouldn't take anything away from what Butler accomplished this year (and last year). That remains one of the best feats in my lifetime in the sport.

With the season now over, I will be taking a look back. Once Miami hires a new coach, I will start running down all the teams in the conference - did this past season live up to expectations? And what does next year look like? Stay tuned!

National Final Preview

Last year it really seemed like Butler had a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to win the National Championship. No one would have expected them to get back to the game with another chance the very next year. What they have done is truly remarkable. I said this morning that Brad Stevens should get an automatic invite into the Hall of Fame if Butler wins this game - and I say that only half-jokingly.

Connecticut has defied the odds this season too. No one expected them to do much this year, coming off an NIT season. But they have won 10 straight tournament games, led by their star Kemba Walker. I think if Walker has a good game, UConn will be very difficult to beat. Their bigs will give Matt Howard problems, and Butler has to have a good game from Shelvin Mack to compete. Of course, Butler has found ways to win against seemingly insurmountable odds already this year (and last). So counting them out is not something I would recommend. I will go with UConn, though, in what should be an excellent game.

Pick: Connecticut

Final Four Preview

What a wild NCAA Tournament this has been! This is the first year that I can remember throwing my bracket in the trash before the Final Four. The last four teams include one from the Colonial and one from the Horizon leagues. And they are playing each other! Conventional wisdom says the winner of the second semifinal game will win it all, but I threw conventional wisdom out the window a while ago.

#11 VCU vs. #8 Butler (6:07 p.m.) - I don't know which is the better story - VCU or Butler. The fact that Butler has made two straight Final Fours is remarkable - one of the best achievements in the history of college basketball. VCU meanwhile is the darling of the tournament and the team that has pulled off the most shocking upset (over Kansas). I think the difference between these two teams is experience. VCU has never been even close to the Final Four, and will be playing in the biggest stage of their life. Butler has been there done that, and has a seasoned and battle-tested team. VCU certainly can win this game, but I'm going to go with Butler. Pick: Butler

#4 Kentucky vs. #3 Connecticut (8:47 p.m.) - It's hard to believe that a program with the tradition of Kentucky hasn't been to the Final Four since 1998. But here they are with as good a chance as any to take home the title. This has to be rewarding for John Calipari, especially since everyone expected them to be here last year and they couldn't get the job done. It will be interesting to watch Kentucky's young team go against Kemba Walker, the kind of star that deserves to have that Final Four stage. Besides Jeremy Lamb, we'll see what other players can step up for Connecticut. I think this will be an excellent game, and for the second time this year UConn will beat Kentucky. Pick: Connecticut