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2 WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5, 2008 No. 1 BLUE NO LONGER Duke's vulnerability'to athletic teams was somewhat exposed in back-to-back losses to Wake Forest and Miami in February. And when the Blue Devils aren’t hit ting their 3s. they can look very ordinary. That said, they still have a good shot at a No. 1 seed with a 25-3 (12-2 ACC) record. But Duke will need a big push if it wants to go through Charlotte. Duke No. 4 (8 6. 17-11) Virginia Tech IN THE THICK OF IT The Hokies are scarily inconsistent. They got blown out by 39 against UNC on Feb. 16 before pro ceeding to score victories on the road against Maryland and at home against Georgia Tech. The problem for this club is that its record sits at 17-11. thanks to losses in almost every big non conference game. As is the case with most ACC teams. Va. Tech needs a couple more wins. Wake Forest FEEL GOOD STORY By far the best story of the sea son to this point, the Deacons have really grown with first-year coach Dino Gaudio. Blessed with two flashes for guards in Jeff Teague and Ishmael Smith and a powerful force in James Johnson, WFU sits at 6-8 in the ACC and lx lasts a big-time win against then-No. 2 Duke. But three straight ACC losses have made an NCAA appearance unlikely. ’ HE DESERVES BETTER Rather than talk about the Cavaliers' +-io conference record, let's just lament about what Sean Virginia Singletary has to go through every game. He could be the most exciting player to watch in the confer ence with his assortment of jukes and leaping abil ity. But the prxir man has to go through a horrific senior season on an inexperienced UVa. squad. Look At Us! 2,Z& 4 Bedrooms in Chapel Hill Great locations and Carrboro Near bus stops YOU ASKED FOR IT, WE LISTENED. <a> , —. jMLo/Mo/v montrail i 2s22£slil "SZm w MM3 m Or Wk 929-7626 Trail Shop < n £c?mZ ' ZZTZr -J PmlJ i Y i Lj IftffiSftmJ North Carolina v f Maryland Florida State & Focus on the GAME Nikon Prostaff Fits in your pocket! Great for sports! Waterproof & Lightweight! Wild Bird Center (919) 933-2030 j /SjTT/ :;x’x-x-xxox-x^-x-x-x-x-x<vxx<s-ra>:owxx-xx<\x<x’x-x>x‘w^ I mm Better Ingredients. Better Pizza. | $ Accepts % wamuajmvwim&uiJß unc onecard >• 1 LARGE , Tburs-Sat Warn-Jam p|yyA i 1 Sunday Ham-lam IUP 10 THREE'II w I | TOPPjNGS_ I HdOh ACC TARHEEL - ! DEAL | SPECIAL j I 1 EXTRA qq I 2 URGE qq I | LARGE *l7 ”1 1 Topping /? | j 3Toppings ifc j PIZZAS 1 " 1 ACC Preview No. 2 (12-2,27-2) HEELS HEATING UP The Tar Heels have rebounded strongly from losses to Maryland and Duke but probably will need to win the ACC Tournament to gain a No. 1 seed in the Big Dance for the second consecutive sea son. TVler Hansbrough is making his case for POY consideration every night, and UNC hasn’t lost much with Quentin Thomas at the point in place of the hobbled sophomore TV Law’son. No. 5 (8-7,18-12) CASE MADE? Your classic bubble team, the Terps have their defining win at North Carolina and they're sitting at better than .500 in the conference. But blown 17-point lead on senior-day loss to Clemson has raised doubts. They still can make a good showing in the ACC Tournament and Greivis Vasquez’s play at point combined with James Gist and Bambale Osby down low. definitely could get them there. No. 8 (6-8. 17-12) TOO LITTLE TOO LATE The Seminoles got a big-time n fimj win against Clemson and are pulling themselves back into the picture —but just the very edge of it. At 6-8 in conference play and 17-12 overall, they need to finish strong and have a solid ACC Tournament. Nonconference wins against UAB. Florida and Minnesota definitely help, but a loss against Cleveland State raises questions. Hello, NIT. NOT SO GOLDEN Sitting at 4-10 in conference and 13-14 overall, BC’s season is looking like it's just about finished barring a miraculous run to end the season or in the ACC Tournament. TVrese Rice has been the man all year for BC, and he continues to grow into an all-around scorer rather than just a spot-up threat. Watch out next year if Rice and talented freshman Rakim Sanders get some help. (3 Clemson 3 Miami Georgia Tech % N.C. State MN&BICTCIf Chain We Know Bikes www.thebicyclechain.com ■ Sales, Service, Rentals ■ Certified Mechanics ■ Lifetime Free Service ■ Trade In Program ■ Price Match Guarantee CHAPEL HILL: 210 W. Franklin St. 919-929-0213 Open 7 days a week SPECIALIZED TREK f flfc&OO Supporting\ P®SWi the Tar Heels 'rAJ* #\ since 1972 n? ©iftppSt waffle slioppe No. 3 (9-5,21-7) LOCKED IN The Tigers definitely look like an NCAA team right now. With two big-time guards in K.C. Rivers and Cliff Hammonds. Oliver Purnell’s squad defi nitely has improved from last year. Most impor tantly, the Tigers bounced back from a devastating choke job against UNC to win four of five. But free-throw troubles cause Clemson some trouble. WORK LEFT TO DO The ’Canes are becoming a nice story this season thanks to the program's defining win at home against Duke. That will get them noticed, and they also have nice nonconference victories against VCU and Mississippi State. But in general, Miami’s nonconference schedule was weak, and it needs a deep run in the ACC Tournament to prove its worth to the NCAA Tournament committee. No. 9 (5-9,12-16) INCONSISTENT KIDS Just when you thought Paul Hewitt’s club had turned the cor ner. they dive-bomb again and lose five straight games four in the ACC. After an 0-3 start to the conference season, the Yellow Jackets reeled off four of their next five to get right back in it. But you have to win games at home vs. Miami or on the road against a young Virginia Tech team to really have a shot at the NCAAs. No. 12 (4-11,15-14) A STEP BACK Gavin Grant’s ill-fated prediction to start this season will be remem bered for a while, mostly because of how inconsistent the Wolfpack has been ever since. Sidney Lowe must be having lots of sleepless nights, such as those after losses to New’ Orleans and East Carolina And the ’Pack’s 4-11 mark in the ACC is not going to draw consid eration from either the NCAA or the NIT. (Thr Daily (Ear Hrrl 00, LJ
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
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March 5, 2008, edition 1
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