There are 15 ACC teams and every team participates in this
tournament. That being the case it
started with three games on Wednesday, March 4th with the teams in
10th to 15th place playing for a spot in the 2nd
round. There were a couple of
surprises.
#10 North Carolina State lost 57 to 56 to #15 Virginia Tech on
a last second shot from Hanna Young. #12 Boston College lost to #13 Wake Forest 69 to 53 behind a
23 point, 8 rebound performance from senior Dearica Hamby
In the one expected result of the day, #11 Georgia Tech had
no trouble though with #14 Clemson winning 80 to 53 despite just 3 points and 5
fouls in 12 minutes from All-ACC Sophomore Kaela Davis. The Georgia Tech win earned them a matchup with my
Tar Heels on Thursday.
Before I get to that, I have to mention the that Virginia
Tech and Wake Forest have continued on their unlikely journey. Wake Forest upset the 5th seed
Syracuse Orange 85 to 79 yesterday afternoon and Virginia Tech beat the #7 seed
Pittsburgh 51 to 45. So after winning
three games between them in the ACC regular season, they have each won games on
back to back days. You have to love March
Madness. It’s a brand new season. #8 Miami and #9 Virginia squared off on
Thursday as well. Miami won 62 to 52
behind 8 three pointers they sank during the game.
The Tar Heels and the Yellow Jackets had the final game of
the day. They had last squared off on
January 11th in Carmichael. Now, for several
years, my daughter happened to have a Teacher’s workday fall on the Friday of
the tournament; so we would make our way to Greensboro by Thursday evening
whether North Carolina was in action or not.
Didn’t happen this year. So we
spent last night screaming at the TV with a bag of Carolina gear packed for the
weekend sitting at the front door.
This game showed great balance for the Tar Heels. There were three players in double figures
(Gray, Mavunga, Coleman); but there were four more players (Bryant, Cherry,
Washington and Rountree) that had either 8 or 9 points each. The Tar Heels had just 10 turnovers and
played great team defense. Final, North
Carolina 84, Georgia Tech 64.
Yes, nearly a triple double and that is impressive on its own; but, considering that much of the night she was double and triple teamed, it says a lot. I could see this was a concerted effort to take advantage of Stephanie's size and skill and wow, just a monster effort on both ends of the floor. That 8 blocks is likely the most in a game since she came to UNC. Just a great job in a very physical game. She hit her first three shots and just continued to own it from there.
After a monster game in Cameron indoor (which I missed most of due to a power outage), Jessica looks as confident as ever. It was great to see her hit her shots here in the first game. In pregame they told us about special glasses she uses to warm up due to a depth perception challenge she deals with. I told my daughter if she keeps shooting like this everyone will want a pair.
What can I saw about this young lady. My tweet last night was "tough as nails" and I've always thought so. For the 2nd straight year, she suffered an injury in the first game of the ACC tournament. Last year she hit her head and sat the rest of the game as a precaution. This year an ankle sprain. Had to remind myself to breath while she laid there on the court and was helped to the locker room. She returned to the court to play some inspired basketball.
Latifah has had some magical moments in Greensboro Coliseum. If last night is any indication she is going to put her stamp on her final ACC tournament. Ran things really well out there last night, was under control, made great decisions and shot the ball well.
From the beginning of the season, North Carolina's only freshman let us know she would not shrink in big moments. Her first college post season game was no exception. In 13 minutes on the floor she game us these points and moved the ball well.
N'Dea had continued her strong play since entering the starting lineup. She's hard to defend with her quickness, her length, her athleticism all combined with that killer midrange jumper. With the ability to play inside out, she has become a real weapon for this team.
Seems like yesterday she played her first ACC tournament game setting a record for the most 3 pointers made in a game (7). Now it's her final tournament and she is doing everything you want from a senior. She's playing great defense, scoring consistently, being a leader, getting the ball to people in scoring position, just making things happen. Great Carolina victory over a very good Georgia Tech team who will be heard from in the post season and in seasons to come.
Photo from www.goheels.com
The Tar Heels will enjoy this one for a bit, but Louisville is up next. They are the #3 seed and North Carolina's opponent in the last game of the day. The Heels lost a close one in the YUM Center during the regular season, a game they lead until the last 5 minutes. That's a memory likely in the front of everyone's mind today. The weather has shortened this day more than expected; so we'll be hitting the highway from Car Pool today. Looking forward to joining the team and our fellow fans in Tournament Town. Until then and always...
Go Heels!
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