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Who Needs Dickie V. When You've Got Ricky P.!

Game By Game Breakdown

Saturday, January 17, 2009

A Great Day For Hoops Fans

There are a number of good games today. There are five games where both teams are ranked in the top 25. One game features two of the three remaining unbeaten teams and the number one team in the country has to go on the road to another ranked opponent.

Let’s start with Clemson versus Wake Forest. If anyone told you that at this point in the season there would be two undefeated teams in the ACC, I doubt anyone in the country would have predicted that the two teams would be Clemson and Wake. The obvious choices would be Duke and Carolina, but the Heels have two losses and the Blue Devils have a one loss.

The game is being played at Littlejohn Coliseum in Clemson, South Carolina and this is more of a difference maker than most people may realize. Clemson has enjoyed a great home court advantage over the years and the especially during Oliver Purnell’s tenure. Clemson is a 2-point favorite over the Demon Deacons. Obviously the reason for this is the home court advantage.

I like Clemson to win this game and cover the two points. I know I predicted Wake would lose to Boston College this week, but the young Demon Deacons took control early in that one and maintained control throughout the game. Clemson is a much better team than BC and the big difference is the inside play. Trevor Booker is one of the best post players in the country that nobody talks about. The junior forward is averaging 15.1 points, 9.1 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game. The inside guys for Wake (Aminu, McFarland and Johnson) will have their hands full with Booker and Raymond Sykes.

The second game to focus on is the Pitt/ Louisville game. Pitt puts its number one ranking and undefeated record on the line at Freedom Hall in Louisville. Louisville enters the game at 12-3, but they have won four in a row including wins over Kentucky, Villanova and Notre Dame. The Cardinals are playing their best ball of the year right now and they are a 2.5-point favorite.

Pitt enters at 16-0, but only one win over a ranked opponent. Don’t think for a minute I am downplaying the Panthers, they have been pounding teams all year long. Their closest games have been a 6-point win at Rutgers and an 8-point win at Florida State, all other games have been double-digit wins. They beat Georgetown by 16, at Georgetown.

The two match-ups to watch will be on the blocks with Samardo Samuels and DaJuan Blair and on the wing with Sam Young and Earl Clark. Each team has one player that is a tough match-up for the other. For Pitt, they are going to have their hands full with Terrence Williams. Williams exploded for 24 points in the game against Notre Dame. For Louisville, Levance Fields presents a problem. The 5’10” spark plug is a true point guard. He is one of the best floor generals in the country.

I like Louisville to win this game if for no other reason than they have been tested more than Pitt. I think this will be an incredibly tight game that will see lots of lead changes.

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Another Huge Match-Up In The Big East

Another day and another top-20 match-up in the Big East. What’s new? This one is a throw back though as Syracuse heads down to D.C. to take on Georgetown. There is also an upset in the making in the ACC as well.

Let’s start with the 16-1 Orangemen versus the 11-3 Hoyas. Syracuse started the season unranked and shot out to a 9-0 start before losing on a miracle shot to Cleveland State. This is the only blemish on Syracuse’s record. They have marquee wins over Florida, Memphis and Kansas, all three of which were ranked at the time.

As for Georgetown, their three losses have come at the hands of Tennessee, Pitt and Notre Dame and they have wins over Memphis and of Connecticut.

Syracuse is one of the top scoring teams in the country and they will look to push the pace while staying the patented zone defense against a Georgetown team that is not a good outside shooting team. The Orange have five guys averaging in double figures and they are led by Jonny Flynn, the sophomore guard. Flynn averages 16.4 points per game and leads the team in assists with 5.5 per game. Eric Devendorf averages 13.9 and Paul Harris averages 13.8. Harris leads the team in rebounding at 8.3 per game.

For Georgetown, they want to inside as much as possible where they will have a decided height advantage over Syracuse. G’Town is led by DaJuan Summers with 14.7 points per game and freshman Greg Monroe with 13.5 points per game. Monroe leads the team in rebounding with 6.3 per game. Chris Wright and Austin Freeman are the only other double-digit scorers for the Hoyas.

This is quite the contrast in styles. Syracuse wants to push the tempo and will live on the outside shot. Georgetown wants to slow it down and to bang it inside. Georgetown is a 6-point favorite in this one and I look for Syracuse to cover that spread. The Hoyas may win the game, but I don’t think it will be by much.

In the second game that I mentioned in the opening paragraph, the undefeated Wake Forest Demon Deacons travel to Boston College. Wake is 14-0 and they are coming off their biggest win in several seasons with their win over North Carolina on Sunday. Wake is a young team, but they have not been tested all that much this year. The win over UNC and a win over Baylor are the only two big wins this year.

The Demon Deacons are led by two sophomores and a freshman. Sophomore point guard Jeff Teague leads with 20.6 points per game and 4.1 assists per game. James Johnson is averaging 13.1 points and 8 rebounds per game and freshman Al-Farouq Aminu averages 12.7 points and 8.7 rebounds.

Boston College enters at 13-4 and they are coming off back to back home losses after beating North Carolina. Tyrese Rice leads the Eagles with 17.3 points and 6.1 assists per game. Joey Trapani averages 13.3 points and 6.6 rebounds and Corey Raji averages 12.1 points and a team best 6.9 rebounds.

Wake is a 4-point favorite in this game, but I think they are ripe for a let down. After the big win over Carolina and a Saturday match-up with fellow undefeated Clemson, the young Demon Deacons are vulnerable on the road. The Eagles are coming off back to back losses at home and they are itching to get back to their winning ways. I look for BC to win this game outright.