As you have probably noted by now, the ACC Tournament seedings were settled over the weekend and UNC ended up in the #10 slot ahead of NC State and Miami. UNC will play on Thursday of the ACC Tournament for the first time ever at 7:00 PM on ESPN against #7 Georgia Tech. Obviously, given how the other two games went with the Yellow Jackets I would have rather have them play Wake Forest. After all the air in Winston-Salem is rank with internal dissension and a coach no one wants to openly say is on the hot seat. Georgia Tech on the other hand has a coach who everyone talks about being on the hot seat except for the folks that actually make the decision.
The upside here is despite the horrible beatdown at Duke, you could argue that UNC is playing somewhat better than they did when the Jackets rolled them in Atlanta. I like the Heels’ chances, especially since beating a team three times in one season is immensely difficult to do. On the flip side, the last non-Duke team to beat UNC three times in one season was….wait for it….Georgia Tech! How about that!
In case you were wondering, it was 1985 when the Mark Price-led Yellow Jackets knocked UNC off three times that season, the last of those in the ACC Championship game. Here are some more fun facts. UNC is 4-4 versus Georgia Tech in the ACC Tournament and presently have a two game losing streak vs the Jackets in conference postseason play. However, UNC is 3-1 versus GT in Greensboro and should enjoy a pro-Tar Heel crowd. UNC leads the overall series 59-21 with the Heels’ longest losing streak being three on two occasions, the aforementioned 1985 season and the 1993 ACC Championship followed by two regular season losses in 1994.
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It’s hard to be upbeat about this squad, but I’m still on the boat with ‘em and still hope something turns around.
^So am I but I am so tired of being grossly disappointed. Hmmm…isn’t that the definition of insanity?
after hearing the score against Duke, I don’t want to see another carolina game this year and with the way they have been playing all year, that means 1 maybe two games left. Will they go to the NIT? They don’t even deserve that!!! Not b/c I have given up on my team but it’s just down right depressing to watch them play. I get mad and upset every time I watch them play and that is just not healthy for me. I’m tired of this team’s play. There just isn’t any excuse by getting beat by 32 points, especially to Duke!!! This team is an exact 180 turn of last year’s. I have no idea what they are doing and what they are thinking. The bottom line is they don’t care!!! And if we have players like this next year, it’s going to be the same thing. If they beat Ga. Tech, I will be shocked!!!!
Like I told some delusional folks who think that this team can win the ACC, the mathematical chances of that happening is 12.5%. Given the intangibles, the teams they will face, their mental makeup etc., I peg their chances to somewhere between 0-6%.
my sentiments exactly @wilf and @7yrsblue….i’m STILL on board waiting for that ‘aha’ moment after we had one against MSU early on….it’s never too late, and it aint over til it’s over, and…(insert sports cliche here). honestly the best i can hope for is for a valiant effort to get that duke game out of my mind. we know we’re rebuilding and focusing on next year, so hopefully the team gives us some glimpse at what this off season will be like: competitive, hungry, determined. with our injuries and our roster, those 3 things won’t win us the ACCT but it should get us past GT….we shall see….
Dream on , friends. The only way we win the ACCT is if all of our opponents get the norovirus and we somehow avoid it. I would be satisfied with a win Thurs., a competitive effort Fri., and one win in the NIT. Just no more 20-plus point losses, please.
rope-a-dope…lol—that should be the tongue in cheek moniker for this season in all future references.
0-6%…so you’re saying there’s a chance!
@ ap1, totally agree, if we lose let’s at least go out fighting and give us fans something good to think about in the offseason besides harrison barnes
0-6% yeah, heavy heavy heavy odds. Let’s just say with that kind of odds you can win the lottery.
who would of thought that a Paul Hewitt coached team, has the chance to beat UNC three times in season. Another great stat, in this nightmare of a season.
^So what is the story on Hewitt. There was a time when he looked like he was going to be the next best thing in ACC coaching. I know he’s had a lot of defections but seems to keep recruiting some good players. Haven’t really watched him except against UNC. Am I missing something about his coaching acumen or lack of it?
The theory here in Atlanta is that Hewitt became ineffective as a coach after he lost one of his assistant coaches. Don’t ask me which one because I am too lazy to look it up. The media in this town and the fan base for GT is ready to have him drawn and quartered at this point but GT made the mistake of signing him to a rollover contract after the Final 4 run that will cost the university about 7 million dollars to buy out. That’s not a typo, if they fire him they have to pay 7 million to him for NOT coaching the team. They already had to pay a huge buyout to Chan Gailey when he was fired so it’s unlikely that Hewitt will be gone before next season or the economy recovers, whichever comes first I suppose. Oh and I would imagine when Paul goes the AD is history too.
Hewitt is a bottom tire coach in the ACC with Lowe and the guy from Miami, and we can lose to him 3 times this year
^Does he coach for Goodyear or Michelin?
hahahahha, my bad, i would say its Good year
Dunlop.
So whats the over/under on getting just 25 minutes of effort and concentration from our players against Ga Tech? I say “Under”…Quitters.
Problem with Georgia Tech this season is that Derrick Favors and Gani Lawal can not exist in the paint together their games are too similar. I guess this Deon Thompson was relatively successful when he was playing along side Hansbrough. That turn around jumper from 10 ft seems like a good compliment to Hansbrough’s tenacity in the paint.
I’m with you Wilf, I don’t know why but I’m always thinking they are going to wake up.