ACC basketball: Are the top teams contenders or pretenders?
By John Ryan
Outside of the very top teams, ACC basketball has a ton of squads that are still hard to read. Who are real and who isn’t?
Welcome to the first edition of “Contenders or Pretenders”. In this series, I will breakdown and identify which schools have a real shot to go the distance in March, as well as those with a round-of-64 exit near in their future.
This year in college basketball is as wide-open as ever. There are an abundance of teams with the potential to find their way into the Final Four. So, going conference-by-conference, selecting anywhere from three to seven teams, I will try to make better sense of the field.
The ACC basketball league has become very top-heavy this season, with several teams separating themselves from the pack. Question is now, which of these said teams will be either big threats for a deep run, or just simply a quick exit.
Virginia Cavaliers: 23-2 (12-1)
In an uncharacteristically weak year for the ACC, Virginia continues to stand out among the rest. Led by their stout defense and terrific guard-play, Virginia has the perfect construct to make a deep run in March.
Head coach Tony Bennett has built this Virginia program on the defensive-end. They have been a tough defensive team during the past few seasons, but this season they have reached another level, holding opponents to an NCAA-low 52.8 ppg.
The progression and maturation of guards Kyle Guy and Devon Hall have been incredibly important. Both Guy and Hall deliver consistency to the Cavaliers offensive unit, something that has lacked in seasons past.
Virginia checks all the boxes of a Final Four team. They should be viewed as the early favorites to win it all.