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NCAA Basketball: Power conferences’ 2019-20 surprising and disappointing teams

By Jason Burgess

MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - APRIL 08: A view of the official game ball in the basket prior to the 2019 NCAA men's Final Four National Championship game between the Virginia Cavaliers and the Texas Tech Red Raiders at U.S. Bank Stadium on April 08, 2019 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - APRIL 08: A view of the official game ball in the basket prior to the 2019 NCAA men's Final Four National Championship game between the Virginia Cavaliers and the Texas Tech Red Raiders at U.S. Bank Stadium on April 08, 2019 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /
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Photo Credit: Joe Robbins – Getty Images
Photo Credit: Joe Robbins – Getty Images /

ACC

Surprise: Virginia Tech Hokies 9-3

The ACC is the best conference in the sport and the usual suspects, Duke, North Carolina, Virginia, and Louisville are at the top and likely to remain there, but to me, the surprise of the conference is another team with a new coach, the Virginia Tech Hokies. Mike Young comes over after a successful season at Wofford and with a depleted roster after the coaching change was picked 14th in the conference’s preseason poll.

The Hokies exited the Christmas holiday with a 9-3 record that included an upset of Michigan State at the Maui Invitational. Redshirt guard Landers Nolley II has been a revelation for the Hokies, averaging over 17 points per game and over 44% from three-point land.

Disappointment: Syracuse Orange 7-5

Given the departures over the summer for Syracuse, we knew that finding points was going to be an issue, and it has been against power-five teams this season. With four of their five losses coming at the hands of such teams and averaging just 56 points in those games, that has certainly been the case.

Junior forward Elijah Hughes has led the Jim Boeheim’s squad offensively with 19.8 points, 4.5 rebounds and 4.3 assists and if it wasn’t for the three-point shooting of Hughes, Buddy Boeheim and Joseph Girard III who have shot 38% for a team that ranks 38th in the country in the category, the offensive woes would be even dire. With conference play right around the corner, the question is, will the Orange be able to sustain that success?

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