ACC Basketball Power Rankings: Duke Blue Devils gelling at the right time

DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA - FEBRUARY 10: Teammates Jordan Goldwire #14, Wendell Moore Jr. #0 and Tre Jones #3 of the Duke Blue Devils react after a play against the Florida State Seminoles during their game at Cameron Indoor Stadium on February 10, 2020 in Durham, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /

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CHAPEL HILL, NC – FEBRUARY 1: Jay Heath #5 of Boston College (Photo by Andy Mead/ISI Photos/Getty Images) /

8. Boston College (13-13)(7-8 ACC)

The Eagles have played themselves into solid standing in the ACC behind some impressive defense and some impressive scoring from their upperclassmen. Leading scorer Derryck Thornton scored 15 points in BC’s early February win over North Carolina, and 22 points and 5 assists in BC’s three=point win over the Wolfpack. Despite not shooting well from deep, Thornton has been the Eagles offensive leader through a combination of his aggressiveness and willingness to set others up. But he has received help all along the perimeter.

Freshman Jay Heath is averaging 14.6 points over his last three games and Boston College has gone 2-1 over that span. Heath dropped 18 points in the Eagles OT win at Virginia Tech. Junior forward Steffon Mitchell was big in that game as well (21 points) but the biggest takeaway was that Jim Christian’s squad can win even when Thornton is having an off night.

But make no mistake, the Eagles are still at their best when Thornton is locked in, which he has been as of late. Thornton has a career-high 37.2% free throw attempt rate, averaging 4.3 free throw attempts per game and 7.0 free throw attempts over his last five games. In their win over NC State (No. 56 in KenPom), Boston College racked up 10 steals and Thornton led the way with 22 points, including 11-for-11 from the free throw line.

Boston College can get closer to a top-5 ACC finish if they continue to rack up steals (third in the ACC in steals) and pull out wins in close games.