ACC Basketball: 2020-21 power rankings after non-conference play

One of the biggest mysteries is why head coach Jim Christian and Boston College decided to schedule as if they were from the SWAC or MEAC. It was a brutal non-conference they had to go through, starting with the Empire Classic, before facing off against St. John’s, Florida, and Minnesota. All of those games ended with defeats, with the exception coming in a win over Rhode Island and at home against Maine a week ago.

That’s not to say that the Golden Eagles have been getting destroyed each time. In fact, they were a couple of bounces away from knocking off the likes of Villanova, St. John’s, and Minnesota. Of course, I can’t explain away how Boston College lost by 38 points to Syracuse in its lone ACC matchup so far.

Like Wake Forest, the Eagles have also been infusing several grad transfers into their rotation. The most impactful so far has been guard Rich Kelly, who averages 9.7 ppg and a team-leading 2.9 apg in 22 off the bench. Big man James Karnick is putting up 11.0 ppg and 7.0 rpg in four games so far, while Makai Ashton-Langford is nearly putting up double-figure scoring averages as a starter.

The leader of Boston College is Wynston Tabbs, averaging a team-leading 15.3 ppg after missing all of last season with an injury. He had 16 points and 10 assists in the win over Rhode Island while putting up a season-high 24 in the overtime loss to Minnesota.