The ACC went on a wild ride with UNC and Duke winning and losing, but still atop the ACC in my ballot with the rest of the teams not being able to pull into the lead.

David Tucker over at the Maryland Raycom Blog has been compiling a poll of the ACC blogs for an ACC Basketball Power Poll, and here’s my ballot with semi-insightful commentary.

ACC Power Poll Ballot With Commentary

1. Duke Blue Devils

Coming off the Clemson win, Duke traveled to Chicago and beat Iowa State thoroughly, but lost the game that really mattered this week at Georgia Tech as they stand at 1-1 in the ACC now. Blue Devils are still by far number one in the ACC at this point–they just did not show it Saturday against the Jackets.

2. North Carolina Tar Heels

The Tar Heels recovered from the shocking College of Charleston loss emphatically in the second half of their ACC win versus Virginia Tech. They would have been a few rungs down the power poll ladder if a few other teams could have taken care of business and still have a lot to prove starting this Wednesday at Clemson.

3. Miami Hurricanes

Miami bolstered their record to 15-1 and tournament resume with the home ACC win over Wake Forest. The Canes stepped up in the final minutes of the game as they took the lead late and defended it on the last possession of the game for the Demon Deacons. One more step to proving they belong in the top tier of the ACC could come against Virginia Tech in Blacksburg on Wednesday.

4. Florida State Seminoles

Florida State’s loss at Maryland on Sunday was due to hot shooting more than poor defense as they would fall 77-68. The Noles stepped up the effort on offense in the second half after trailing by 14, but could not cool down Terp guards Vasquez and Hayes.

5. Clemson Tigers

The Tigers got back on track this week after the Duke blowout with a convincing win over Boston College, but no let up on the ACC schedule as they face North Carolina this Wednesday. Clemson was able to feed their star Trevor Booker the ball and he rewarded them with leading in scoring over the Eagles. North Carolina coming into Littlejohn Coliseum is once again a statement game as Clemson should expect to win this game–the gap is not quite as far between these schools as it has been in years past.

6. Virginia Tech Hokies

Hokies were not able to ride the momentum of the good out of conference schedule into a win in Chapel Hill. Hokies jumped out to a lead in the first half, but could not sustain the run into the second half as Virginia Tech’s frontcourt was dominated by all of UNC’s talent in the paint. Hokies face the two Florida schools this week as they take on Miami at home and Florida State on the road.

7. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

The Jackets climbed out of the back end of the poll that awaited them after the 73-66 loss to Georgia with the 71-67 win over Duke on Saturday that kept them in the top 25 and on my radar for getting into the NCAAs. Georgia Tech’s defense stifled Duke’s stars in Nolan Smith and Kyle Singler while Jackets forward Gani Lawal dominated the paint to notch the big win over Duke. As I cautioned before the season, watch and see a few more Georgia Tech games before jumping on their bandwagon because I want to see their performance at UVA this week before heaping praise.

8. Wake Forest Demon Deacons

Wake Forest’s trip to Miami was a tough one as they led going into the final minute, but could not shut down the Canes attack even after forcing a miss as Miami would get the put-back to take the lead. Deacs point guard Ish Smith, who really impressed me all game long, put up a circus shot that did not go down and his teammates could not bail him out like the Canes did on the prior possession. No rest for the weary Deacs as they play the hot Terps coming off an important home win over Florida State Tuesday night at 8 on Raycom.

9. Maryland Terrapins

The Terrapins hit 10 three-pointers in the 77-68 win over Florida State with guards Greivis Vasquez and Eric Hayes combining for 8 of them. The guard duo hit several of their three-pointers when the Seminoles were attempting a come-back on the Terps. They leave home for a quick turnaround facing Wake Forest on Tuesday and then they play another game on Raycom at Boston College on Saturday.

10. Virginia Cavaliers

Virginia was the only ACC team to go on the road and win over the weekend which was an impressive step for a team that was universally regarded as the bottom team in the ACC just a couple weeks ago among the voters of this poll. Sophomore guard Sylven Landesberg continues to shine for the ‘Hoos at this point in the season and a home game against Georgia Tech on Wednesday could keep the momentum going for this young Cavaliers squad.

11. NC State Wolfpack

The hits just keep coming for the Wolfpack as one week you lose on a last second shot while the next ends in another defeat after having a ten point lead in the second half on Virginia. It’s not like they are not talented, but putting it all together for 40 minutes is the issue as the Wolfpack can put a scare into anybody in the ACC game in-game out, but right now, there is a gap between the tournament-ready teams and the ‘Pack in the ACC.

12. Boston College Eagles

BC’s woes continued at Clemson as they struggled offensively while Trevor Booker did work in the paint to aid the Tigers in pulling away. The Eagles lack of production offensively in the Clemson game came from a lack of a go-to-scorer and they often looked disjointed. BC’s guards have to step up for their road trip to Durham and the rest of the ACC schedule for the Eagles to stay competitive for postseason play.

Thanks for reading and would love to see your thoughts on ranking the ACC at this point. The ACC has a number of good teams, but they are struggling to distinguish themselves from each other.

Tags: Boston College Eagles, Clemson Tigers, Duke Blue Devils, Florida State Seminoles, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, Maryland Terrapins, Miami Hurricanes, NC State Wolfpack, North Carolina Tar Heels, Virginia Cavaliers, Virginia Tech Hokies, Wake Forest Demon Deacons

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