Another ACC basketball weekend in the works!

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Call clickgrainger.com or just stop by. Grainger. For the ones who get it done. So the ACC, we no longer have games on Thursdays, we never have games on Fridays in basketball, we have one on Monday, they got a bunch on Tuesday, we have two on Wednesday, like we had nothing to talk about, there's no basketball to talk about. I guess we can talk about what the basketball there is to come, coming up on the weekend, and I actually lied before. There is a game that matters. And it involves Wake Forest because they're playing at Virginia Tech. And if Wake Forest knows what's good for them, they won't lose. Virginia Tech is good enough to beat anybody. But that's a big game. Because you just lost at Notre Dame, you don't want to prove to everybody that you can't win away from the Joel. That's such a bad loss. I know, that's more fuel for Jerry.

That's right. Probably is coming up at 2 o'clock. Brian Geisinger, our basketball maven, joins us on the Adam Gold show.

We talk to Brian every Friday. Talk me off the ledge about Wake. I want to believe that they're as good as I think they are.

But are they only this good at home? How do you lose that game? How do you give up 70 points to them?

Yeah, I don't know. Let's start. Notre Dame, they're not a very good team. They're a very poor offensive team. But if you look at their starting five, they actually have some good players. Marcus Burton is a nice freshman guard.

Michael Shrewsbury is a very good coach. So they're at this point in the season, I think they're maybe not a super deep team. But as far as their starting five goes, there is some talent there. That said, I'm pretty surprised Wake dropped that game. I haven't finished going through all of the film for it yet.

I'll do that probably this evening. But Wake is a good defensive team and that kind of performance should not be happening. I know it's on the road. I know Notre Dame is a tough team to score on. They are good defensively.

But you can't be fazed. Your defense needs to be able to win you that game on the road. This team has good defenders. They have a power forward and center are both very solid on that end in Efton Reed and Andrew Carr when those guys are not in foul trouble. But so I don't know, it was a tough game.

I still tough loss. I hope for Wake would just be that good wins matter more than bad losses at this point. And in that they can at least hold the ship steady here for the rest of the season. But it should be scary against a team like Wake should beat Virginia Tech. Given how Tech plays, given who coordinates their offense for them, they're a team that could also just hit 12 threes against you and take your game plan, your precious game plan and just throw it over the top rope. And that's the thing. It's like scary, you know, it should be.

But I do think Wake handles business. I see this team in the tournament and I'm not, I felt that way since, you know, mid November. I'm not at this point. I'm not going to like back down from it. I agree.

No, they're a tournament team. There's no question about it. But man, why give those dopes in the committee room, why give them reason, why give them license to go, you know what, your road record is. And I wrote it down. I keep writing all these things.

It's like one or two and something. You can't be that bad on the road. I don't even care anymore. I'm done with you, Wake. No, I'm actually, I'm kidding. But again, I love, I love the team and they just, they just, Virginia Tech, it's not going to be easy to win at the castle because I think Virginia Tech is one of those teams that you go, man, they probably should have been a little bit better this year. Maybe not. I think, I think pits a good enough team to play in and beat teams in the tournament, but they're going to have to win probably all three of their remaining games, I think, to give themselves and then maybe win a couple at the ACC tournament.

A five game winning streak would not hurt Pittsburgh. Adam Gold in studio with my man coach Peter through to capital financial advisory group. Let's talk about financial termites. I hate termites risk fees commissions are all financial termites.

If your money can go away without you really realizing what's happened. That's a financial termite eating away your money can't happen. We can exterminate those Adam. We help people identify and exterminate financial termites every single day. So you would be the financial red ants. That's right. Get rid of the termites. Sure.

People don't know that red ants get rid of termites text Adam to 600 700 for coach Peter. Yeah, probably, but you're right. They are a team that like they can put together stretches of really good play like this is a team that has multiple ball handlers to me.

They're both. They're both freshmen but but Bob Carrington and Jalen low are both very good. Blake Henson is sort of like the ultimate irrational confidence guy. He's, he's one you know he's one hell of a shooter to me he's been held in check every now and then but similar to what you're saying about Virginia Tech. It's one of those games they get him coming off screens and into into some pick and pops and all of a sudden he hits you know four or five threes and again it can just flip a game upside down but I do think this cricket team has the chance to string together.

It's tough. If they, if it's required for them to actually like window that many games consecutive that's the thing that punches their ticket. I would be a little concerned, but um, but do they have the ability to do it.

Yeah, like, I would be a lot concerned. Although at Boston College home against Florida State home against NC State. I mean, it's sitting there for if they want to go, those are all winnable games, those are all winnable games. Yeah, all winnable games FSU can be tough, just because they're their length and their ability to switch and the the offense is maybe looked a little bit better for them, towards the end of the season here, but that is the game I would favor, you know, in Pittsburgh again and sort of we'll see I guess where state is come towards the end of the season. Way to get to that right now, Brian Geisinger. Yeah.

Our college basketball guru, and he joins us every Friday. Let's talk about state by the way for Pitt. You can't finish in the top four, pretty much, I don't think I don't I think mathematically it might be over. But if you win twice it would mean you want a game on Thursday.

You have beaten somebody that is probably already in the field that would do. Well, if you won five in a row, I think Pittsburgh might find themselves into the NCAA tournament. What chance do you give NC State? How would if you were NC State? How would you go about attacking North Carolina?

It's tough. We've discussed this before because I think the stuff that state does best or the stuff that it's most comfortable doing offensively is not barring like, you know, some, you know, probably an above average shooting performance for more than just DJ Horn. It's, it's tough to sort of like get you and see to come out of what it does best defensively with Armando Baycott. They're going to play job coverage, they're going to ice side ball screens, they're going to weak screens and try to get you to go to your to your, you know, your less preferable hand when you're initiating the offense.

And with a guy like Baycott too, it can double the post, but they can also guard you straight up. And when state can't get two guys to commit to Burns in the post, sometimes it's tough for them to open up, you know, cutting lanes, it's tough for them to open up kick out passes. The offense performance Casey Morsell had, not after the Syracuse game, who did they, who did state beat in between, in between, before before FSU? What was that matchup for them? Oh, I'll tell you. I'll tell you in a second. State, they beat Miami, they beat Georgia Tech, the Miami game after the Syracuse loss.

I don't know either. I don't think that's the game, but regardless, when Morsell gives them a second option offensively, all of a sudden they have someone that can, that can spot up, that can, that can get downhill and give them a, you know, a secondary guide next to DJ Horn. I think short of that, it's going to be tough. I will be curious to see like if Horn gets it rolling out of the pick and roll with his pull up jumpers, you know, does UNC alter some of its coverages? But short of that, like Horn coming out, just kind of guns blazing, like I think UNC can sit in its shell. And, and on the other end, just let its offense with RJ Davis, you know, go to work. Is there another candidate in the ACC?

Brian Geisinger is joining us here, 24-7 sports, Buzzbeat podcast, Pac Pride everywhere. Is there another candidate, legitimate candidate, somebody who might get a first, a vote for ACC Player of the Year, not named RJ Davis? I could see some other people getting votes, but you mean, I think to your point. For Player of the Year, who? Who would, who would be, who would get a Player of the Year vote in this league? I mean, just given how the voting works. Yeah. Could you see like a team centric voter voting for, I don't think it would be, you know, Filipowski, but you know, Hunter Salas or something like that. I'm not saying that these like RJ Davis should win ACC Player of the Year, but couldn't you see the, someone voting from South Carolina, voting for PJ Hall at Clemson? No, I can see it, but I would clown that person. Sure. That's fair.

As, as you probably should. No, Davis is, he should, he should win, whether it's unanimous or not, he should win in a landslide. And what I will say I did for a second when they were, when the UNC-UVA game was a little close last weekend. Reece Meekman's doing a good job on RJ Davis.

It was sort of like, Ooh, am I, am I seeing some like last, you know, last late movement here? And you know, RJ had a tough game that day, but of course he bounces right back immediately against, you know, lights up Miami. So, no, it should be RJ. He deserves it. The shooting, the playmaking, the big plays he's made, you know, at the end of games, his pick and roll passing. Like he just does so much for this team. And so, yeah, he should be the guy. I actually think like there's some interesting cases to be made for, you know, first team all ACC around him.

I think there's like six, seven guys for, for five slots. But as far as player of the year goes, I think RJ has that pretty sewn up. Right. Like I understand there's always going to be that Homer who thinks that, you know, usually in Virginia, but I don't even think they'll vote for Reece Meekman as ACC player of the year. He's a very good player. There's no question he's a good player. He should be first team all conference, in my opinion, too. Yeah, he basically is among those six or seven players that you talked about fighting for the other four spots.

One of those should belong to RJ Davis. He's just had that good a year. You know, a month ago, we might have said Kyle Filipowski was also, you know, that guy. But obviously his game dropped off a little bit.

He was never going to, he was never going to shoot, you know, 60 percent from three point range. How close to, you know, optimum Kyle Filipowski do you think we're seeing right now? It's tough because he's first off. It's a tough question to answer because, like, I think he's being pretty well optimized in terms of, you know, how Duke's using him. But I think he's also being scaled up above his comfort level in terms of like how much play finishing they need from him. I think I say this all the time when I come on here, like the stuff that he does best is his passing.

Right. And he is such a, I mean, even the other night against Louisville, he had two passes in that game, including a behind the back one to Sean Stewart. You know, it was a pick and pop. He drove a closeout, then threw it behind his back to, you know, off a live dribble to Stewart. I mean, he is a seven foot guard like he really is. He has those kinds of like passing skills. But, you know, Duke needs him to be a play finisher often for them. And he also has to anchor the defense. And that's a team effort on that side of the court. And Mark Mitchell is a big part of their, like, you know, back line defense as well. But flip what he has to do, guarding pick and roll, protecting the rim, switching out.

They ask him to do a ton. So I think he's pretty close to, like, fully optimized. And maybe we haven't seen it, you know, him do it for, like, three straight 40 minute games, kind of. Or it's just been, like, so clearly that, like, I think often it's clear he's the best player on the court. Like, he's going to be a lottery pick or whatever.

But, yeah, I feel like it does seem like something's missing just a little bit. And I think some of it has to do with just, like, mostly play finishing. But it is incredible because even when he's sort of having a so-so game. I mean, he's always, like, knocking on a double-double with efficient shooting. In a bunch of assists. He's really good. He didn't have a great scoring game against Louisville, but he did everything else.

Right? He played 29 minutes. He had, what, nine points, right?

Whatever it was. But he had six assists. And I think Duke, without Caleb Foster, showed you a lot more of their total game about Tyrese Proctor. Looks like he's closing in on getting back to what he was. I don't know that he's ever going to be a consistent shooter for Duke. Maybe that'll come maybe later in his career. But I think the rest of it, I think, looks pretty good.

I've been impressed with that. Is Jared McCain the freshman of the year in the ACC? Yeah, I mean, I almost said something about this a second ago. He probably should be the unanimous freshman of the year in the league, too. I mean, I think there have been some other guys. I think a guy like Caleb Foster deserves, you know, all-freshman team consideration as well. Right. Maybe even Elliot Cadeau.

I love Elliot. Keeshon George at Miami. There's some other baby dongo at Georgia Tech. There's plenty of names to roll out.

Bub Carrington, Jalen Lowe at Pittsburgh. But, no, I think McCain has been, you know, considerably better than all of these guys. And that's, like, not even, like, all the guys I just named are very good players.

And some of them will play in the NBA. But McCain's been incredible. I mean, he's been, he's one of the best shooters in the country. He can play make with the ball in his hands. His defense is so much better from where it was, like, end of November, early December. Right.

I actually think he does, like, he's actually, like, tough to drive at times now, whereas initially you could sort of, you know, reject a screen or cross over and get downhill against him. He's been so solid. For the ones who work hard to ensure their crew can always go the extra mile.

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Call clickgrainger.com or just stop by. Grainger, for the ones who get it done. And recently like some of the stuff I've really, really enjoyed from from John Shire and I've written I've written about this and tweeted about it some too. But Duke using Jared McCain as a screener in his willingness to set screens. He's the best shooter on the court.

Right. And so that in turn can make him a very, very dangerous screener doing with him to get guys like Mark Mitchell and Kyle Philip asking looks at the rim and half court. John Shire Duke staff, very creative, very, very savvy coaching staff there in Durham, and it's been fun to see all the different ways they've utilized McCain so I'm super impressed with him. I love his competitive spirit.

I love his work ethic. And it's seriously his ability to shoot and shoot off movement from crazy distances is just it's pretty special, even for a program that's had some amazing shooters over the last decade. Yeah, I think he's, you know, in the consideration for the best of them, and at 42% from three point range. He's still looking up at Jeremy roaches having on the low one of the best shooting years. We have seen it a long time 48% from three, just about 50% from the field and 86 and a half percent from the line, it's going to be interesting to see RJ Davis and Jeremy roach who I believe entered this at then they arrived in town the same class, and they're 2020 they're both still here. And I think they'll both end up being first team although RJ Davis will be. I think you should be a unanimous ACC Player of the Year Brian Geisinger at big guys underscore bird 24 seven sports pack pride devil's den buzzbeat everywhere.

It's ridiculous. But that's because you know what you're talking about man I appreciate your time always. And we'll talk to you next week. You guys have a nice weekend by the way, you know, Duke and Carolina play next Saturday.

No, I wasn't aware of that. Yeah, we'll talk about it just so this is new information prepared yeah look forward to. Yeah, I will prepare for that.

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