Minutes after his team's first loss in 7 1/2 weeks, Roy Williams sat at a table in the media room at Cassell Coliseum and began his remarks.

"Well, it was a great day for Virginia Tech basketball," North Carolina's coach said. "They've had two pretty big wins the last two Saturdays, to say the least."

Williams wasn't patting himself on the back. He was summing up an accomplishment that any team would love to call its own. Seven days after Virginia Tech beat Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium, the Hokies knocked off top-ranked UNC at home.

Senior guard Jamon Gordon jumped onto a table on press row to show his glee after the final buzzer, and many of his teammates celebrated with their fans in a large crowd at midcourt. All the smiles were a welcome site after what Virginia Tech's program experienced last season.

The Hokies (13–4, 3–0 ACC) endured a 2005-06 season so harsh that the word "nightmare" is far too kind. After all, a nightmare is over once you awaken. The Hokies were stricken by illness and death, including the passing away of center Coleman Collins' father, and suffered one heartbreak after another on the court by going 3–12 in games decided by six points or fewer.

The scores against Duke and UNC, respectively: 69–67 and 94–88.

Gordon and fellow senior guard Zabian Dowdell played key roles in each win, combining for 40 points against the Tar Heels after combining for 37 against the Blue Devils. Both have loads of experience, and both are capable of creating shots — for themselves or teammates — at any time.

"I think it's advantageous to have senior guards, and I think it's also advantageous to have good guards," Virginia Tech coach Seth Greenberg said. "A lot of people have senior guards, but they're not obviously playing at the level that Zabian and Jamon have played at in recent weeks."

Williams thought so much of the pair that he waited in the hallway to congratulate them before entering his own locker room. He gave each a brief hug.

On Monday, Top 25 voters issued their own form of congratulations. Virginia Tech entered The Associated Press poll at No. 23, earning a ranking for the first time since the final poll of the 1995-96 season.

Not that the Hokies care much about history. They've tried to avoid reliving the horrors they faced last season, instead opting to focus on each day, each practice, each game. Greenberg wants his players to maintain that attitude now, even as the good times roll.

"Obviously, what we were able to do the last two weekends was terrific, but it has nothing to do with the next seven weekends," he said. "Those two wins are great if, we understand and keep them in perspective in relation to the marathon of the season. The season isn't a sprint. The season is a marathon. We've got to stay in the present."

Key development: Point guards on Tobacco Road continue to have a tough season
Much-maligned Duke sophomore Greg Paulus bounced back with a strong game Sunday as the Blue Devils defeated Miami, but two of his counterparts weren't as fortunate. N.C. State senior Engin Atsur sat out after aggravating a hamstring injury that has limited him to six games this season, and UNC sophomore Bobby Frasor left the Tar Heels' loss at Virginia Tech late in the first half when soreness returned to his right foot.

Atsur's absence has been difficult for the Wolfpack, which features four players averaging at least 34.9 minutes per game. Gavin Grant (82 assists, 85 turnovers) is doing the best job he can at the point, but he's playing out of position and is vulnerable to teams that can apply pressure on the perimeter.

The Tar Heels are in a better position to handle life without Frasor, who missed six consecutive games before returning for four games, because they have freshman phenom Ty Lawson and improving junior Quentin Thomas. But UNC will miss Frasor's leadership and decision-making if he is out for an extended period.

Rising team: Boston College
Contrary to what Virginia Tech has done, the Eagles (13–4) haven't been knocking off perennial ACC giants. But they are 5–0 in conference play, a far cry from their 0–3 start in the league last season.

The Eagles are soaring, thanks in large part to their two Seans: Marshall and Williams. Marshall's scoring is up to 16.4 points per game from 11.1 points per game last season, and Williams has increased his scoring output to 12.1 points per game from last season's 3.1 points per game.

The 6’10’’ Williams still is known primarily as a shot-blocking fiend — he swats a league-leading 5.0 shots per game — but he is flashing a refined offensive game that had been lost in the shadows of Craig Smith. And even though Marshall has averaged 22.0 points per game in his last seven outings, including 20 points in BC's 82–63 win over Miami on Tuesday night, Eagles coach Al Skinner is more pleased with Marshall's progress defensively during his senior season.

"It's funny," Skinner said. "A lot of people obviously recognize his improved scoring, but it's other things he's been doing that have really helped us. Maybe that's the reason his scoring has improved — because he's not concentrating on that as much as maybe he had in the past.

"His rebounding has improved, his defense has improved, his communication on the floor with his teammates. All of that has gotten better, and because of that, maybe he's not concentrating on scoring as much and it's coming a little easier for him."

Falling team: Florida State
Ask any ACC coach about the Seminoles, and he'll mention within a few seconds about how talented they are. But so far, the talent hasn't added up to any victories in conference play.

Florida State has lost three consecutive games after ripping off an eight-game winning streak that began with a victory over reigning NCAA champion Florida. FSU coach Leonard Hamilton can take solace in the fact that Boston College lost just two league games the rest of the way after its 0–3 start last season.

"I do know that we're going to turn it around," Hamilton said. "I think we are more capable than what we have shown. We got beat by a very good Clemson team that's playing very well on a last-second shot. We didn't play well at North Carolina, and I think we caught them as they were playing at their very, very best. Georgia Tech, we played better. We just had a couple of stretches in both halves that we got down.

"So I think that we're capable, but we have very little room for error."

The Seminoles need to start their surge soon. They play four of their next five games at home.

"I'm glad to be able to get back home and have a go at it at home," Hamilton said. "Hopefully in the next four or five games, we can get back on track."

Player of the week: Zabian Dowdell, G, Virginia Tech
Left is right, when speaking about Virginia Tech's senior backcourt of southpaws Dowdell and Gordon. Dowdell averaged 20.0 points and 3.0 assists in wins over UNC Greensboro and UNC, and his hot shooting has been instrumental in the Hokies' climb toward the top of the ACC. He has made at least 50 percent of his field-goal attempts in four consecutive games, hitting 10 of 14 3-pointers during that span.

Freshman of the week: Javaris Crittenton, G, Georgia Tech
Crittenton was both steady and spectacular, a combination any team would love to have from its point guard, in a pair of wins. He scored nine of his 11 points in the final four minutes as the Yellow Jackets pulled away to defeat Duke 74–63, and he poured in a career-high 23 points on 8-of-11 shooting in an 88–80 victory over Florida State.

Stat of the week
Duke shot a school-record 81.0 percent in the first half of its 85–63 victory at Miami on Sunday. The Blue Devils' 68.3-percent shooting for the game set a school record for ACC road games.

They said it
"Kids playing against men is generally not a good thing." — Wake Forest coach Skip Prosser, whose team is 9–7 (1–3 ACC) and has four freshmen among its top seven scorers.

Key upcoming games
*North Carolina at Clemson, Jan. 17, 7 p.m. ET: This game remains important, but it lost some of its luster when UNC lost the nation's top ranking and Clemson lost its undefeated record.

*Virginia Tech at Florida State, Jan. 17, 7 p.m. ET: The high-riding Hokies get a chance to show that they can get inspired to play teams other than Duke and UNC. Meanwhile, a win over Virginia Tech could be just what the smallish Seminoles need to get their conference season jump-started.

*Georgia Tech at North Carolina, Saturday, 9 p.m. ET: Tyler Hansbrough set the Smith Center scoring record with 40 points as the Tar Heels rallied from a 20-point deficit to beat the Yellow Jackets 82–75 last season. What will he do for an encore?

Nolan Hayes covers North Carolina basketball for The Herald-Sun

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