ACC: Deacons have one eye on the tournament

Some coaches are wary of talking about the NCAA Tournament, afraid that their players will get caught looking ahead and fail to focus on the task at hand.

Dino Gaudio isn’t one of those coaches.

“I’ll be honest with you,” said Gaudio, who is in his first season as Wake Forest’s head coach. “To try to motivate the kids throughout the season, we’ve talked a lot about going to the tournament and how important these games are.

“We talk a lot about it because it’s their goal and our goal right now with this program to try to make it to the tournament.”

The Demon Deacons (16-8, 6-5 ACC), picked during the preseason to finish 11th in the ACC, are moving closer to making that goal a reality. They handed Duke its first conference loss of the season Sunday night, extending their winning streak to three games and moving into sole possession of fifth place in the league.

“It let our kids know that ‘Hey, we can stay with and play with anybody in the country,’ ” Gaudio said of his team’s 86-73 triumph over the Blue Devils.

Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski walked away impressed after watching the Demon Deacons play with the energy and intensity he wanted to see from his own players.

“During this time of year you have to match or be better — people have different agendas,” Krzyzewski said. “People are trying to get into the tournament, trying to save the season. They’re on a roll, and we’ve won and been fortunate.

“We have to play like we haven’t done anything, and we played like we already have done something. The team that had to win won.”

And it was no fluke.

Wake Forest improved to 14-1 this season at Joel Coliseum, beating Duke at home for the fourth time in the last five tries. Ishmael Smith and Jeff Teague, the ACC’s quickest backcourt duo, took turns taking apart the Blue Devils with penetration. Freshman James Johnson (24 points, 16 rebounds) was too much for Duke to handle inside.

And with defensive stopper L.D. Williams back in the lineup for the second game after missing four contests because of a fractured hand, the Demon Deacons forced 22 turnovers and limited Duke to 40.6 percent shooting from the floor.

It was the kind of effort that Skip Prosser, who died in July of a heart attack at age 56 after six seasons as Wake Forest’s head coach, would have been proud to see.

“Coach Prosser always told us to keep fighting and play hard,” Williams said. “He told us that you can’t be soft and play at Wake Forest, and I think we played really hard.”

The Demon Deacons have tried to play that way all season to honor their former coach’s memory. They see his face when they watch games from last season to prepare for opponents, and they are reminded of him constantly when reporters ask about how they are coping.

Whereas some coaches might grow weary of discussing the past so often, Gaudio never passes up an opportunity to talk about Prosser.

“As you know, he was the most well-respected, well-liked individual,” Gaudio said. “I never knew a better person than Skip Prosser. I never knew a better man than Skip. As you go through it, every city we go in, they want to write the story, which is fine.

“Like I told [media relations director] Steve Shutt. He goes, ‘Dino, is there a point when you don’t want to talk about it anymore?’ I said, ‘Absolutely not.’ I think every time we go somewhere we’ll get those questions. I don’t mind them. Just sometimes it tugs at your heart, but that’s what it is.”

Gaudio and the Demon Deacons would like the chance to talk about Prosser on their sport’s biggest stage: the NCAA Tournament. The victory over Duke could go a long way in making that possible.

“I hope we’re in a position where it comes down to that,” Gaudio said. “I hope that if we are on the bubble or one of those teams being talked about, a win over the No. 2 team in the country — and everybody knows the quality of the program — that it will help us.”

Public enemy

Florida State forward Ryan Reid is not endearing himself to fans on Tobacco Road. Reid, who served a nine-game suspension earlier this season for an undisclosed violation of team rules, has come close to earning additional suspensions from the ACC office.

Reid’s latest transgression came Thursday night, when he struck Wake Forest’s Chas McFarland and was ejected from the game for a flagrant foul. Reid previously threw down North Carolina point guard Ty Lawson on Feb. 3 as the two fought for possession of the ball, and Lawson suffered a sprained left ankle that has kept him sidelined for the four games since. Before that, Reid had an incident with Duke point guard Greg Paulus in which both players were issued technical fouls.

Reid avoided a major altercation against the fourth member of the Big Four when Florida State lost to N.C. State 69-66 on Jan. 26. But he can complete the sweep when the Seminoles and Wolfpack square off again Feb. 27 in Raleigh.

Following that game, Florida State will travel to North Carolina on March 4. Considering what happened to Lawson, the Smith Center crowd will not be happy to see Reid.

Lawson’s return nearing?

Speaking of Lawson, he appears close to returning to action. The sophomore point guard, who averages 13.6 points and 5.7 assists per game, likely will not play against N.C. State on Wednesday night but could see some game action Sunday against Wake Forest.

Lawson’s extended absence has been a mystery to some. After he and UNC’s staff made a game-time decision that he wouldn’t play against Duke on Feb. 6, people leaped to the conclusion that he would be able to play in the next game or the game after that.

When that didn’t happen, questions began to arise. Is Lawson sitting out because he doesn’t want to risk further injury and jeopardize his status as a first-round NBA draft pick?

“I don’t think that’s a factor at all,” UNC coach Roy Williams said. “We’ve never talked about it. He still has pain in the foot. Doctors are being very cautious with him, which is what we should be. …

“We have not discussed — and I don’t think it’s been in Ty’s mind 1 second — that he’s trying to protect himself. I think he wants to help the Tar Heels win. Frankly, if I had a player who I thought that was, then I could keep him out a heck of a lot longer. I could make him really be healthy.”
 
Rising team: Miami

Miami is in danger of duplicating Clemson’s dubious feat of a year ago: starting out hot, then fizzling during conference play to miss the NCAA Tournament. But the Hurricanes (17-7, 4-6) took a big step last week toward saving their season, winning 64-63 at Georgia Tech to pick up their second consecutive ACC road win.

Now the Hurricanes get a chance to add to their NCAA Tournament resume. Miami hosts Duke and Maryland for a stretch of games that will play a major role in determining its postseason fate.

“There’s no question it’s a big week for us,“ Miami coach Frank Haith said. … “Coming off the two wins we’ve had, I think we have a chance to get back in the middle of things. It’s just a great opportunity. I think our guys are excited about it, and hopefully we’ll play well.”

Falling team: N.C. State

N.C. State clawed its way back to respectability after a 1-3 start in conference play, but the team dropped a pair of games last week as its losing streak reached three games. Picked during the preseason to finish third in the ACC, the Wolfpack (15-10, 4-7) enters the stretch run occupying a spot in the bottom third of the ACC standings.

With matchups against North Carolina and Duke among the five games remaining on its regular-season schedule, N.C. State will have trouble getting to .500 in conference play. But the good news for the Wolfpack is that the UNC and Duke games are in Raleigh, so a glimmer of hope remains.

Player of the week: Greivis Vasquez, G, Maryland

Vasquez’s turnover numbers last week weren’t pretty — he totaled 13 giveaways in Maryland’s two games — but the rest of his stats were eye pleasing. The 6-6, 190-pound sophomore rang up 25 points, eight rebounds and seven assists in a 77-65 loss at Duke, and he tallied 20 points, four rebounds and eight assists in an 82-72 win over Florida State.

Vasquez was at his best early in the second half against the Seminoles, hitting 3-pointers on three consecutive possessions to turn a 40-34 FSU lead into a 43-42 Maryland advantage.

“Greivis Vasquez is one of the great players to have on your team when you’re trailing,” Maryland coach Gary Williams said. “He’s a great competitor, and he hates to lose. He just made up his mind that he was going to change the way he played, and hopefully by doing that, change the way the team played.”

Freshman of the week: Jeff Teague, G, Wake Forest

Teague led the Demon Deacons in scoring in both of their victories last week, tallying 18 points and six assists against Florida State before pouring in 26 points against Duke. Teague made all three of his 3-point attempts against the Blue Devils, and he set the tone for his team by hitting his first three shots and scoring Wake Forest’s first eight points of the game.

“Jeff Teague got us started,” said Wake Forest freshman James Johnson, who assisted on Teague’s first two baskets. “Growing up, everybody wants to play against Duke. We got to do that, and Jeff showed us that he wasn’t scared. After that, we got on them.”

Teague has scored at least 17 points in five of Wake Forest’s last six games, increasing his scoring average to 12.8 points per game.

Stats and facts of the week

Duke tied a school record when five players fouled out in the loss to Wake Forest. But the game marked the first time in school history that all five starters fouled out.

Duke freshman Nolan Smith scored 21 points against Wake Forest, becoming the seventh Blue Devil to score at least 20 points in a game this season. That number ties the school record established by the 1973-74 Duke team.

N.C. State’s J.J. Hickson set an ACC record for freshmen with 23 rebounds in the Wolfpack’s 71-64 loss to Clemson. Hickson’s 23 rebounds are the most by any ACC player this season and the most by an N.C. State player since Tommy Burleson pulled down 24 rebounds against Providence in 1974. Hickson’s eight teammates combined for 16 rebounds against the Tigers.

Wake Forest freshman guard Gary Clark has totaled 33 points in the last four games, including a career-high 13 points in his team’s win at Florida State. Clark scored a combined 24 points in Wake Forest’s first 20 games.

North Carolina outrebounded Virginia Tech 54-24 on Saturday, posting its best rebound margin (plus-30) of the season. The Tar Heels, who lead the nation in rebound margin (plus-12.1 rebounds per game), grabbed more rebounds on offense (18) than the Hokies totaled on defense (16).

Virginia snapped a seven-game losing streak with a 79-74 victory over Boston College on Sunday. The Cavaliers are just 2-10 in the 2008 calendar year, and both wins have come against the Eagles.

They said it

“He wasn’t alone. We had a team meeting of ugly. It wasn’t invitation-only. He was joined by 13 other guys who didn’t play well.” — Virginia Tech coach Seth Greenberg on freshman forward Jeff Allen, who had six points and six turnovers in the Hokies’ 92-53 loss at North Carolina

“I really wasn’t doing much else, so I figured the least I could do was be in there and get some rebounds to start our fast break.” — Maryland guard Eric Hayes, who tied a career high with seven rebounds in his team’s 82-72 win over Florida State

Key upcoming games

Wednesday, Feb. 20
North Carolina at N.C. State, 7 p.m. ET
N.C. State’s players remember how embarrassed they were when they headed to halftime down 43-13 in the teams’ first meeting Jan. 12. This game will be much closer because the Wolfpack matches up well with a UNC team that likely won’t have Ty Lawson.

Duke at Miami, 9 p.m. ET
The Blue Devils prevailed 86-73 in the teams’ foul-filled first meeting at Cameron Indoor Stadium. The Hurricanes must keep Duke off the free-throw line in this one to give themselves a chance to pull the upset.

Saturday, Feb. 23
Maryland at Miami, 2 p.m. ET
The Terrapins have been rolling along thanks to stellar play inside from seniors James Gist and Bambale Osby. The Hurricanes must neutralize that duo with the trio of Anthony King, Dwayne Collins and Jimmy Graham.

Sunday, Feb. 24
Wake Forest at North Carolina, 6:30 p.m. ET
The Tar Heels won last season’s two meetings between the teams by an average of 32.5 points. The Demon Deacons have made progress recently, but they are just 2-7 on the road this season.

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