You know why you can’t use transitive property in sports? Because Wofford beat NC State at NC State, and then Wofford lost to Duke at Duke, and then Duke lost at NC State. Well, actually, technically Wofford beat NC State at Reynolds, so maybe if the game had been played there, Duke would have won? I KID! (Side note: how AWESOME would that be?)

Basically, the moral of the story is SPORTS, but it was a huge win for the Wolfpack and a fantastic lead-up to a rivalry game against North Carolina, which got a big win of its own last week. Oh, and Duke will get to take out its frustrations against Coach Tilde on Tuesday night, plus, Georgia Tech and Notre Dame will have their anxiously-awaited rematch! Wait, it’s not anxiously awaited? Either way.

As usual, we’ll start with the locals first and then go on to everyone.

TUESDAY

MIAMI (11-4, 1-1) AT NO. 4 DUKE (14-1, 2-1)

Time: 9:00 p.m.

TV: ESPN2

#ANALYSIS

A list of things a team would rather do besides play an angry Duke team at home coming off a loss – a good Duke team, at that – is probably a pretty lengthy one. Miami has shown some moxie at times this year, but they’re still pretty limited in some key areas and Duke is going to be rearing to go in this one. Miami’s going to have to shoot very well and have its guards play a great game, both of which are certainly possible, all while using a front court with just one player taller than 6-foot-8 who sees regular time to try to limit Jahlil Okafor. So, um, best of luck with that.

PTP-ERS

Tyus Jones. There’s no question that the freshman point guard is talented. But he’s hit a bit of a wall lately – in a five-game span from Army to Toledo, he averaged 15.6 points on 52.9 percent shooting (43.8 percent from three), got to the line 8.2 times a game and had 29 assists and nine turnovers. In the four games after that starting with Wofford, he’s averaged 5.0 points on 27.3 percent shooting (28.6 percent from three) and averaged 1.8 foul shots per game, not to mention just 16 assists to seven turnovers. Freshmen are going to struggle in league play, but Duke will need him in this one, particularly in a tough matchup against a seasoned guard like Angel Rodriguez.

Tonye Jekiri. Miami’s junior big man continues to get better and better, and he has had quite the start to ACC play when his team’s needed him the most, averaging 10.5 points and 13.5 rebounds in Miami’s first two ACC games. And, as Duke’s previous games have shown, Miami will need him in this one. He’ll need to make life as difficult as he can for Jahlil Okafor, while doing everything he can on the offensive end and on the boards as well.

TEMPO-FREE

Duke allowed NC State to post an offensive efficiency of 124.3. The previous high allowed by Duke’s defense this year was 113.3 to Wisconsin. Duke has allowed 124.3 or higher just 13 times in the Ken Pom era (11 of which have come in the last seven seasons; Duke allowed just two such performances from 2001-02 through 2007-08). … Last year’s Miami team had an eFG percentage of 47.6 percent, the worst in Larranaga’s time at Miami and second-worst in the Ken Pom era (dating back to his time at George Mason). This year’s mark of 52.1 percent so far is his best at Miami and fourth-highest in the Ken Pom era.

NARRATIVES

Miami Win: This is, if I’m not mistaken, the year of the Pitbull.

Miami Loss: I mean, it’s Duke after a loss, at home, what are you gonna do?

Duke Win: Back on track or something

Duke Loss: Uhhhh…..

PREDICTION

Duke, 79-59. Blowing out teams at home coming off a loss is just what Duke does.

WEDNESDAY

NO. 15 NORTH CAROLINA (12-4, 2-1) AT NC STATE (12-5, 3-1)

Time: 7:00 p.m.

TV: ESPN2

#ANALYSIS

NC State knocks off a top-5 team so LETDOWN game BUT WAIT it’s North Carolina next so CONFLICTING NARRATIVES! So let’s just stick to the x’s and o’s. The biggest factor in this one, to me, will be twofold: the play of NC State’s big men (and North Carolina’s, for that matter), and – connected, of course – rebounding (which is more of a team effort, but still).

If NC State’s big men play the way they did against Duke, regardless of how North Carolina’s play, NC State should win handily. But will they? North Carolina’s bigs are more consistent and proven, but that doesn’t mean Brice Johnson isn’t prone to bad games, and even Meeks (though he’s been the more consistent of the two). North Carolina leads the nation in offensive rebounding percentage, though, and while UNC has struggled on the defensive glass overall, they’ve been much better as of late (and NC State is 101st in offensive rebounding). Assuming guard play plays out as it has been, NC State obviously has an advantage there scoring-wise. And so the key will be what happens in the post and when the ball is in the air and up for grabs, which is a bit of an unknown for both teams.

PTP-ERS

Nate Britt. No, I didn’t mean “Marcus Paige.” Paige himself said that he didn’t play well against Louisville, so he’s far from “back” by his own standards. But Britt had arguably his best game in a Carolina uniform against Louisville. He was 2-of-5 shooting (0-of-3 from two), but he made both his three-pointers (something UNC needs) and had two assists, two steals and no turnovers in 21 minutes, keeping the team relatively calm while Paige was out. Which is why he continued to be on the court for much of the second half. The key in this one will be how well others on UNC’s perimeter fare, and the Tar Heels will need Britt (or someone else) to have a good, solid game in a tough environment. (Also, he’s made 7-of-15 three’s in UNC’s last five games.)

BeeJay Anya. Like Britt, his success or failure won’t be the biggest key to this game for the Wolfpack. But it could help make a difference. Just look at last season: in the double-digit loss at UNC, Anya played six minutes and missed his only shot. In the overtime thriller, he played 22 minutes and had 10 points. On Sunday, though, Anya broke out an impressive array of post moves, including TWO spin moves, on Jahlil Okafor (who he knows well). Anya’s upside is as big as his wingspan. NC State has other players who can defend in the post, but Anya’s sheer presence helped wear down Okafor as the game went on, and he could do the same to Meeks. But he has to be able to play and be effective, and his career game against Duke came on the heels of his 18-minute, no-shot-attempt, no-rebound, four-turnover, three-foul performance at Virginia. So which Anya will we get?

TEMPO-FREE

In the Mark Gottfried era, NC State and North Carolina have had top-10 performances against each other in games at PNC Arena in two of the three matchups. In 2014, NC State had the fourth-highest OE against UNC posted all year long in the epic overtime thriller, while UNC had the fifth-highest OE that NC State allowed all of last season in that same game. In 2011-12, North Carolina had the highest OE it’s posted against a Gottfried-coached team (129.0) but NC State’s 111.0 OE in that same game was still the seventh-best by a UNC opponent all season. The one exception to this was 2012-13 in an NC State win - the Wolfpack’s 113.3 OE was the sixth-best vs. UNC that year, but the 103.3 in that same game by the Tar Heels was just their No. 21 performance.

Long story short, these games have been fun and both teams have generally brought their best.

NARRATIVES

North Carolina Win: This could be a game story in one GIF

North Carolina Loss: North Carolina’s season, in a nutshell:

NC State Win: Afraid to feel but want to feel so much and heart is so full of hope

NC State Loss: Good feelings followed abruptly by disappoint I think there’s a name for this

PREDICTION

North Carolina, 77-73. It does feel too easy to say that NC State will have a letdown game just because it got a big win. But I don’t necessarily think that’s what will happen here anyway. Both teams will play a hard-fought game and one team has to win and so I picked one. That’s it.

TUESDAY

VIRGINIA TECH (8-7, 0-2) AT NO. 6 LOUISVILLE (14-2, 2-1)

Time: 7:00 p.m.

TV: RSN

#ANALYSIS

No. I really don’t…no, I don’t want to do this. Look, Louisville has had its offensive struggles. But just ask Buzz Williams about struggles. He’ll give you a roster filled with a lack of ACC-caliber talent and some quality sideline dance moves and gyrations, plus a few sweat-filled shirts. That’s what he’ll give you. Louisville’s defense is excellent. If this game is even remotely close, there won’t be enough red flags in the universe to wave at Louisville. And they won’t be school flags. They’ll be panic flags. There. There’s my analysis.

PTP-ERS

Justin Bibbs. The only positive Virginia Tech can take out of this season, really, is the play of the freshman guard, who is averaging 23.5 points in ACC play on 15-of-31 shooting. Is that sustainable? Probably not, but you know what? Do it against a defense like Louisville’s and we’ll talk.

Chinanu Onuaku. Louisville’s freshman big man (and he is indeed big) had his best game of the year, arguably, at UNC, finishing with eight points on 3-of-4 shooting to go with eight rebounds in 27 minutes (oh, and two blocks and two steals). He had 10 points in the previous seven games combined, so it was good to see him be a factor. If he can’t be a factor against a Virginia Tech team without Joey Van Zegeren in the middle, that’s a problem. Also, his coach said this about his performance, so yeah.

Pitino on Onuaku: "I was" pleased with him, "until I watched the tape ... He stood around too much. He didn't pursue the basketball." — Jeff Greer (@jeffgreer_cj) January 12, 2015

TEMPO-FREE

Louisville had not lost a game with an eFG percentage over 50 percent since…oh wait, not that long ago! March 28, 2014 in the NCAA Tournament against Kentucky (52.8 percent). Those are the only two games Louisville has lost with that high of an eFG percentage in the last four seasons, though. … In two games without Joey van Zegeren, Virginia Tech has rebounded less than 30 percent of its own misses in consecutive games and allowed opponents to rebound 39.5 percent and 51.7 percent of their misses.

NARRATIVES

Virginia Tech Win: Their head coach is an endless supply of GIFs

Virginia Tech Loss: Yeah so this will be one of many.

Louisville Win: As expected.

Louisville Loss: So…the panic button. Maybe at least know where it is. OR MASH IT REPEATEDLY

So…the panic button.

PREDICTION

Louisville, 73-52. Gross.

CLEMSON (9-6, 1-2) AT NO. 2 VIRGINIA (15-0, 3-0)

Time: 8:00 p.m.

TV: ACC Network

#ANALYSIS

Hey, with the win over Pitt on Saturday, Clemson is now 4-4 against Power 5 teams, 1-2 against the Big South and 4-0 against everyone else! THAT BIG SOUTH IS A MEAT GRINDER, I TELL YOU! Speaking of meat grinder, that’s pretty much what’s about to happen to Clemson in this game. Clemson does not offense, in spite of what they did against Pitt. And Virginia? Oh, they defense. They defense very well. Sure, Virginia could shoot not all that great and keep the Tigers around for a bit. But that’s the best Clemson could hope for.

PTP-ERS

Jaron Blossomgame. Clemson offensive snark aside, the redshirt sophomore is playing quite well – he’s hit double figures in all but one game for Clemson this season, and that’s big when scoring is at a premium. He’s also rebounding the ball well (ranked in both offensive and defensive rebounding percentages), has kept his fouls to a minimum and draws fouls, too. He’s shooting 16-of-29 in ACC play (4-of-8 from three) and adding 6.3 rebounds.

Marial Shayok. The Virginia freshman wing has had a nice start to ACC play, scoring at least seven points in two of the three games and shooting 7-of-14 from the field (3-of-7 from three), adding four steals and three blocks. His minutes were far from steady outside ACC play, but he’s seen at least 17 minutes in three ACC games now and he’s rewarded Tony Bennett with two of his highest ORtg’s of the season (140 in the win over Miami and 147 at Notre Dame). But if he struggles again, he’ll be benched again - so he’s got to maintain it.

TEMPO-FREE

Worth watching – Virginia was having one of its best offensive rebounding years of the Tony Bennett era entering ACC play, but the Cavaliers have had two of their three worst offensive rebounding percentages (29.6 percent against a small Notre Dame team and 26.3 percent against Miami) in ACC play so far. … Clemson is 14th in the ACC in two-point percentage in ACC games only, hitting just 38.2 percent of their two-point tries. Only Syracuse (35.5 percent) is worse. Clemson would likely still own that spot with a bullet, though, had the Tigers not hit 48.5 percent of their two-pointers in the win at Pitt.

NARRATIVES

Clemson Win: NO, Clemson. NO. YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO DO THIS. NO. YOU ARE THE WORST.

Clemson Loss: Son’d

Virginia Win: You’re at the point now where we’re no longer excited when you do this

Virginia Loss: Oh Virginia. That’s bad. Come on now.

PREDICTION

Virginia, 74-52. Again, I want no part of any viewing experience associated with this game. (Although I would be lying if I said I would not watch this if I were at home, because I have a sickness.)

WAKE FOREST (9-8, 1-3) AT SYRACUSE (12-4, 3-0)

Time: 8:00 p.m.

TV: ACC Network

#ANALYSIS

Well, here it is, Wake Forest. You get a hobbled Syracuse team that has certainly been vulnerable this year and yes, it’s on the road, but it’s a winnable game for a team that’s playing well. This is the type of game that Wake Forest has to use to back up its stellar performances against Duke and Louisville at home – if not with an outright win, then at the very least with a competitive performance. Jim Boeheim is one of the best coaches ever for a reason, and that’s a tough place to play. But Jeff Bzdelik teams would’ve gone to New York and gotten blown out after two good games at home. Wake can’t afford to do that here.

PTP-ERS

Codi Miller-McIntyre. A non-factor in last year’s game against Syracuse, he can’t be one again this time around. His five points in the win over Georgia Tech on Saturday were tied for his season low (he missed some of the game with an injury), and Wake’s going to need its junior point guard on the road to make plays.

Tyler Roberson. Who, you might ask? Well, now that freshman Chris McCullough tore his ACL, he’ll likely be the next man up off the Syracuse bench. He saw 32 minutes in the FSU game, and the sophomore forward had five points on 1-of-5 shooting but nine rebounds. He’s played all season anyway as a primary bench guy, but he’ll have to assume a bigger role now.

TEMPO-FREE

The average rank of Syracuse’s first four ACC opponents in Ken Pom’s rankings, including Wake, is 130. Only two other ACC teams face an average of 100 in their first four games - Pitt (107.8) and Louisville (106). Louisville is the only other team to get more than two 100 or worse teams in their first four games (but is balanced out by UNC at 9). Clemson’s opening four games, in contrast, averages out to 28.8 while Wake’s is third-highest at 37.3.

NARRATIVES

Wake Forest Win: Oh snap okay then Wake

Wake Forest Loss: So you’re doing the thing again where you play well at home and lose on the road, huh?

Syracuse Win: You’ll get no credit for this and you’ll like it

Syracuse Loss: I’ve been waiting to break this out, but it’s time. The last possession in the ACC Tournament game against NC State was one of the most special things that has ever happened.

PREDICTION

Syracuse, 60-56. I guess.

WEDNESDAY

NO. 13 NOTRE DAME (15-2, 3-1) AT GEORGIA TECH (9-6, 0-3)

Time: 7:00 p.m.

TV: RSN

#ANALYSIS

We already have a rematch not even a third of the way through ACC play. So that is happening. But the main reason the first game was close (Notre Dame won in double overtime) was that Georgia Tech rebounded 42.2 percent of their misses. And Georgia Tech hit a few 3’s early – more than normal, anyway – while Notre Dame didn’t hit its normal allotment. The Irish are not a great defensive rebounding team (part of the problem with having a smallish lineup), but they’re going to need to step that up. And, you know, hit some 3’s. Then it won’t be as close.

PTP-ERS

Jerian Grant. So, Jerian Grant had a really good start to the season, scoring double figures in Notre Dame’s first 15 games. But in the last two, he’s been more facilitator than scorer, notching 14 assists to just three turnovers but shooting 3-of-16 from the field (0-of-5 from three). Against Georgia Tech in the first meeting, that was his last good game before the slump and he had 24 points on 10-of-18 shooting (though he missed all four three-point attempts; he’s missed his last nine tries over three games). Clearly, Notre Dame needed every bit of that and this would be a nice time for him to get back on track scoring-wise. (PS? Even with the recent slump, he’s still 16th in the country in ORtg, which is unreal.)

Marcus Georges-Hunt. There’s a lot of talk about Notre Dame winning the matchup at the 4 with Connaughton. But he can play the 3, too, if necessary. Still, Steve Vasturia at the 3 vs. MGH at the 3-spot seems like a no-contest win for the Yellow Jackets. And it was – more or less – in the first meeting, as Georges-Hunt finished with 20 points on 7-of-19 shooting (5-of-14 from 2, but 2-of-5 from three) with eight rebounds, an assist and two steals. He’s going to need to have that kind of a game – perhaps with more efficient shooting – this time around.

TEMPO-FREE

Notre Dame has still been very good on offense, but the Irish have posted three of their four worst offensive efficiencies of the season in the last four games, including a season-worst 102.3 in the loss to Virginia. The 108.4 they had against Georgia Tech was second-worst. … Georgia Tech didn’t block any shots against Notre Dame in the first meeting, the first and only time this season Georgia Tech has gone without a block. Georgia Tech is 106th nationally in block percentage and Notre Dame is third nationally in lowest percentage of shots blocked on offense.

NARRATIVES

Notre Dame Win: There you go Notre Dame stay winning

Notre Dame Loss: Et tu, Notre Dame?

Georgia Tech Win: Woooo big win what does it all mean

Georgia Tech Loss: This feels like a metaphor for Georgia Tech’s current state of the program

PREDICTION

Notre Dame, 74-67. It feels too easy to say that this will be a close one or even a Georgia Tech win. And if it’s that easy then Georgia Tech will find a way to get in its own way anyways.

FLORIDA STATE (9-7, 1-2) AT PITTSBURGH (11-5, 1-2)

Time: 9:00 p.m.

TV: RSN

#ANALYSIS

So both of these defenses are bad. Or, OK, not bad, but meh at best. And neither offense is all that great, in spite of Pitt being ranked 53rd nationally. I mean, sorry but if you can’t outscore Clemson at home then, yeah. Florida State is often hit or miss, quite literally. But here’s the issue that intrigues me about this game, and by intrigues I mean mildly interests – Florida State turns it over a lot, but Pitt doesn’t force a lot either. That’s not their game. So if FSU can defend reasonably well and knock down some shots, who knows? But who knows if that will happen. I’ve already said too much about this game.

PTP-ERS

Montay Brandon. The junior guard was playing well entering ACC play, scoring 17 points each in back-to-back wins over Stetson and Florida and being held to single digits just four times in non-conference play. He’s hit double digits just once in ACC play now, and he’s shooting 7-of-17 from the floor (on the season, he’s nearly 60 percent from two-point range and 22.2 percent from two on very few attempts). He’s still getting to the foul line, which is good (16 attempts in the last two games) but the Noles could really use his playmaking ability.

Cameron Wright. His return to the lineup was supposed to fix everything, and it did, seemingly for a time. But the 6-5 senior wasn’t playing well himself upon his return - until the Clemson game, when he had 18 points on 8-of-11 shooting to go with three assists and no turnovers in 36 minutes. The 36 minutes were his most all season, and obviously this was his best game of the season. Only one of his teammates was even in double figures. He’s the only senior who sees regular minutes for Pitt, and man do they need….something.

TEMPO-FREE

This stat is courtesy of Backing the Pack’s Austin Johnson, but Clemson posted a higher ORtg against Pitt (124.5) than it did against Florida A&M (123.9, its previous high this season). Florida A&M is ranked 350th in Ken Pom. There are 351 teams. Gross, Pittsburgh. … In four seasons between 2009-12, Florida State allowed 40 opponents to break 100 in offensive efficiency. Just 13 broke the 110 mark and only two – TWO! – broke 120. In the last two and a half seasons, though, 48 opponents have broken 100 in OE, 29 have broken 110 and 12 have broken 120.

NARRATIVES

Florida State Win: Oh a win whatever

Florida State Loss: Time is a flat circle

Pittsburgh Win: Meh.

Pittsburgh Loss: Judging you so hard right now Pitt

PREDICTION

Pittsburgh, 69-64. I mean, I guess? I don’t feel good about either of these teams at the moment, but hey.

Last week: 11-3 (11-3 ACC)

Overall: 19-3 (19-3 ACC)