With the season officially under way, it is time to take a look at how each ACC school fared over the course of the opening week of the season. The ACC as a whole got off to a solid start going a combined 38-6, however, most of those wins came against teams of lesser quality. As we head into Thanksgiving week we will start to see more marquee matchups take place.

North Carolina 4-0 – The Tar Heels are off to a fantastic start at 4-0 including a pair of road wins. The Tar Heels have yet to be tested, and have dominated their opponents by an average of 20.3 ppg. North Carolina has been getting it done on offense with a balanced scoring attack, five different Tar Heels are averaging double figures. Roy Williams’ squad will get their first real test this week as they compete in the Maui Invitational.

2. Duke 2-1– Duke entered the season as the preseason #1 team in the nation, but sustained a loss early to fellow top 10 team Kansas, 77-75. Coach K has had an extremely short bench to work with thanks to injuries to three of the Blue Devils’ highly rated freshman. Over 70% of Duke’s scoring has come from the guard positions through three games. Expect to see a more balanced scoring attack when the freshmen all come back, the only question is when will that be? Coach K has stated multiple times that he does not want to rush them back too early, but Jayson Tatum seems to be the closest and could play sometime next week.

3. Virginia 2-0– The Cavaliers’ defense has looked stifling in their first two games of the season, holding their opponents to 41.5 ppg. However, Tony Bennett kicked Memphis transfer Austin Nichols off the team for not living up to what was expected from him. Nichols was supposed to fill the gap left down low by the graduations of Anthony Gill and Mike Tobey. While it may not be the most ideal situation to be in, the Cavs do have a lot of young talent to work with to take Nichols’ place.

4. Syracuse 3-0– The Orange have gotten off to a good start and have beaten every team they have played handily, including a tough Monmouth team. Jim Boeheim struck gold over the summer bringing in a pair of fifth year seniors in Andrew White III from Nebraska and John Gillon from Colorado State. The pair have combined to average 29 ppg, 6.4 rpg, and 8 apg while giving the Orange some much needed leadership. This could be Syracuse’s best roster in a long time and should make some noise come March.

5. Louisville 3-0– The Cardinals have cruised through their first three games of the season, winning them by an average of 32 ppg. Jaylen Johnson has been the catalyst early for the Cardinals, posting double-doubles in two of their first three games. Rick Pitino has a deep team this year which will allow his guys to get after it on the defensive side of the ball and force turnovers. Through three games they have been successful doing just that, forcing their opponents into a combined 48 turnovers.

6. Clemson 2-1– Clemson has played the toughest schedule of any ACC school so far and has looked good doing so. The Tigers opened the season with a win over SEC foe Georgia, before dispatching talented mid-major Davidson in the first round of the Tire Pros Invitational. In the second round of the event, the Tigers played #11 Xavier, and gave them a run for their money before ultimately falling 77-83. Only six players have played significant minutes for Clemson, but all six are averaging at least 10 ppg with junior Gabe DeVoe leading the way with 15.7 ppg.

7. Miami 2-0– Through two games Miami has yet to be challenged, and has rolled their opponents by over 40 ppg. Led by Ja’Quan Newton’s 14.5 ppg, the Hurricanes have five players averaging double-digits in scoring. Freshman big man Dewan Huell has looked good early, averaging 14 ppg, and 7.5 rpg while shooting over 60% from the field. Jim Larrañaga has put together his best roster since arriving at Miami and his team will be able to play with anyone on their schedule.

8. Florida State 3-0– It may be early in the season still, but the Seminoles offense is clicking on all cylinders already. The ‘Noles are averaging over 95 ppg, which is good for 13th in the nation and first in the conference. While Dwayne Bacon (16 ppg) and Jonathan Issac (14.7 ppg) are the only double-digit scorers on the team, all eleven players in Coach Leonard Hamilton’s rotation are averaging at least 5 ppg. Florida State’s biggest weakness so far has been a lack of outside shooting. Only Issac and Bacon are consistently knocking down shots from outside so far this season. If the ‘Noles want to continue to have this level of offensive success throughout the year they will need contributions from deep from other players.

9. Notre Dame 3-0– No other team in the conference can tout the one-two punch that the Fighting Irish can so far this season. V.J. Beachem and Bonzie Colson are each averaging over 19 ppg and have been extremely efficient scoring the basketball. The pair is also getting it done on the defensive side of the ball where they have combined for eight steals and ten blocks. Notre Dame faces their first real test on Monday when they take on Colorado, who is also 3-0.

10. Virginia Tech 2-0– Buzz Williams’ squad has done exactly what they were supposed to so far this season. The Hokies won their first two games in convincing fashion on the back of a balanced scoring attack, and will take on instate rival VMI today. Ahmed Hill leads the Hokies with 17 ppg after sitting out all of last season due to a torn patella tendon in August. His return gives VA Tech a threat from deep and can help spread the court on the offensive end.

11. Pittsburgh 3-1– The Panthers snuck by EMU in double overtime in the season opener before going on to beat Gardner-Webb by 18 in their second game of the season. Pitt fell to a quality SMU team in the semifinals of the 2k Classic before bouncing back to beat Marquette in the third-place game. While the numbers are a little skewed by the double overtime game, there is no arguing that Pittsburgh’s defense has left a lot to be desired this season. The Panthers are giving up over 80 ppg and rank in the bottom third in the nation in scoring defense so far this season.

12. North Carolina State 3-0– Like Pittsburgh, N.C. State struggled in their opener, beating Georgia Southern 81-79. Since getting that wakeup call to start the season the Wolfpack have responded, beating their next two opponents by an average of 19 points. Mark Gottfried has yet to have his full compliment of players this season with both Maverick Rowan and Ted Kapita missing two of the first three games of the season. Once everyone is available, the Wolfpack will have an extremely potent scoring attack.

13. Wake Forest 3-1– Wake Forest got off to a solid start this season winning their first three games each by at least 20. The Demon Deacons then ran into the defending national champions, Villanova, and lost by 19. The top three leading scorers for Wake are all sophomores and gives Coach Danny Manning a solid core to work with going forward. 6’10 forward John Collins leads the team in scoring with 19.5 ppg, rebounding with 8.3 rpg, and blocks with 2 per contest.

14. Georgia Tech 2-1– It’s the beginning of the Josh Pastner era in Atlanta and it got off to an ok start. After beating Tennessee Tech and Southern handily, the Yellow Jackets tripped up against Ohio 67-61. If the Yellow Jackets want to be competitive in the ACC this season they will need to find a way to put the ball in the hoop more consistently. As a team Georgia Tech is shooting 45% from the field and a dismal 29% from behind the arc. They are also only shooting 64% from the charity stripe and are ranked 273rd in the nation on free throws.

15. Boston College 1-1– The Eagles started the season with a disappointing loss in their home opener to Nicholls State. Boston College bounced back with a 16-point win over Maryland-Eastern Shore, who might be one of the worst teams in college basketball this season. Sophomores Jerome Robinson and A.J. Turner have been the lone bright spots for the Eagles and account for over a third of Boston College’s points this season.

Player of the Week

Ben Lammers, Georgia Tech– The junior center has been a dominating force down low for Georgia Tech so far this season. Lammers is averaging 16.7 ppg to go along with 11.3 rpg through the Yellow Jacket’s first three games of the season. On the defensive side of the ball, the big man has been even more valuable. Lammers’ 18 blocks lead not only the ACC, but also the nation.

Game of the Week