ACC:
We are more than half way done with league play in the ACC and
Virginia sits all alone at the top with a 9-1 record which makes them 28-3 in
the ACC over the past two seasons. While UVA just finished up their three game
gauntlet with a 2-1 record (which in reality should have been a perfect three
in a row), the Wahoos will now need to find ways to continue their impressive
play without their second leading scorer Justin
Anderson who is now sidelined for 4-6 weeks. Could Anderson’s injury open
up the ACC race?
With only a handful of games left in a top heavy ACC let’s
take our first look at how the ACC All-Conference team stacks up:
Player of the
Year:
Jahlil Okafor (Duke) –
17.8 ppg, 10.3 rpg, 62.4% FG’s
After a close loss to Notre Dame on the road, Duke quickly
bounced back to upset Virginia, before eeking out a win over Georgia Tech and
then annihilating Notre Dame in a rematch. Through it all, the top rated
freshman has been a dominant force in the low post. He’s scored in double
figures every game including a 20 point, 10 rebound performance this past
weekend on 9-11 shooting. Okafor is fourth in the ACC in scoring, second in
rebounding, and first in field goal percentage. He’s the focus of double teams
every night, but still produces with remarkable consistency and a strong post
repertoire.
All-Conference
Team:
Jerian Grant (Notre
Dame) – 17.1 ppg, 6.4 apg
What a year a difference makes for Notre Dame. Senior guard
Jerian Grant has put together some amazing performances as evidenced by 23
point, 6 rebound, 12 assist game against Duke including a few ridiculous shots.
Grant is the leading assist man in the ACC and is also averaging 1.9 steals a
game. He struggled in his last game at Cameron going 3-10, but isn't too far
behind Okafor in POY rankings.
Rakeem Christmas
(Syracuse) – 19.7 ppg, 9.6 rpg, 2.1 bpg
Easily the most improved player in the conference and maybe
the country. Last year Christmas averaged just 5.8 points per game and now he
is the second leading scorer in the ACC and first in blocked shots. Despite
just getting the news that the Orange wouldn’t be eligible for the NCAA
tournament, Christmas still put up 23 points, 12 rebounds, and 6 blocked shots
in a close loss to Pitt. He’s scored in double figures each game showcasing a
strong right hand hook and put together a 35 point, 9 rebound effort earlier in
the season.
Malcolm Brogdon
(Virginia) – 14 ppg, 3.5 rbg, 2.2 apg
Mr. Consistency. Last year Brogdon was a double-digit scoring
machine in conference play and this year he has continued that trend despite
going for eight points in two close wins over Miami and Virginia Tech. With
Justin Anderson’s injury, Brogdon will have to increase his scoring, but the
versatile wing shouldn’t have a problem. Brogdon can attack the basket using
his size and strength and can also knock down open jump shots in Tony Bennett’s
motion offense. Brogdon had a strong claim for first team ACC last year, but
now he is making another strong push.
Terry Rozier
(Louisville) – 20.4 ppg, 5.1 rbg
The sophomore guard is the top scorer in the ACC and has
made the sophomore leap after averaging 7 points per game as a freshman. Rozier
is a match-up problem for most opposing due to his athletic abilities and he
can get to the rim against almost any defender. That being said, he is shooting
44% from the field and has put together two different 5-16 games in Louisville
losses.
Freshman of the
Year:
Jahlil Okafor (Duke)
Other Notes:
Juniors Marcus Paige (UNC) and Montrezl Harrell (Louisville) were
voted to the first team before the season with Paige being nominated as the
pre-season player of the year. As of right now, both players failed to make the
first team although there is still time. Paige is averaging 15 points, but has been
plagued by injuries while Harrell is averaging 14.6 points and 9.1 rebounds.
UVA’s Justin Anderson would have
garnered first team honors, but with his injury his regular season is
effectively complete.
PAC-12:
Luckily for the Pac-12, they select 10 players for their
first team all-conference. This year they will need it for all of the talented
individuals in this conference. While the league is clearly a two team league
at the top with Utah and Arizona sporting 8-2 records there aren't any nights
off (well, maybe when it comes to USC).
Player of the
Year:
Chasson Randle
(Stanford) – 21.9 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 2.6 apg
It seems like Randle has been around forever at Stanford.
Last year he was named to the first team, but it seemed no one outside the west
coast knew who he was, including Andrew Wiggins. This year, Randle is leading
the league in scoring with 21.9 points per game. The senior guard has put
together two games with 30 plus points and five games with 20 plus points.
Stanford sits at 6-4 in conference play and they will need a player of the year
type performance from Randle to move up the rankings.
All-Conference
Team:
Delon Wright (Utah) –
12.3 ppg, 4 rpg, 6 apg
Wright’s stats are not as pretty as they were last year, but
the versatile senior has helped the Utes to a share of first place in the
conference with eight games to go. Wright is shooting 46% from the floor and
while he was quite in a big game against Arizona earlier in the year he’s
scored in double-figures in eight out of ten league games. Wright is also
leading the league in assists at six per game.
Stanley Johnson
(Arizona) – 14.7 ppg, 6.7 rbg
Johnson was expected to fill in for Aaron Gordon at the
small forward spot, but the freshman has surpassed his former AAU teammate in
terms of production in Tucson. Despite Arizona’s upset loss over the weekend to
Arizona State, the Wildcats sit at 8-2 in the conference in large part due to
the tenacity of Johnson who has put together games of 22 points, 8 rebounds, 19
points and 7 rebounds, and 18 points and 9 rebounds in three wins. Despite
playing with a starting line-up featuring juniors and seniors, Johnson has fit
right in and is the top freshman in the conference.
Joseph Young (Oregon)
– 19.6 ppg, 3.7 rbg
The high scoring shooting guard put together an impressive
display at home this week against the two Washington schools. In the week Young
went for 32 points against Washington and scored over 2,000 points in his
career and on Sunday Young came oh so close to a triple double with a 28 point,
10 rebound, 8 assist performance against Washington State. Young struggled in a
loss to Washington earlier in the year, but has been the sparkplug that has
propelled the Ducks to a surprising 7-4 start.
Tyrone Wallace (California)
– 15.4 ppg, 6.9 rbg, 3.4 apg
Don’t look now, but the Bears have won four games in a row.
They took care of both Southern Cal counterparts this weekend with a Wallace
buzzer beater against USC and then a two point win against UCLA. Over the last
four games, Wallace has averaged close to 19 points per game and despite being
a 6’5” guard he is averaging 6.9 rebounds per game.
Nigel Williams Goss
(Washington) – 17.2 ppg, 4 rbg, 5.4 apg
The sophomore guard has been the lone bright spot for
Washington after a 5 game slide that coincided with the loss of Robert Upshaw.
Williams-Goss had a standout freshman year and gave Aaron Gordon a run for his
money for freshman of the year last year and now he is fifth in the conference
in scoring and second in assists.
Freshman of the
Year:
Stanley Johnson
(Arizona)
Other notes: Freshman Kevon
Looney is averaging close to a double-double, but it’s Norman Powell that has quietly turned his game around after a
disastrous game against Kentucky in front of a plethora of NBA scouts. The
senior guard is averaging 17.5 points per game and after an eight point game in
a loss to Utah, Powell has scored in double figures every game including five
games of 20 plus points.
