Maryland guard Eric Hayes has a confession: He occasionally peeks at the media?s projections for the NCAA Tournament, and he doesn?t agree with what he sees.
“I think we?re capable of being a higher seed than that,” he said when he noticed the Terrapins were seeded 10th in a 16-team region. “If we keep winning games, it will take care of itself.”
That?s the approach most teams in the Atlantic Coast Conference are taking right now ? win, and everything else, especially an advantageous seeding in the NCAA Tournament, will follow.
WakeForest did exactly that Sunday night, upsetting No. 2 Duke, 86-73, and shaking the ACC landscape by handing the conference leader its first loss in league play. But even after his team posted its biggest victory of the year, Demon Deacons coach Dino Gaudio told his players it doesn?t define a season.
“It?s one game. It?s one ACC game,” Gaudio said. “It?s a great win for us, but we can?t have a hangover coming off that game. Just like when we lose, we say, ?Hey, that one?s over with.?”
Based upon the Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) ? a mathematical win-loss formula that ranks all 341 Division I teams ? the ACC is the top conference in the country. The 12 teams in the ACC have a collective record of 127-38, a winning percentage of .770, which translates to an RPI of .5815. The Pac-10, which features 10 teams that have a combined record of 95-24, has an RPI of .5748, second-best nationally.
But analysts nationwide are calling this season “a down year” for the ACC ? a statement the league?s coaches believe is inaccurate.
ESPN?s Joe Lunardi, who specializes in predicting the 65 teams that will be chosen by the NCAA Tournament?s selection committee, projects the ACC will have four invitees when the brackets are announced March 16 ? Duke, North Carolina, Maryland and Clemson. But he believes the Big East will have eight bids, the Pac-10 seven, the Big 12 six and Big Ten five.
CBSSports.com senior writer Gary Parrish agrees with Lunardi, as he feels the identical teams from the ACC will get in, but North Carolina State and Miami have to finish their seasons strong in order to be invited to the marquee event.
Duke (three), North Carolina (four), Clemson (21), Miami (35), Maryland (51), NC State (60) and Wake Forest (61) are all among the top 65 in the RPI.
Miami (16-7, 4-6) has a chance to make a case this week, as the Hurricanes have home games against Duke (22-2, 10-1) and Maryland (17-9, 7-4).
“Coming off the two wins we?ve had, we?ve got a chance to get back in the middle of things,” Miami coach Frank Haith said. “Our guys are excited and hopefully, they can play well.”
Virginia Tech (14-11, 5-6) visits Maryland on Wednesday night seeking to improve upon its RPI of 72 and prove it belongs in the NCAA Tournament.
“You try to keep it to a minimum, but it?s a reality,” Virginia Tech coach Seth Greenberg said. “Everyone evaluates your season in one weekend and it can be over in one day.”
Maryland coach Gary Williams knows that it?s inevitable his players will read into the tournament race, but he cautions them not to focus on bracketology.
“They?re kids. They hear all the talk about who?s in and who?s out,” Williams said. “It?s not necessary to think about those things. If you play well enough, you?re going to get there.”
BRACKET BREAKDOWN
If the ACC season ended today, here?s how the NCAA Tournament picture looks:
» IN: Duke, North Carolina, Clemson, Maryland
» STILL HAS WORK TO DO: Miami, NC State, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest
» MAYBE NEXT YEAR: Georgia Tech, Boston College, Florida State, Virginia
