Around the ACC: Nov. 27

Only two games yesterday, so this'll be a short read today. Clemson got upset yesterday, which I was not expecting to happen. Don't know if this is a.) an indication that A&M is better than they looked (plus they have B.J. Holmes who already has a built-in fall-back career), b.) that Clemson is just doing what Clemson likes to do, or C.) that it is just a loss and we can't take anything away from it at all.

The big game is UConn vs. Duke, a game that has some history behind it (as I'm sure ESPN will let us know all day). The two other games to keep an eye on are FSU vs. Alabama (5 PM) and VT vs. Temple (8:30). And make sure to tough out your turkeyday hangovers.

FSU 54, Iona 49
Raise your hand if you were a bit surprised that Iona gave FSU such a game yesterday. The Gaels won 12 games yesterday and had a ton of injuries, but I guess getting healthy helped them out. The game was tied with under 3 minutes to play, but Florida State gutted out a victory (see what hitting your free throws does, kids?). Florida State had 27 turnovers (with only 8 assists), which is cause for concern, but got 16 points from Derwin Kitchen and 13 from Chris Singleton.

Clemson 60, Texas A&M 69

Clemson got shell-shocked early on, going down 17 at one point, but showed a lot of heart to cut it to two, but A&M added a late-game surge to finish the 9 point victory. A&M's Holmes had 20 points on an unorthodox 3-7 shooting (hitting 11 of his 12 FTs, with 3 three pointers). Trevor Booker led the Tigers with 18 and 6 rebounds, and Tanner Smith had 14 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists. If A&M hopes to get with the elite teams in the country, they're going to have to do a lot better than the 20-35 FTs they hit yesterday.