I made it safely back to the Cleveland area. But it wasn't exactly smooth sailing. Regardless, it's a big day as the Deacs take on the Hokies tonight in Blacksburg. VT is clawing their way towards an NCAA bid and lord knows they've had Wake's number when the Deacs get a little momentum going. This should be a great matchup and we'll be keeping you covered throughout the day. Get your link on. No, seriously though, we have like a billion links today.
And help out a good cause if you get the chance--our friends at BC Interruption are helping out with a memorial Golf Tournament in Maine with proceeds going to cancer. So head over here and if you are in the giving mood, there's a paypal link.
Scrappy Tech, wake to battle for 2nd place | HamptonRoads.com | PilotOnline.com
Hearing that comparison, Tech's coach - self-deprecating Seth Greenberg - laughed. "We're like miniature puppies and they're like freaking pit bulls," he said. "They're great danes and we're like a border collie you picked up at the shelter."
Fredericksburg.com - Wake, Tech share style
"We're not the prettiest teams in the league or the country," Gaudio said. "But we're two teams that will just fight you, scratch, claw for everything and anything on the floor. It'll be a difficult challenge for us going up there."
The Lawn Chair Boys: Breakfast with Berndon: Late Lunch Edition
Ascending: I’m trying my hardest each week to not give the nod to Duke unless I absolutely have to. They struggled slightly with a bad Carolina team, so I’m going to go with Wake Forest. Now ranked for the first time all season, and with three starters back from last year’s team, they seem to be hitting their stride, getting a chance to prove it further in Blacksburg on Tuesday night.
Preview | #23 wake (8-3 | 18-5) @ VT (7-3 | 20-4) | Tu., 7 PM | ESPN2 | Tech Hoops
The Hokies have owned, and I mean paid for in full, since joining the ACC. Tech is 5-2 since joining the league against wake and have won five of six. That is Tech’s best winning percentage against any ACC team other than miami (slightly better at 8-3) and georgia tech, who VT is also 5-2 against. Even that one loss was when the Hokies collapsed in the final moments in the 2007-08 ACC opener and lost on a jumper just before the buzzer by Ishmael Smith. [NOTE]-- This guy HATES using capitalization.
BEYOND THE ARC: A week of milestones, reunions and injuries – ACC Insider - Wilmington Star News - Wilmington, NC - Archive
2. Protecting the house: Wake Forest extended its ACC home winning streak to 11 with a pair of wins at The Joel this week. Virginia Tech, meanwhile, held off rival UVa. on Saturday to improve to a perfect 13-0 at Cassell Coliseum this season. Duke, at 14-0, is the only other undefeated ACC team at home.
3-Pointers: Calipari has nothing to gain with Nets - Mike DeCourcy - College Basketball - Sporting News
Wake has all the ingredients of a top 25 team. It has a lottery-level pro prospect in PF Al-Farouq Aminu. It has senior leadership from PG Ish Smith. It has big wins. It has an attractive record. All it lacks is a big-time road win. [NOTE]--Is DeCourcy forgetting that Wake beat Gonzaga at Gonzaga? That would appear to me to be a "big-time" road win. Duke doesn't even have one of those...
FayObserver.com - ACC notebook
With more than 8 minutes to play Saturday night at Wake Forest, Georgia Tech led 62-60 and was looking for a way to sneak out a big road win. But it wasn't happening against the Demon Deacons' defense. Five minutes later, the Yellow Jackets were still stuck on 62 and Wake had extended to a five-point lead on the way to a 75-64 win.
2010 Wake Forest Baseball Preview: Catcher & Designated Hitter - WAKE FOREST OFFICIAL ATHLETIC SITE
This is the third of a five-part series previewing the 2010 Wake Forest baseball team. In part three, head coach Tom Walter previews the Demon Deacon catchers and designated hitters. Part four of the preview, which will be posted on Tuesday, will preview the Wake starting rotation.
Hokies and Demon Deacons Fight to Keep Pace in ACC
A well balanced starting line-up is what makes Wake so difficult to match-up against. They are led in scoring by their small forward Al-Faroug Aminu. He’s averaging 16.5 points per game along with almost 11 rebounds. Ishmael Smith, C.J. Harris and L.D. Williams make up the Demon Deacon back-court, and contribute 32 points, 12 rebounds and 9 assists per game as a group. They don’t have a clear cut stand-out type player at the guard position, but all three players know their roles and play them to perfection.
Blogsburg, VA: Home of the Writing Gobblers " Blog Archive " Wake Forest Basketball game preview (100% FREE!)
As you can see, Wake is pretty damn big on the inside, fielding no less than 3 legit Pivots (Centers) and a couple of other nice front-courters which include the N.B.A. ready king at Power-Forward in Mr. Aminu. If there ever was a game where we need Jeff Allen on the court and out of foul-trouble it would be this one. Wake is 3rd in offensive rebounding in all of D-1, meaning they are likely to gobble up some offensive put-backs even on the road. This is an uber physical D.Dec frontline folks, they will mix, they will scrap and they are even a bit combative. Just ask Boston College how Woods and companies elbows taste.
Preview: Wake Forest at Virginia Tech - washingtonpost.com
Crying foul: Guard Malcolm Delaney scored 20 of his 30 points in a win over Clemson on Feb. 6 at the foul line, but has made only a combined 13 trips to the stripe in the past two games. Delaney said officials have told him to "stop flopping," and he is frustrated. An important part of Delaney's game has been his ability to score from the free throw line, but in a win over Virginia on Saturday, he scored only four of his 13 points from the foul line. The 13 points, meanwhile, matched his lowest total in an ACC game this season.
Wake Forest-Virginia Tech Preview - Feb. 15, 2010 - NCAA Division I Mens Basketball - CBSSports.com
"I think all the pieces are starting to come together," said Aminu, who is the ACC's leading rebounder (10.9 per game). "We're starting to flow."
Hokies eye chances to rise in RPI | Richmond Times-Dispatch
The Demon Deacons' leading scorer, 6-9 sophomore forward Al-Farouq Aminu, leads the ACC with 10.4 rebounds in conference play. Tech ranks 11th in the 12-team league in rebounding margin in ACC games: minus-3.2. In addition to Aminu, Wake plays guys who are 7-foot, 6-11, 6-11 and 6-7. That length lets the Deacons cover the court well and means the Hokies must be readier than usual to shoot when they get an open look. "It's hard to simulate that length in our practice because we've got a bunch of 6-8 guys," said Tech coach Seth Greenberg.
Hokies play for second place tonight in Cassell Coliseum - CollegiateTimes.com
"We still have to keep playing," Tech junior guard Malcolm Delaney said. "We’ve got some games left and we have a chance to win the ACC if we keep playing the way we’ve been playing."
Boys Basketball: Green, Pats maintain a Saintly aim - The Delaware County Daily Times : Serving Delaware County, PA(DelcoTimes.com)
But Green got tired. Tired of chasing around the Saints’ Tony Chennault on defense. Tired of running toward open spaces on offense. Tired of trying to shed Jones’ arms from grasping at his waist. It all wore down Green, to the point that he wasn’t as effective after halftime. "I know I’ve got to play better than I did," Green said, "especially when my coach (Paul Romanczuk) puts me on Tony Chennault.
Scout.com: SC QB Highly Regarded (Premium)
The past two seasons, Northwestern High School (SC) has been able to make sensational runs to the state title game. None was more impressive than last season when the Trojans overcame a 0-4 start before going on a run to earn another trip to the title game. DeaconSports spoke with Northwestern quarterback Justin Worley about last season, his expectations for next year, and his recruitment.
SB Nation Bracketology: Villanova And Syracuse Flip Spots On The Top Line - SB Nation
DraftExpress: The Week Ahead: What to Watch in College Basketball 2/15-2/21
There are interesting match ups all over the floor, but the most interesting seems to be in the post where Wake Forest’s future lottery pick Al-Farouq Aminu will face off against the tough and versatile Virginia Tech power forward Jeff Allen. Aminu must utilize his skill and athleticism against a tougher opponent and scouts are expecting Allen to assert himself and produce on the offensive end. This match up is also interesting because Wake Forest’s 6’11 back-up center, Tony Woods, is beginning to show a pulse and remind scouts why they considered him to be a top-tier prospect out of high school.
Wake Forest Schools of Business graduates rank #1 in the nation on CPA exam pass rate
For the fifth consecutive year, graduates of the Wake Forest University Schools of Business accountancy program have achieved the highest passing rates in the nation on the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) exam. (WakeJake note - boo-ya)
Scout.com: Williams Has Wide Horizons (Premium)
Williams just recently went to the Wake Forest Junior Day on Feb. 13. "It’s a pretty cool place," he said about Wake Forest. "It’s a real nice atmosphere and it just seems like a fun place. I know they have great fans and everyone in town likes football and follows the team."
College Hoops Tuesday: Your Commentary | College Basketball by Collegehoops.net
The ACC and Big East will also feature important games with NCAA implications on Tuesday night. Wake Forest, who looks to be a safe bet right now, visits a Virginia Tech squad in needs to wins to make up for one of the worst non-conference strength of schedule rankings in the nation. Malcolm Delaney and Dorenzo Hudson take care of things for Seth Greenberg on the perimeter but the key against the Wake Forest frontcourt will be Jeff Allen. He's got to be ready to go from the start and avoid foul trouble if the Hokies are to defend their home court
Similar Teams: Hokies, Deacs both rely on solid defenses
"The team we're playing (tonight) is really, really as talented as any team I've seen this year," Greenberg said. "They've got about 30 feet of post players (in Chas McFarland, Tony Woods, David Weaver and Ty Walker). They've got one of the premier offensive rebounders in the country (Al-Farouq Aminu). They've got a guy who is as quick with the ball as anyone I've seen in a long, long time, in Ish Smith. "Their freshmen (C.J) Harris and (Ari) Stewart are not afraid, and have made big baskets and big basketball plays. They're just a very good basketball team. They're extremely well-coached, they play hard and they're obviously going to pose a lot of problems for us."
My Take on Wake - Beware the Bottom Feeders | JournalNow.com
Greenberg needs to grasp what Coach Dino Gaudio of Wake Forest learned two seasons ago. That was the year the Deacons were 17-13 overall and 7-9 in the ACC and couldn’t even get an invite to the NIT. Their problem was they played N.C. Central, Winston-Salem State, USC Upstate and Presbyterian all in the same season and it trashed their strength of schedule. Every team plays over-matched non-conference opponents, but the key is to play over-matched teams ranked by the ratings percentage index between 100 and 200 and not those ranked between 200 and the final spot of 347.
Predicting the NCAA tournament bracket - CBK News - FOX Sports on MSN
The Demon Deacons are the best team no one talks about. (3 seed!)
College Basketball Bubble Watch - Mid-majors look to rebound with BracketBusters matchups on tap - NCAA Men's Basketball - ESPN
The Demon Deacons have won six of their last seven games, including a 75-64 victory over Georgia Tech on Saturday night. Wake has joined Tobacco Road neighbor Duke in "lock status," while Georgia Tech and Maryland are struggling to get there. Virginia's winning record in league play keeps it in the bubble discussion for at least another week, but the Cavs are running out of time.
Bracketology: The Homestretch Begins - Blogging the Bracket
Wake Forest (5)