Plenty of worthy candidates for All-ACC
By Jerry Ratcliffe / jratcliffe@dailyprogress.com| 978-7251
February 20, 2007

Scattershooting around the ACC, while wondering if both UVa guards will make the league’s first team ...
There’s only five spots and a lot of candidates, with at least two shoo-ins with BC’s Jared Dudley and FSU’s Al Thornton. UVa’s Sean Singletary is pretty much considered a lock to repeat.
But what about the other two spots? UNC’s Tyler Hansbrough? Virginia Tech’s Zabian Dowdell? Virginia’s J.R. Reynolds?
Somebody’s going to be left off unless there is some kind of an extremely rare tie in the voting.
Miami coach Frank Haith said Tuesday that he believes J.R. Reynolds doesn’t get the credit he’s due. Reynolds, who was disappointed to be voted third team last season as a junior, would agree and so would his coach.
“Sean has a reputation as a Wooden Award finalist and other things,” Coach Dave Leitao said Tuesday. “J.R. started the season a little slow, but arguably could be up there with Sean and Dowdell as the best player or guard in this league. It’s hard to find anyone as consistent as he’s been. If he’s not a first-team, all-league player, then it would not be based on his play, but because of reputation.”

Garyland revival
Hats off to Maryland coach Gary Williams, who has coached his Terrapins back to a .500 record in ACC play (6-6) heading into this week’s games with FSU (home) and Duke (on the road).
The Terps are trying to return to the NCAAs after falling short and playing in the NIT the past two seasons. What is remarkable about the turnaround is that Maryland started out 2-4 in ACC play.
Only four teams in ACC history have started out league play at 2-4 and managed to come back and make the NCAA Tournament (Virginia did it twice in 1976 and 1984, and Maryland did it twice).
“We have a good group of seniors who were here last year and we did a pretty good job down the stretch last year, but we didn’t make the NCAA Tournament,” Williams said with just enough of an edge that he believe his team got stiffed last
season. “Sometimes you can learn from negative experiences.”
The Terps have won three straight ACC road games for the first time since 2002 when Maryland won the national championship. Three of the Terps’ final four games are at Comcast.
Maryland is now 20-7 overall and it should be noted here that no ACC team with 20 regular season wins has ever been omitted from the NCAA Tournament since the field was expanded to 64 in 1985. A 20-win Clemson team was bypassed in 1981.

Hoos in the Palestra
Could it be yet another sign that point guard Sean Singletary plans on returning for his senior season at Virginia?
According to St. Joe’s coach Phil Martelli, Virginia is among the teams scheduled to participate in an exempt Thanksgiving weekend tournament next season at the legendary Palestra in Philadelphia, Singletary’s hometown.
Could it be the All-ACC guard’s homecoming?
UVa officials won’t confirm the deal is set yet, but it is being discussed.
Other teams in the field include Penn, Drexel, Boston U., Loyola (Md.) and Rutgers, according to Martelli.

Classy class
North Carolina coach Roy Williams said Tuesday he’s never seen as many quality freshmen in the ACC at one time as right now.
“If we can keep them around for a while, it shows how good this league will be down the road,” Williams said. “This has to be one of the best classes ever.”
UNC, Duke, Georgia Tech and Wake all have more than 57 starts by freshmen this season. Virginia has next to the fewest with only three, while FSU hasn’t started a freshman this season.
“Just look around,” said Georgia Tech coach Paul Hewitt. “I have felt like this was one of the strongest classes since the one that had Rasheed Wallace, Jason Lawson, Alvin Williams and those guys.”

Quote of the week
During his Cavalier Call-In show on Monday night at Wild Wings Café, Virginia coach Dave Leitao was told by host Mac McDonald that Terry Holland once said that college basketball should do away with the block/charge rule to which Leitao came up with this witty answer:
“What would Duke do?”

Stat of the week
After playing 25 games this season, Virginia guards Sean Singletary and J.R. Reynolds both have scored exactly 461 points each. They’re tied for fourth in the ACC in scoring.

Hot & Not
Who’s Hot? How about Virginia, which has won 9 of its last 10 games? Or, BC’s Tyrese Rice, who has scored 20 or more points in five straight games? Or FSU’s Al Thornton with 20 or more in nine of his last 12? Or, Georgia Tech’s Javaris Crittenton, averaging 22.3 points, 5.5 rebounds, 5.3 assists, and 3.3 steals over his last four games?
Who’s Not? Florida State is quickly playing its way toward the NIT, having lost four straight. Clemson’s K.C. Rivers’ totals have declined, but the one the ACC junkies are buzzing about is Georgia Tech’s Thaddeus Young.
Young had been the Jackets’ top scorer for much of the second half of the season, until lately when he cooled to just three points at FSU on a 1-for-7 night (and just one rebound), followed by a mere seven points at Duke.
All this leaves Young, who was selected by ACC media as pre-season Rookie of the Year, in jeopardy of maybe not making the league’s All-Rookie team. If the team were picked today it would definitely be comprised of Tech teammate Javaris Crittenton, UNC’s Brandan Wright, N.C. State’s Brandon Costner, and possibly Duke’s Jon Scheyer, Maryland’s Greivis Vasquez, UNC’s Ty Lawson or Young.

Injury report
FSU’s fortunes have sagged ever since point guard Toney Douglas broke his right hand, the Seminoles dropping three in a row without him (four in a row overall).
“It’s feeling better than it was,” said Douglas. “But there’s still a little bit of pain.”
As close as the Seminoles played Virginia on Saturday, the Cavaliers probably weren’t too sad that Douglas wasn’t in the game.
Coach Leonard Hamilton said Tuesday that he doesn’t anticipate Douglas being back for Wednesday’s game at Maryland, but hopes for his return before the season concludes.
On the soapbox
Maryland coach Gary Williams didn’t mind singing the praises of former Terps coach Lefty Driesell, who was bypassed in the most recent Basketball Hall of Fame process.
“I’ll get up on the soapbox for that one,” said Williams. “I think there’s seven or eight coaches with 700 wins and Lefty is one of them. For him to come into metro D.C. (in 1970), where there’s so much competition and to make Maryland a
hot ticket, I definitely think Lefty belongs in the Hall of Fame.”
We will second that notion.

Free throws
Prized Virginia recruiting target, 6-8 Patrick Patterson, will narrow his list of final schools from six to three next week according to his mother. Virginia, Duke, Kentucky, Florida and Florida State are all in the mix. ... When N.C. State upset North Carolina recently, Wolfpack coach Sidney Lowe donned a bright red sports coat, the school colors. Asked Tuesday if he’ll wear the coat again for this week’s rematch in Chapel Hill, Lowe said: “I don’t know, we’ll have to see about that.” ... A lot of fans have been griping this year that ACC basketball officiating has gone to the dogs. Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski wouldn’t go that far, but did say: “In a more positive sense, I’d like to see officials get paid more per game and have a benefits package, but limit the number of games they work in a week because that’s [calling four or five games a week in various conferences] a lot of wear and tear.” ... Florida State has an 18-29 record in games decided in either overtime or by five points or less under Coach Leonard Hamilton, now in his fifth season. ...Home teams own a 45-29 advantage in ACC play so far this season. ... Wake rookie point guard Ishmael Smith may become the second straight, but only fifth overall freshman in ACC history to lead the conference in assists (5.8). ... The Hokies are feeling good about their stretch run, with three of their last four games at Cassell Coliseum, where they own a 45-15 (.750) record during Coach Seth Greenberg’s four seasons.

 

Virginia sweeps George Washington
By Jay Jenkins / jjenkins@dailyprogress.com | 978-7250
February 20, 2007

Matt Packer’s debut at Davenport Field was at a crossroads in the fourth inning.

With a comfortable nine-run lead, Virginia was well on its way to a three-game sweep over George Washington, but the rookie southpaw was in a hairy situation.

The Colonials, who had yet to record an out, had the bases loaded and were primed to score for the second time in the series.

Packer surprised himself somewhat, masterfully working out of the jam unscathed, and helped spring No. 8 Virginia to a 15-2 win in the series finale.

Virginia improved to 5-1, while the Colonials, who entered the series without adequate practice time back in the nation’s capital, dropped to 0-3.

“Sweeps are hard to get in college baseball and I thought we played really good baseball - we pitched well, we played pretty good defense, we swung the bats well and we took advantage of our opportunities,” said Virginia coach Brian O’Connor. “Even if you have a veteran team like we have, you still have to prove to yourselves that you can sweep a three-game series.”

As excited as O’Connor was to score 37 runs and register a .412 batting average in the series, Packer’s fourth-inning effort perhaps left the biggest impression.

After giving up three consecutive singles, Packer (1-0) watched pitching coach Karl Kuhn stroll to the mound for a conversation.

“He said, ‘Really, our basic thing is when you get people on base, you have to make a trade. You have to trade a run for an out,’” Packer said. “He just wanted me to throw strikes, let them hit the ball, maybe roll into a double play or get a big out.”

Packer promptly worked the count full against GW right fielder Gavin Swanson and delivered the most important pitch of his young career.

“It was what we call an ‘easy,’” Packer explained, “a two-seam fastball.”

Swanson swung and missed.

“The 3-2 pitch was big for me because 3-2 ... that’s a tough pitch to throw,” he added.

Packer fanned the following batter on just three pitches and got the next guy to ground out to first.

“That was a tough situation,” O’Connor said of the full-count pitch to Swanson. “Packer, up until that time, was making good pitches, but that showed why he is starting in that position.

“He pitched that way down at Coastal [Carolina] when, in clutch situations, he made the big pitches. He has got good stuff, but he has guts and he is a competitor and that’s what is going to allow him to be successful for us.”

Virginia was paced offensively by Brandon Marsh and series hero Greg Miclat, who pounded GW pitching for 12 hits and a slugging percentage of 1.615.

Marsh, who finished 3 for 5 and drove in five, connected on a controversial homer in the sixth inning. The blast, his second of the season, appeared to land to the left of the foul pole in left field.

What did Marsh think?

“It was foul,” he joked. “I was jogging back home to the plate.”

Virginia plays William and Mary (1-5) today at Davenport Field at 4 p.m. O’Connor said he plans to start freshman Jeff Lorick (0-0). The Tribe will counter with rookie Tyler Truxell (0-0). Both will be making their first career starts.

 

Ahead of the curve
UVa grad Zimmerman quickly becoming the Nationals' cornerstone
By Jay Jenkins / jjenkins@dailyprogress.com | 978-7250
February 20, 2007

Baseball fans in Chicago and New York would have enjoyed a hearty chuckle last month.

Former Chicago Cubs second baseman Ryne Sandberg and New York Mets closer Billy Wagner sat motionless inside Virginia’s Memorial Gymnasium while scores of autograph seekers chased every move made by former Cavalier standout and current Washington Nationals third baseman Ryan Zimmerman.

Sandberg is a Hall of Famer. Wagner, in the midst of a $43 million, four-year contract, has saved 324 games.

The buzz, however, at least during this pro-Cavalier evening, surrounded the 22-year-old glove wizard.

“Mr. Zimmerman, I’m huge fan,” a youngster said. “Can you sign my shirt?”

Zimmerman, whether he likes it or not, is nearing superstar status.

Look at the balloting for the National League Rookie of the Year Award for evidence. Just 18 months removed from his playing days at UVa, Zimmerman finished second to Florida Marlins shortstop Hanley Ramirez in the closest NL vote since 1980.

Zimmerman’s defensive work, something that was a fixture on ESPN, and his mind-boggling offensive stats (.287 avg., 20 HR, 110 RBI) put him in elite company - only two other rookies in the NL, Mike Piazza and Albert Pujols, drove in 100 or more runs in the past 50 years.

The No. 4 pick in the 2005 MLB Draft knows life tossed him a home run-worthy fastball.

“I have been pretty lucky,” Zimmerman said. “To get to the major leagues so quick and kinda close to home, kinda close to UVa and to be in the situation that I am in, luck has a lot to do with it.

“I feel really blessed with the situation, and I am trying to work hard to try and keep doing it.”

Zimmerman finds himself - as odd as it may be for a youngster - the cornerstone of a franchise that called Montreal home until 2004. Zimmerman was busy that year slapping out 90 hits for UVa (it was a program record until he tallied 92 in ’05).

The Nationals, however, look different heading into Zimmerman’s second full season.

Alfonso Soriano, a bona fide All Star, is gone. Livan Hernandez, an inning-eating hurler, was traded away.

Those moves, combined with inactivity in free agency, left most baseball analysts giving the Nationals little chance, if any, to match the 71-91 record posted last year.

“I think the people in Washington, D.C., are kind of doubting whether we’re going to be able to win with what we have,” Zimmerman said. “We don’t even know who our five [starting] pitchers are going to be, let alone who two pitchers are going to be.”

“We are going into camp competing for pitching, and our defense and offense is going to be fine.”

You can thank the Florida Marlins for his positive mentality. Despite boasting a payroll that was almost $50 million less than the Nationals last year, the Marlins chased the playoffs until the final week of the season.

For now, Zimmerman can only worry about No. 11. In between autograph sessions, which are quickly escalating, he is focused on becoming a more complete player.

“When you are pushed that quickly, whether you want to be or not, you have to learn every day. There is just so much information,” Zimmerman said. “You can go 4 for 4 one day and 0 for 4 the next day, but you have to learn from every at-bat.

“The biggest thing that I learned was a routine and to listen to the older guys and watch what’s going on around you. The best way to learn was to just look and see what people had done to get there.”

 

Virginia back in AP poll
Wisconsin moves up to No. 1 in the Top 25 and will visit No. 2 Ohio State on Sunday.

Virginia rejoined the Associated Press men's basketball Top 25 poll Monday for the first time in two months.

The Cavaliers (18-7, 9-3 ACC), who are tied for first place in the ACC, are No. 24 in the media poll. Virginia had not been in the AP poll since early December, when the Cavaliers were No. 25.

UVa also jumped into the ESPN-USA Today coaches poll Monday for the first time this season. The Cavaliers are No. 19 in that poll.

Virginia was No. 35 and Virginia Tech No. 25 on Monday in the NCAA tournament selection committee's official Rating Percentage Index, a formula which includes such factors as record and strength of schedule.

Wisconsin was the new No. 1 in the AP poll, and Big Ten rival Ohio State was not far behind at No. 2.

The Badgers (26-2, 12-1), on top of the poll for the first time in school history, play the Buckeyes (24-3, 12-1) in Columbus on Sunday -- just a bit more than three months after Ohio State and Michigan played a much-hyped 1 vs. 2 football game at Ohio Stadium.

Florida's 83-70 loss at Vanderbilt on Saturday snapped the Gators' 17-game winning streak and dropped them from the top spot in the media poll for the second time this season.

Wisconsin, which was No. 3 last week, leapfrogged Ohio State to become the fourth No. 1 team this season.

For the Badgers and coach Bo Ryan, there's not much time to celebrate their new lofty status, not with a game at Michigan State today.

So Ryan held his own 60-second celebration at home, with a big foam "We're No. 1" finger he took from his kids, a party favor and a handful of paper torn into confetti.

"I ran around with the foam finger, blowing the horn and throwing the confetti for about a minute," Ryan said with a laugh.

The Badgers received 35 first-place votes and 1,747 points. Ohio State got 31 first-place votes and 1,728 points.

Duke returned to the rankings at No. 18 after a one-week absence, North Carolina slipped a spot to No. 5 after losing to the Hokies, and Boston College dropped out of the poll.
 

How many for the ACC?
J.P. Giglio, Staff Writer

The ACC never has gotten more than six bids to the NCAA Tournament. If Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski gets his way, the conference would get nine this season. If the tournament selection committee goes strictly by the Ratings Percentage Index, he may get his wish. Nine ACC teams are ranked in the top 46 of the RPI, according to the NCAA's official release. The RPI is a formula used by the NCAA to help gauge a team's relative strength over the course of a season.
Historically, teams ranked in the RPI's top 40 have been picked as at-large teams (there are 34 at-large teams in the 65-team field).

"I'm not saying to choose with just with the RPI, but the RPI does try to tell you what a team has done for a whole year," he said Monday. "The RPI shows that the ACC is the most powerful conference."

But which criteria will the committee give more weight to: RPI, conference record, record vs. top teams or the ACC Tournament?

"It seems to be a moving target," said Florida State coach Leonard Hamilton, whose Seminoles missed the 2006 NCAA Tournament despite a 9-7 ACC record.

Here's a look at the resumes of the 12 ACC teams.

THEY'RE IN

These five teams have foolproof ... er ... committee-proof NCAA Tournament resumes.

NORTH CAROLINA

Record: 23-4, 9-3 ACC best wins: Ohio State, Kentucky, at Duke, at Arizona rpi: 2 vs. top 50: 10-2

Outlook: The Tar Heels have to play their way out of a No. 1 seed. A 12-4 league record and one ACC Tournament win would be enough for a top spot.

VIRGINIA

Record: 18-7, 9-3 ACC

Best wins: Arizona, Duke, Gonzaga

RPI: 35

vs. top 50: 6-5

Outlook: Every ACC victory reduces the impact of the Cavs' disaster in Puerto Rico, where Virginia lost to Appalachian State and Utah in the San Juan Shootout. Four more league wins, including the ACC Tournament, and UVa could avoid a No. 4 seed (and the potential third-round NCAA matchup with a No. 1).

BOSTON COLLEGE

Record: 18-8, 9-4 ACC

best wins: Michigan State, Virginia Tech, Virginia

RPI: 26

vs. top 50: 6-5

Outlook: The Eagles' nonconference resume is shaky, with home losses to Vermont and Duquesne, and they could close 1-4 to fall to a No. 7 seed, or worse.

VIRGINIA TECH

Record: 18-8, 8-4 ACC

Best wins: at UNC, UNC, Duke, Virginia

RPI: 25

vs. top 50: 7-3

Outlook: The Hokies' closing stretch favors them getting to 10 regular-season wins and a

No. 4 or No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

DUKE

Record: 20-7, 7-6 ACC

Best wins: Air Force (neutral site), Georgetown, Indiana, Gonzaga (neutral site), at BC

RPI: 10

vs. top 50: 7-7

Outlook: The Devils are back in the AP poll at No. 18 -- and still in line for a No. 3 or No. 4 NCAA seed. That's how strong their RPI is.

STILL WORK TO BE DONE

These four still could play their way into the tournament.

MARYLAND

Record: 20-7, 6-6 ACC

Best wins: at Illinois, Michigan State, Duke, Winthrop

RPI: 19

vs. top 50: 6-6

Outlook: Gary Williams touts his team's RPI, 20-win plateau and .500 conference record but says, "We know we still have to win." Well put, Coach.

GEORGIA TECH

Record: 17-9, 5-7 ACC

Best wins: Memphis (neutral site), Duke, at Florida State

RPI: 46

vs. top 50: 6-7

Outlook: With closing home games against UNC and Boston College, the Yellow Jackets certainly will have their chance to impress -- or not.

FLORIDA STATE

Record: 17-10, 5-8 ACC

Best wins: Florida, at Duke, Virginia Tech, Providence (neutral site)

RPI: 39

vs. top 50: 4-10

Outlook: The Seminoles have a banner victory over Florida (70-66 on Dec. 3 in Tallahassee), but they may need to reach .500 in ACC play.

CLEMSON

Record: 19-7, 5-7 ACC

Best wins: at Florida State, at South Carolina, Boston College, at Old Dominion

RPI: 30

vs. top 50: 5-6

Outlook: Has a team ever started 17-0 and missed the NCAA Tournament? With two tough road games left (at BC, at VT), the Tigers may make history.

NEED A TAMPA MIRACLE

Practically speaking, the only way these three teams would make the NCAA Tournament is by winning the ACC Tournament in Tampa, Fla.

N.C. STATE

Record: 14-11, 4-8 ACC

RPI: 116

Outlook: If only State could play its final four ACC games vs. the Hokies ...

WAKE FOREST

Record: 13-13, 4-9 ACC

RPI: 117

Outlook: Two games is the best ACC winning streak for the improving Deacons; they'll need to win four in a row in Tampa.

MIAMI

Record: 10-16, 3-9 ACC

RPI: 162

Outlook: If only it were 2001 and this was football season.

(NOTES: RPI RANK IS ACCORDING TO THE NCAA; RECORD VS. TOP 50 IS ACCORDING TO KENPOM.COM)

 

Deadline near for Falcons DE Kerney
By STEVE WYCHE
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 02/20/07

Falcons defensive end Patrick Kerney plans to void the remaining two years of his contract — he's owed $13.8 million — next week, making him an unrestricted free agent, according to his co-representative, Rich Rosa.

Beginning today, Kerney has a week to opt out of his deal, which he is expected to do, although he probably won't rush. According to Rosa, he wants to work out a new deal with the Falcons, who drafted him in the first round out of Virginia in 1999.

The Falcons and the eight-year veteran have been working on a contract extension for months. Both sides said they want to work out a deal, but with a limited number of pending top free-agent defensive ends set to hit the open market, Kerney could be in high demand if he is not signed by the start of free agency on March 2.

"He wants to give them every opportunity to re-sign him," Rosa said.

Another reason for Kerney's lack of immediacy to void his contract could be to let Thursday's franchise tag deadline expire. The Falcons could slap the franchise label on Kerney, taking him off the market by tendering him a one-year deal of about $8.6 million — the average salary of the five highest-paid defensive ends in the NFL.

If Kerney voids his contract after Thursday, the Falcons would not be able to stop him from becoming an unrestricted free agent.

If it chose to franchise Kerney, Atlanta would consume much of its projected $10 million in salary-cap space for the 2007 season unless it releases some players and/or reworks the contracts of others. By working out a long-term deal, the Falcons could spread out the salary-cap implications of all bonus money over the length of the contract and retain financial flexibility.

Kerney missed the final seven games of last season after suffering a torn chest muscle that required season-ending surgery. The injury, from which he is expected to fully recover before training camp, ended his streak of consecutive games played at 105.

A 2004 Pro Bowl selection, Kerney (6 feet 5, 273 pounds) has 58 sacks and 270 tackles in his career.

 

Cavaliers reclaim share of ACC lead
With four ACC games remaining, Virginia looks to seal NCAA berth
Clayton O'Toole, Cavalier Daily Senior Associate Editor

With a three-point victory against Florida State over the weekend, the No. 24 Virginia Cavaliers have once again reclaimed a share of the top spot in the conference with No. 5 North Carolina.

Virginia's impassioned play -- exemplified by a 9-1 record in the team's last 10 games -- will most likely result in an appearance in the NCAA Tournament for the Cavaliers (18-7, 9-3 ACC) for the first time in five years. During the 2000-2001 season, then-head coach Pete Gillen led a 20-8 Virginia squad with nine conference wins to the Big Dance, where they were promptly upset by the then-relatively unknown Gonzaga Bulldogs.

Nine wins has traditionally been a magic number for ACC teams vying for a tournament birth. In what many believe to be the toughest conference in all of college basketball, a 9-7 (above .500) conference record has historically equated to having your "ticket punched." Therefore, Virginia with nine conference victories already and four games remaining, would seem to be in great shape.

"It's a great feeling to be in a position like this right now," said junior forward Adrian Joseph, the star of Saturday's contest against Florida State. "We've just got to get in the gym and work on what we do best."

Few things in life are certain, however, as Florida State found out last season. Just 12 months ago the Seminoles capped off a successful ACC regular season with two victories against Duke and Miami, bringing their conference record to 9-7. After a disappointing first round loss in the ACC tournament to Wake Forest, however, Florida State did not find its name among the 65 teams invited to dance last March. Despite the team's impressive performances thus far, Virginia's players realize that there is work left to do.

"We're playing for something special," senior captain J.R. Reynolds said. "It's very big for us [win over FSU]. We have put ourselves in a very big position."

After Virginia's win over the weekend, ESPN's resident "Bracketologist" Joe Lunardi has the Cavaliers as a No. 5 seed in the upcoming tournament. A No. 5 seed would be the highest starting spot for a Virginia team since the 1995 Jeff Jones-led Cavaliers earned a No. 4 seed and advanced all the way to the Elite Eight. According to Lunardi, a spot in the NCAA Tournament may not be the only thing Virginia fans have to look forward to as the regular season comes to a close.

"Tied for first in the ACC, it's not unthinkable that the Cavaliers could win their last four (at Miami, Georgia Tech, Virginia Tech, at Wake) and win the regular season crown outright if UNC loses again," Lunardi wrote on ESPN.com.

A share of the ACC title would be Virginia's first since that Elite Eight run in 1995. An outright ACC regular season title, however, would be Virginia's first since Ralph Sampson's sophomore season -- 1981.

While any predictions are just speculation at this point, with four regular season games to play, the Cavaliers have certainly positioned themselves well for postseason success. For Cavaliers fans, it feels great to be back on top.

 

Love for Leitao?

Don't those ACC basketball standings look pretty?

I think I could stare at them all day with No. 24 Virginia (18-7, 9-3 ACC) tied for first place with No. 5 North Carolina (23-4, 9-3 ACC).

Since we're at 9-3 in ACC play with four games to go, I'm not putting on my dancing shoes yet, but the polish has been taken out of the closet.

Only two ACC teams have ever failed to make the dance with a 9-7 conference record (one being Virginia in 1999-2000), so things are in place for the Wahoos.The big hindrance right now is the Cavaliers' sixth highest Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) in the ACC, behind UNC, Duke, Virginia Tech, Maryland and Boston College. The RPI, an important factor for the NCAA basketball tournament selection committee, is based heavily on strength of schedule; furthermore, Virginia's nonconference losses to Appalachian State and Utah in Puerto Rico hurt the Wahoo's ranking. A couple more ACC victories, however, will clear up any controversy.

As exciting as going to the Big Show for the first time since 2000-2001 is, I'm beginning to think some postseason accolades might also be coming up Route 29.

Our top dog, Dave Leitao, is right in the thick of things for ACC Coach of the Year. The sophomore head coach has led a remarkable turnaround for a squad that, last season, finished 15-15 overall (7-9 ACC), tied for seventh in the conference and lost in the first round of the National Invitation Tournament.

Pegged to finish eighth in this season's ACC preseason poll, Leitao's hard-nosed, disciplined approach to defense and rebounding is creating quite the buzz in the ACC.

His main competition comes from Virginia Tech coach Seth Greenberg, whose Hokies were predicted to finish sixth in the conference and stand in fourth place with an 8-4 mark in ACC play and at 18-8 overall. Greenberg's stock gets a boost because his boys went 4-12 in the conference last year. His squad, however, has also experienced abysmal nonconference losses to Western Michigan (12-14, 6-6 MAC) and Marshall (10-16, 5-7 C-USA), and they got walloped by N.C. State in Raleigh Sunday.

One can't forget about last year's winner, Roy Williams, whose Tar Heels are tied for first, and Boston College coach Al Skinner, whose Eagles are third in the ACC.

Neither Williams' nor Skinner's accomplishments, however, match what Leitao and Greenberg have done in the Commonwealth, considering how experts across the country predicted their teams would perform.

Leitao's sideline stares may give little children nightmares, and his floor-rattling knee stomps may be felt by most of those sitting courtside, but the man is getting the Ws and the players are responding.

"It's about 95 percent Coach Leitao and five percent us," junior point guard Sean Singletary told the Washington Post last Saturday. "We're not the most talented bunch in the world. Everybody knows that. But he's the difference. He puts the right combination of players together and creates an environment for us to win."

The job Leitao has done is even more impressive considering the fact that the vast majority of Virginia's offense revolves around the perimeter -- Singletary and J.R. Reynolds more or less -- with minimal low-post scoring presence.

Our spot in the tourney may be locked up by Thursday, March 1 when Virginia Tech comes to The John on senior night. But Leitao's boys will have even more on the line than the chance for redemption from the shellacking at the hands of the Hokies Feb. 10 in Blacksburg.

It may be the opportunity for the Cavaliers to bring home much deserved ACC Coach of the Year honors to their second-year head coach from DePaul.

Maybe we'll even save some clipboards in the process.