With Wednsday's performance in Maryland's victory over Duke, Greivis Vasquez has pretty much sewn up the ACC Player of the Year award. The only way that changes is if Vasquez goes scoreless against Virginia and Jon Scheyer scores 40 against North Carolina. I don't see either happening. And let's not forget that Vasquez got off to a terrible start this season, not reaching double digits for points in a game until the fifth game of the season. But Vasquez has caught fire over the last nine games, averaging 21.4 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 7.2 assists, leading the Terps to an 8-1 record over that span.
I don't subscribe to the theory that the best play on the best team should necessarily win an MVP award. While I think Greivis Vasquez should be player of the year, Al-Farouq Aminu of Wake Forest should be getting more attention for the season he is having. Aminu is eighth in the ACC in scoring at 15.8 points per game, and is the only player in the ACC averaging double digit rebounds per game (10.7). Aminu is a big reason why Wake Forest contended for the ACC title for the majority of the season.
The ACC Rookie of the Year is a lot more up in the air than I expected it to be. Most people figured Derrick Favors would win easily, but that isn't as concrete as originally thought. The competition is a lot stiffer than expected, mostly because the season Favors has had isn't quite up to expectations, only averaging 11 points and eight rebounds. But Maryland's Jordan Williams is having a good freshman campaign as well. Favors is averaging more points per game than Williams, but Williams has a better rebounding average. I still expect Favors to win the award, but it won't be as unanimous as expected.
I will be curious to see how the selection comittee looks at Virginia Tech when it comes to the NCAA Tournament. We've heard at least 10,000 times about the weak non-conference schedule, but a lot of teams that are on the bubble have similar situation. Either they also have a weak non-conference, or have been inconsistent throughout the season, leaving them on the bubble. But the Hokies won those games, and that may help come Selection Sunday. Keep in mind as well that the Hokies were 2-1 in neutral court games, including a win over Seton Hall, who is also on the bubble. And the Hokies may need another neutral court win in the ACC tournament to solidify an at large birth in the NCAA Tournament.
I'm baffled as everyone else as to what happened to Virginia. There was some NCAA tourney buzz for them as late as early February, but after losing in overtime at home to Wake Forest, and a close loss at Virginia, it appears the bottom has fallen out from the Cavs. They have lost eight in a row, and in the first seven of those losses, they failed to shoot 40% from the field. Sammy Zeglinski has been as cold as a Minnesota winter lately. In the last nine games, Zeglinski has shot 18-75 from the field, a staggering 24%. Mike Scott went two straight games without a field goal. And the confidence of this team is about as low as it can get. But despite all of that, this has been a successful season for Virginia. The Cavs have improved the win total from last season, and we saw a lot more competitive games this year. And the future continues to be bright for Virginia, as Tony Bennett is bringing in a monster recruiting class that is rated in the top 20 nationally, and will bring players that better fit Bennett's system. The Cavs could be a dangerous team in a couple of years.
