Here we go again…
We already saw during college football that the ACC was mercilessly ripped for their football perception despite having winning records against the SEC and Big 10, resulting in the egregious snub of Florida State from the playoffs.
Now comes college basketball with some semblance of where results matter, or so we hope.
As we approach mid-January there’s legitimate discussion of the ACC only getting three NCAA bids. Excuse me?
— Joe Lunardi (@ESPNLunardi) January 13, 2024
Yes, you see it right. Joe Lunardi has the ACC with 3 bids, behind two leagues the Pac12, and MWC that ranked behind the ACC in the NET Rankings.
Lunardi has the SEC with 8 bids. Now if I’m not mistaken, the ACC and SEC played 14 games against each other in the ACC/SEC challenge, and it went 7-7. 5 of his 8 SEC teams in the field have a loss to ACC teams.
Tennesse lost UNC
Alabama lost to Clemson
Mississippi State lost to Georgia Tech ( a team tied for last in the ACC )
Texas A&M lost to Virginia
South Carolina lost to Clemson
Now in fairness, he does have 9 ACC teams considered.
— Joe Lunardi (@ESPNLunardi) January 13, 2024
Based on Saturday’s results even Lunardi has to add his two ACC bubble teams back into the field. Wake Forest beat Virginia, and Miami won at Virginia Tech. Those two teams are in the field if selections are made today.
Then you have NC State, Virginia Tech, and Virginia.
I have a hard time not seeing at least one of those teams in the field. Virginia Tech has 3 Q1 wins including Iowa State and Clemson – two locks for the field. Virginia has OOC wins over Florida and a Texas A&M team that beat Kentucky and is in Lunardi’s field.
The winner of that game this week should be in the field.
NC State at 12-4 (4-1) is closer to the field being given credit for. All four of NC State’s losses are to teams currently in the NCAAs- BYU, UNC, Tennessee, and Ole Miss.
Frankly, I think you can make the argument the ACC should have 7 in the tournament if selection Sunday were this week, but given results around the country, the ACC should still easily be looking at at least 5 bids and probably 6.
The discussion of 3 bids is not only laughable but again shows that the games aren’t being watched. Any bracket projection, after Saturday’s games with the ACC at 3 bids should immediately be dismissed.
