Fansided’s ACC Basketball Roundtable
By Matt Hamm
Boston College: Joe Micik soaringtoglory.com
Soaring to Glory responses
What’s the current state of your school’s men’s basketball program?
Bad but getting better. Boston College has a roster of almost two-thirds freshmen, and it shows. When the season began, they were clearly out of their element and in general, it’s not hard to notice that they’re thin/non-muscular/not very strong. As a result, during non-conference play, the Eagles were getting railroaded nightly by such fine teams as UMass and Holy Cross. A few fans were manning the lifeboats and declaring the whole freshman class a bust.
In the last few weeks, however, BC appears to have turned a corner. At the end of non-conference play it was more good than bad, and they have represented themselves well so far with a 2-1 ACC record. The talk of us being the worst ACC team of all-time is not true, and I think BC will most likely win again at some point this season.
How do you feel about the ACC expanding to take in Pitt and Syracuse?
I like it. In terms of basketball, I think having both of those teams would add an interesting dimension to conference play (and it will be quite interesting to see how the league formats the ACC Tournament). As for football, well, not too many other ACC teams are lighting the world on fire, either, so I guess they’ll fit right in.
My freshman year at BC was our last in the Big East, so I never really got to experience any of these rivalries. BC and Syracuse in particular was one of the bigger ones from the past, and it’ll be fun to see that revived in the ACC.
What are some surprises for your team so far? Some disappointments?
A surprise might be how Dennis Clifford and Ryan Anderson seem to be growing up quickly and evolving into serviceable ACC players. As they get older, more seasoned, and stronger, I think both will pose big problems for opponents.
It’s hard to have many disappointments when your team was expected to lose (approximately) one jillion games, but right now I’m discouraged that Patrick Heckmann, whether by injury or just an extended slump, hasn’t been much of a factor for weeks now. Further, Matt Humphrey has been a little too inconsistent and is either really good or really bad. Neither is a long-term concern at this point.
Who have been some of the key players on your team so far this season?
Clifford and Anderson have been the best we’ve had lately, but the Eagles have also gotten contributions from Heckmann, Humphrey, Lonnie Jackson, and Jordan Daniels, amongst others. The jury is still out on how good the freshmen will end up being but so far, I would say that we’ve seen glimpses of it.
I’m not entirely sure BC has a “leader” at the moment, but there are several guys who have stepped up here and there.
What does your team have left to do in order to make the NCAA Tournament?
Win the ACC Tournament. We won’t, so that’s pretty much all she wrote. This season was never about making the dance, however: it was about weathering the enormous roster turnover, getting better, and giving us all a reason to believe that next year and beyond, they’ll have a more respectable record.
What’s your end-season prediction for your team?
Right now I’m going to say 10-21 (5-11). BC is still one of the lesser teams in the conference but I have confidence, with an ACC schedule that now looks relatively weak in spots, that they can pick off a couple more teams and get to double-digit overall wins. They no longer play like the team that got dismantled by UMass and HC months ago, but they will have setbacks as all young teams do. Most every BC fan you asked before the season started would take that record in a heartbeat.
Next Up: Evan Stambaugh of bigdukeballs.com with the inside scoop on Duke