LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Another ACC/Big Ten Challenge is complete. With 14 games in the books, only one challenge remained:
Finding a close game.
This was a challenge that forgot to include buzz-beaters. Fourteen games were played -- and one was decided by less than 11 points.
The average margin of victory was nearly 17 points. Roy Williams was so disturbed by the way his North Carolina team competed against Ohio State Wednesday night that he sent his starters to their rooms without food, water or their Air Jordans with 10 minutes to play.
It is Dec. 5.
On Dec. 5, 2018 Tony Bennett and Virginia were perennial underachievers. Duke was the greatest collection of freshmen in the history of college basketball. Purdue had lost back to back games to Tennessee and Western Kentucky. Michigan was a wobbly 7-3.
You know how the season turned out.
But considering I love the ACC/Big Ten Challenge more than Maui, the Bahamas, the pre-season NIT, the Champions Classic, the Crossroads Classic and any other pre-conference event you can name, I cannot resist.
Here is a list of facts, judgments and false impressions from the 2019 ACC/Big Ten Challenge:
*The leagues are better than expected, especially the Big Ten.
Not only did the Big Ten win the Challenge (8 to 6) , it also solidified its top spot in the computer formulas of Ken Pomeroy, Jeff Sagarin and Bart Torvik.
In fact, Pomeroy puts three Big Ten teams in his Top 10, five in the Top 20 and six in the Top 25.
*Ohio State is the team to beat in the Big Ten. Size, shooters, depth. The Buckeyes have defeated North Carolina and Villanova by 25. Caleb Wesson, Ohio State's mountainous center, is ranked seventh in Pomeroy's player of the year race.
*Louisville and Duke are the teams to beat in the ACC.
The Cards have experience, size and a fierce, unyielding commitment to defense, ranking fourth in Pomeroy's national defensive efficiency metric and third in offense.
I mention those two numbers because many argue that you must rank in the Top 20 in both categories to win the national title.
Obviously the numbers change every day. But on Thursday, Louisville was one of five dual qualifiers. (The others: Maryland, Duke, Ohio State and Kansas.)
*With wins over Kansas on a neutral court and at Michigan State, I'll only require one more quality win from Duke to forget that the Blue Devils lost to Stephen F. Austin.
With Vernon Carey on the block and Tre Jones at point guard, Duke has the two most essential elements of an inside/outside attack. And this Mike Krzyzewski team has made better than 36 percent of its shots from distance, a considerable improvement over the 30.8 average of the Zion Williamson, Cam Reddish, R.J. Barrett team.
Duke gets Louisville Jan. 18 in Durham. There is no return game. Sadly.
*U of L forward Jordan Nwora is the early leader for national player of the year, topping Carey and Markus Howard of Marquette in Pomeroy's early numbers.
Nwora has improved his three-point shooting from 36.4 to 46.7 percent. He has scored 21 or more points in six games. He's made nearly 86 percent of his free throws and contributed 7.5 rebounds per game.
There is a reason Nwora takes 37.5 percent of Louisville's shots when he is on the court. It's effective offensive basketball.
*When Virginia won the national championship last season, the Cavaliers had three guys who made NBA rosters this fall -- DeAndre Hunter, Ty Jerome and Kyle Guy.
This Virginia team, the one that lost to Purdue by 29 Wednesday, might not have anybody who will play in the league. Maybe Mamadi Diakite, but he did not look ready to upgrade from fourth option to first option against Purdue.
A year ago Virginia ranked second in Pomeroy's offensive efficiency, averaging 123.4 points per 100 possessions. This season, Virginia is ranked 120th, averaging 102.2 per 100 possessions.
*Something is wrong with Michigan State.
I understand that point guard Cassius Winston as well as his teammates are dealing with the tragic death of Winston's younger brother.
I know that guard Josh Langford, Tom Izzo's third-best player, has been hurt.
But this is not a team that should lose to Virginia Tech by five on a neutral court and to Duke by 12 in the Breslin Center. Tech, you will notice, was not included in the Challenge.
Typically Izzo figures it out by March. But Ohio State and Maryland have done more than the Spartans in the season's first month.
*That was a bad loss by Illinois against Miami in Champaign Monday night. The Illini were a trendy pick to finish in the top five of the Big Ten prior to the season.
But the Illini have not beaten a Top 150 team and still do not rank in the Top 10 in the Big Ten in defensive efficiency. Losing to Miami at home could put Illinois on the wrong side of the bubble.
*Danny Manning is on the hottest seat in either league.
Penn State 76, Wake Forest 54.
Charlotte 67, Wake Forest 55.
Boston College 77, Wake Forest 70.
Yuck.
*Penn State will make the NCAA Tournament.
*Florida State coach Leonard Hamilton said that Indiana will also make the party. They will if Trayce Jackson-Davis continues playing like a senior on both ends of the floor -- and point gurard Rob Phinisee gets well.
Jackson-Davis, not Winston nor Wesson, leads Bart Torvik's Big Ten player ratings. Apparently four double-doubles and a 65.6 shooting percentage on two-point shots registered.
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