Part two of this five-part series leading up to Virginia's first game Nov. 12 will offer a look at the Atlantic Coast Conference in 2006-07 and the stiff competition the Cavaliers will face.
Without question, the cream of the ACC crop in 2006-7 should be North Carolina. The Tar Heels return four starters from a team that went 12-4 in the ACC, good for a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament. As the only freshman ever to earn unanimous first-team all-ACC honors, sophomore Tyler Hansbrough is also the league's highest returning scorer, with 18.9 points per game. As if that wasn't enough, Carolina coach Roy Williams and staff brought in the No. 1 recruiting class in the country (Rivals.com), which includes three of the country's top-ten recruits. Depth won't be an issue in Chapel Hill this season, as the Tar Heels have the potential to be 10 or 11 deep, something no other team in the country can say.
After losing J.J. Redick and Sheldon Williams to the NBA, Duke enters 2006 on more uncertain terms than the Blue Devil faithful are used to. Those terms became even more uncertain earlier this week, as Duke's projected starting point guard Greg Paulus broke his foot and is out indefinitely. That leaves sophomore Josh McRoberts as the lone returning star for the Blue Devils. Playing in a supporting role to all-ACC first-teamer Sheldon Williams, McRoberts averaged 8.7 points and 5.3 rebounds per game, while shooting an impressive .600 from the field. With the addition of guard Gerald Henderson, Duke will surely compete for another regular season conference title again in 2006-07.
Following the Tobacco Road duo in many preseason ACC polls is, surprisingly, Georgia Tech. The Yellow Jackets slogged through a difficult 2005-06 season, finished below .500 overall and a meager 4-12 in the conference. With that said, optimism abounds in Atlanta this season as Georgia Tech coach Paul Hewitt has brought in a stellar recruiting class, led by 6-foot, 4-inch point guard Javaris Crittenton. Crittenton joins super athlete Thaddeus Young, the ACC's leading three-point shooter Anthony Morrow and the league's returning rebound leader Jeremis Smith. Georgia Tech's entire starting five has the ability to cause matchup problems all over the court with its size and athleticism.
Rounding out the four ACC teams figured to be ranked in the preseason top 25 is Boston College. A second-team all-ACC member last season, small forward Jared Dudley leads an experienced Eagles squad that has more combined starts on its returning roster than any other ACC school. Dudley ranked among the top 10 in the ACC in scoring last year with 16.9 points per game. In addition, Dudley led the league in minutes played at 37.2 minutes per game.
The rest of the ACC remains quite uncertain. N.C. State should have a difficult time building off its fourth place finish last season, as the Wolfpack lost four starters and nearly 60 percent of their scoring from a season ago. Virginia Tech joins Virginia as the only two schools returning all five starters from last season. Those five starters, however, resulted in a sub .500 overall record and a 4-12 ACC mark.
On a more promising note, many feel Florida State is primed to make noise as a basketball school in 2006-07. FSU senior Al Thornton averaged 16.1 points and 6.9 rebounds per game last season, earning him second-team All-ACC honors.
Regardless of which ACC schools improve and which take a step back this season, Virginia will certainly have many obstacles to overcome in its hunt for a NCAA Tournament birth.
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