Is Wake Forest For Real?

Who is this Wake Forest team, anyway? Earlier in the year they played two teams ranked No. 1 in the country at the time (UNC and Duke) and beat them both. They ran off 16 straight wins to climb to the top spot themselves and have three players projected to go in the first 20 NBA draft picks this spring (Aminu, Teague and Johnson).

On the other hand, they lost to a Georgia Tech team that was 0-8 in the ACC before beating the Deacs. Then they lost to Miami by 27 and followed that by losing to a struggling NC State team. Coach Dino Gaudio didn’t seem to have a clue about how to get them going in any of these games, let alone how to deal with zone defenses. 

This team is talented, but very young and coached by a man with little big-time experience.

The Deacs are big, fast, and can score at every position. All five starters have had 20-point games, and Wake remains the best defensive team in the ACC in terms of opponent’s shooting percentage.

They have the talent to beat anyone in the country and make a run to the Final Four. Unfortunately, that probably won’t happen for the young Deacs; they're too inconsistent and have the uncanny ability to play with a total lack of focus.

As with every other team, their draw in the tournament will hinge on how long they can last. If they can win their last four conference games (NC State, Virginia, Maryland, and Clemson) and then get a couple of wins in the ACC tournament, they could achieve a two seed for the Big Dance.

But the truth is, they'll probably end up as a three or (with another loss) a four or five.

Best guess at this point in the season? Wake will have a four come March. The "Baby Deacs" should win at least two games and make it to the Sweet 16.

They will have to be at their best to make it any further, as the coaching and talent of their opponents at that level could be overwhelming.