Daily Swarm

FELTON / MANUEL SHAKE OFF INJURIES FOR UNC
Felton has a hip-pointer just like Will Bynum. (story here). Will has had longer to recover, but should be interesting to see if either guy is limited. Evidently Will returned to practice on Tuesday but is not 100%. No doubt UNC depends more heavily on Felton than we do no Bynum. UNC's Jackie Manuel is also suffering from a absessed tooth he had removed - ouch.

ROY WILLIAMS SPEAKS ABOUT THE UPCOMING GAME
Well, is Roy just spouting off or does he truly believe that GT is the deepest team in the ACC? (story here). Here are more quotes from the press conference.

NOTE TO DICKEY V - LOOK UP "SLEEPER"
In this article, you say UNC is a "sleeper" for the NCAA tourney, as if you and the rest of the media has NOT been talking about them ALL year long. Not only that, UNC is actually ranked higher in the polls than NCST, who clearly has been the more consistent, better team this year. You have been talking about Roy Williams and R.Felton and S.May and R.McCants all year. So think again about using the term "sleeper". Reserve it for someone who people are actually not generally picking to win all the time.

LUNCH BUNCH WITH BOBBY CREMINS
Our old friend Coach Cremins was the guest this week at the lunch bunch. For an off-the-cuff report, click here.

NICE WRITE-UP ON GT AND ACC TEAMS
Nice story on how Dook does NOT have the tourney locked up this year - nice mention of GT, although I didn't know we were the "Tech's". Quote - "The Techs had had a surprising 20-win season behind the most exciting players in the league, 7-l Luke (Skywalker) Schenscher, an Australian just learning his way; B. J. Elder, a streak sharpshooter; Jarrett Jack, the most underrated point guard in the conference; Isma’il Muhammad, an in-your-face slam dunker; Marvin Lewis, the team’s designated long-range bomber; transfer Will Bynum, an experienced warrior and steadying influence, and outstanding depth in Clarence Moore, Anthony McHenry and Theodis Tarver."

POINT GUARDS ARE KEY IN THE ACC
No doubt the ACC has had a strong history at the PG position - certainly GT in the Cremins era was an example - "Point Guard U" as it was called. This story discusses the importance of this position, particularly in the ACC.

MORE PROPS FOR LUUUUUUUKKKKKKKEEEEEEE !
Nice to see him continue to get compliments and praise after a great regular season........................... If that wasn't enough, "teambuzz" over at the HIVE says that Luke was named to FHM's NCAA "All Hair Team". FHM, as I'm sure you know, is one of the hundreds of dude mags like Stuff, etc.

ISMA'IL NAMED DUNKER OF THE YEAR
Supposedly ESPN's Sportscenter named Ish Best Dunker of the Year. Didn't see it myself, but who else could it really be? I mean really?................ In addition ESPN THE MAGAZINE has also named him College Basketball's top dunker. We have said many times that an outside shot would absolutely complete Ish's game. Teams have figured out how to shutdown his drives (he tends to go right). See this story for the work Ish has been doing on his jumpshot. Now, sorry but just because Ish hits some jumpers in practice doesn't mean we will see him take 5 outside shots on Friday. My guess - we'll see 1-2 shots from outside of 5 feet. Of course, just getting some media attention focused on the possibility might get the Tarholes thinking a little too much. We would love nothing more than to see them play him tight on the perimeter, because then he will take it to the rack "Get the women and children off the baseline".

HEWITT GETS STEWART MANDEL'S COACH OF THE WEEK
More solid recognition of Hewitt with this mention over at SI.com.

RA'SEAN DICKEY AND THE CAPITAL CLASSIC
As mentioned on Wed here, Dickey will be playing in the Capital Classic April 17. For the complete roster, click here. That should be an entertaining game.

BEESBALL TEAM LOSES TO WESTERN CAROLINA 9-5
Jason Neighborgall had a rough outing, giving up 5 earned runs on one hit in 1 & 1/3 innings.

BEESBALL TEAM HAS TOP PROSPECTS
Article mentioning the various ACC teams and their top draft talent - "Georgia Tech is the best-represented school in this year’s top 100 with five players, four of them in the top 30. They are right-handed pitcher (and designated hitter) Micah Owings (No. 12), second baseman Eric Patterson (No. 16), catcher Mike Nickeas (No. 23), outfielder Jeremy Sladen (No. 30) and outfielder Brandon Boggs (No. 67). Patterson is the brother of Chicago Cubs center fielder Corey Patterson who committed to Georgia Tech himself, but opted to turn pro after the Cubs offered him a substantial bonus."

BEESBALL SIGNEE CONTINUES TO SHINE
Matt Wieters continues to play well for Stratford High of Goose Creek SC. He hit a 3-run shot in the first inning as his team beat pre-season #1 Riverside High of Greer SC. (story here). From the article - "Wieters picked-up tournament MVP honors. He had six RBIs and a strong performance on the mound. Using a fastball that was clocked consistently at 91 mph and touched 94, Wieters tossed a complete-game, four-hit shutout with 10 strikeouts. Behind the plate, he had thrown out three of four runners attempting to steal on the season."

TOO EARLY FOR FOOTBALL POLLS????
Probably, but here is Dennis Dodd over at Sportsline.com with his pre-pre-season top 25. From the future ACC - FSU #5, Miami #6, Virginia #12, Clemson #13, Maryland #17, #23 NC ST, Georgia Tech #28, VaTech #33. Probably a bit heavy on the ACC and of course just one guy's opinion WAY too early in the year.