ACC Men's Basketball Schedule and Games to Watch: Week of 12/5
We got a taste of ACC play last week, but there are only three in-conference games scheduled for this week. There were no league matchups on Monday, and there are none on Thursday or Friday either. Let’s take a look at this week’s best games, as well as the full schedule.
Tuesday
Oakland at Syracuse (-15.5) 6 p.m. ET
New Hampshire at Boston College (-14.5) 7 p.m. ET
Coppin State at NC State (-20.5) 7 p.m. ET
Georgia at Georgia Tech (-4.6 7 p.m. ET
James Madison at No. 3 Virginia (-11.5) 8 p.m. ET
Iowa vs No. 15 Duke (-2.5) 9:30 p.m. ET
READ: Wake Forest running back Christian Turner enters transfer portal
Wednesday
Cornell at Miami 7 p.m. ET
Boston U at Notre Dame 7 p.m. ET
Dayton at Virginia Tech 8 p.m. ET
Pittsburgh at Vanderbilt 9 p.m. ET
Towson at Clemson 9 p.m. ET
READ: ACC Basketball Power Rankings
Saturday
Louisville at Florida State 1 p.m. ET
Georgetown at Syracuse 1 p.m. ET
LSU vs Wake Forest 2 p.m. ET
NC State at Miami 2 p.m. ET
Georgia Tech at North Carolina 3:15 p.m. ET
Sacred Heart at Pittsburgh 3:30 p.m. ET
Villanova at Boston College 5 p.m. ET
Maryland Eastern Shore at No. 15 Duke 5:30 p.m. ET
Loyola Chicago at Clemson 7:30 p.m. ET
READ: Wake Forest Football: Transfer Portal Tracker
Sunday
Oklahoma State at Virginia Tech 2 p.m. ET
Marquette at Notre Dame 4 p.m. ET
READ: Week 5 AP men's college basketball poll released
There are definitely some intriguing matchups on this week’s slate. One that jumps out is Iowa vs Duke in the Jimmy V Classic on Tuesday night. Iowa (6-1) is arguably a top five team in the Big Ten, so the Blue Devils will have a chance to add to their resume there.
Another Tuesday fixture brings us a rematch from 2021 — James Madison upset Virginia at home last year 52-49 and the Cavs are only favored by 11.5 in this one. The Dukes (7-2) will be fearless after beating essentially the same roster last year.
The Dayton Flyers (5-4) entered this season as an expected Tournament team, although they struggled a bit in November. They're still a young and athletic basketball team who only lost to Wisconsin by one on a neutral court and could cause some problems for a hot Virginia Tech group.
Towson (8-1) is another under-the-radar mid major, and they could definitely make some noise when they travel to take on Clemson Wednesday night. This experienced group made the NIT last season (and lost to Wake Forest), and will duel it out with Charleston to represent the Colonial Athletic in the Big Dance this year
First year head coach Matt McMahon has his guys playing really good ball down at LSU (7-1), and they’ll look to beat the Demon Deacons for the second straight season. LSU’s roster is entirely different from last year, and McMahon brought several key pieces of his 31-3 Murray State team that won a game in the NCAA Tournament back in March. Wake has a full week of preparation before attempting to bounce back from a very sloppy second half performance in the loss at Clemson.
NC State looks to avoid dropping to 0-2 in the ACC when they visit Miami on Saturday. These guard-oriented squads should make for an exciting game. I wouldn’t be surprised if Terquavion Smith and the Wolfpack shoot their way to an upset win on the road.
Sunday features two more heavyweight matchups. Oklahoma State (5-3) takes on Virginia Tech in what should be another hard-fought physical contest. The Cowboys are 34th in KenPom, and they have the athleticism and depth to cause problems for the Hokies. Lastly, a Marquette (6-3) squad that beat No. 12 Baylor by 26 and No. 19 UCLA by five travels to South Bend to take on a Notre Dame side needing a marquee win. The Fighting Irish play one of the weakest non-conference schedules in the nation, and this matchup gives them the chance to bolster their resume. They secured a 70-52 win over Michigan State back on Nov. 30, but this win would be even bigger given how well Marquette is playing of late.
Note: Betting lines are not released usually until 24 hours until tip off for college hoops. All odds via DraftKings.
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Christian is the Publisher and Lead Editor for Deacons Daily A '22 Wake Forest graduate, Christian spent 4 years covering the Men's Basketball team for the student paper, the Old Gold & Black