Thursday, January 21, 2010

3 thoughts on Duke-UNC flameouts Wednesday

3 thoughts following the UNC and Duke flameouts Wednesday (lots more on our new page on the Duke-UNC rivalry, which can be found here):

1. This ACC basketball season is starting to remind me of the kind of ACC football seasons the league has experienced lately. Check the updated standings here. There is going to be more parity than expected, which will make every week fun. But will the league get someone in the Final Four? The chances are iffy at best.

2. Do you remember the old joke in the Matt Doherty days about how you can’t spell “North Carolina” without the letters “N-I-T”? If the Tar Heels don’t improve, that one is going to be resurrected frequently.

3. I thought the announcing team of Tim Brando and Dan Bonner – particularly Brando – was way too pro-Duke during Wednesday’s game given N.C. State’s near-complete dominance in its 88-74 win.

One example: at one point, Duke center Brian Zoubek made a decent move toward the basket but then missed his shot. Brando started talking effusively about how much Zoubek has improved (a theme he would come back to several times during the game).

Almost immediately, N.C. State’s Tracy Smith (who was easily the best player on the court Wednesday) blew by Zoubek for two more points.

“Well, he may be more confident, but he’s not any quicker,” Bonner said of Zoubek.

8 comments:

DOOK=JOKE said...

Bias towards Dook? Really?? Who would have thunk it? They are consistantly more overated than Notre Dame is in football. They have done ZERO on the national scene in many years. TThey are a solid top 40 team, but have not sniffed a real shot in almost 10 years. K is over the hill, his coaching style has passed. Kids will nto come to his program that want to compete at the next level.

Anonymous said...

Scott - hard to believe you have a problem with someone giving Duke players some love. As if that never happens to North Carolina. You're such a Tar Heel homer...

Anonymous said...

One serious question here: Is Coach Williams having a nervous breakdown before our eyes? His family should be VERY concerned.

Anonymous said...

Yeah...Duke is a joke. I mean seriously, it's not like they lost to Charleston. HAAAAAAAAAA. Embarassment!!!!!!! Real champs don't lose to mid-majors you clown.

Unknown said...

Bias commentary from the announcers during a Duke basketball game? Next thing you'll tell me that they do this during a UNC basketball game too! Say it isn't so! This type of leaning reports from the game announcers isn't new, heck with ten minutes left to go in Clemson thrashing of UNC, all the announcers wanted to talk about was the record of the series in Chapel Hill. As if that had any relevancy at all to the game at hand. Or how ESPN wanted to talk about nothing but the Craig James/Mike Leach nonsenese during the Alamo Bowl this year. Lets just face it, real journalistic ideals of reporting fair, unbiased news whether it be in print, on air about politics or athletics died decades ago.

Anonymous said...

I'm not so sure why people still don't understand why announcers are biased towards Duke and UNC? In case you don't understand, it's because they are the ones people are tuning in to watch. Yes, as announcers they should be a little more impartial, but it happens with all the big time teams, not just here in the ACC.

Unknown said...

This could easily be because I'm a die hard UNC fan and thus my ears and eyes are diluted, but I always believe that almost every announcer besides Dick Vitale is anti-Carolina. I don't know why, but I feel like (especially when UNC is about to get upset) they favor the underdog incredibly and only talk about them. I don't know...even I could admit when the announcers were all over Hansbrough's jock like he was Jesus, but other than him, and particularly this season, announcers don't seem to have any love for us.

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