Does A Poor NCAA Showing Discount What The ACC Did This Year?

The ACC was talked about as the best conference in all of college basketball. That didn’t equate in the NCAA tournament, so what happened?

Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim recently quipped that a college-basketball squad’s ultimate barometer of success is predicated on how well it performs in the Big Dance.

Therefore, Boeheim’s 2015-16 bunch, which slogged through a so-so regular season, turned into one of his best-ever groups, based on its stunning run to the Final Four, despite amassing an overall mark of 23-14.

That’s according to JB.

Under his premise, SU’s 30-5 and 34-3 outfits in 2009-10 and 2011-12 are not as prominent as the 2015-16 crew, because those other two teams fell in the Sweet 16 and the Elite Eight, respectively.

With this as a backdrop, I wanted to start a discussion on the Atlantic Coast Conference, as a

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whole, in the 2016-17 campaign. Most people would acknowledge that the ACC, prior to the NCAA Tournament commencing, proved the strongest conference in the country.

However, as this year’s Sweet 16 gets going on Thursday night, just one program from the Atlantic Coast Conference – North Carolina, a No. 1 seed – is still dancing.

Nine of the 15 ACC members received an invite to March Madness, although our beloved Orange did not make the cut. Regardless, that’s the most of any conference. Yet only the Tar Heels remain.

Duke and Louisville, both No. 2 seeds, got upset last weekend in the second round. Florida State, a No. 3 seed, as well as No. 5 seeds Notre Dame and Virginia, got blown out in that same round. Miami, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest didn’t get out of the opening round, with the Demon Deacons actually losing in the First Four.

I have to say, I am fairly shocked that UNC is the singular ACC school in the field of 16. And the Tar Heels had their hands completely full in the second round versus Arkansas, going on a late scoring blitz to emerge victorious. Every other major conference, meanwhile, possesses at least two squads left.

Does this mean that the Atlantic Coast Conference is over-rated?

It really depends on what your criteria are to determine greatness. If it’s how far teams advance in the NCAA Tournament, then, yes, the ACC stunk it up.

If it’s appearances in the Final Four, and the national-title contest, then this is TBD. North Carolina is in a brutally rough region, along with Kentucky and UCLA, but should the Tar Heels win the whole thing, then maybe the Atlantic Coast Conference deserves some kudos.

If it’s the total number of bids to the Big Dance, then clearly the ACC achieved. And this category obviously takes into account the depth of the conference during the regular stanza.

Honestly, I think it’s a combination of all the above factors.

Also, keep this in mind. The NCAA Tournament is somewhat of an enigma for its participants. Games are played at neutral sites (most of the time, anyways), and opponents are often unfamiliar with each other, and don’t have a long window for which to prepare.

That’s not an excuse for how miserable the Atlantic Coast Conference has fared in March Madness. It’s solely the nature of the tournament.

Twelve months ago, the ACC landed seven berths. Six made it to the Sweet 16, four to the Elite Eight and two – Syracuse and UNC – to the Final Four. The conference, in the regular term, did not exhibit the same level of vigor as this year, but undeniably it did significantly better in the post-season.

The Big East, in the 2011 NCAA Tournament, set a record with 11 of 16 getting included. Similar to the present situation, a mere two accomplished the Sweet 16, although Connecticut did claim the national championship.

From top to bottom, however, the 2016-17 ACC had more quality – and parity – than the 2015-16 Atlantic Coast Conference as well as the 2010-11 Big East.

There are valid arguments to every aspect of this debate. There’s no right, or wrong, answer.

Personally, I tend to side with Boeheim. What you do in the Big Dance goes a long way toward defining your season. Although, the ‘Cuse rosters from 2009-2010 and 2011-12, I believe, would have smoked the 2015-16 crew.

If not for an unfortunate injury in 2009-10 and an untimely suspension in 2011-12, I’m confident that SU may have additional Final Fours – and perhaps a national title – under its belt.

Alas, that’s part of the game. We’ll continuously wonder, “what if” …

Next: ITLH Roundtable: What now for Syracuse and Boeheim after Mike Hopkins Exit?

Conversely, in 2015-16, and also in 2012-13 let’s not forget, more pedestrian Orange outfits stomped out surprising marches to the Final Four.

Those squads that killed it in the regular campaign, bravo to them.

Those teams that reached the Final Four, they are the ones we’ll always remember.

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