http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/ en Copyright 2007 Tue, 06 Nov 2007 09:21:42 -0500 http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/ http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss UNC added a second 5-star recruit to its 2008 recruiting class when Tyler Zeller gave his verbal at a southern Indiana Ponderosa. I guess he wanted a good meal before breaking the hearts of many Hoosier fans, but UNC has added a center who can run the floor and score from mid-range. Many feel UNC gained the final edge in a long recruiting battle with Indiana University after Kelvin Sampson was caught with his hand in the cookie jar for the second time. Or maybe, we should say, Sampson was caught with his hand on the speed dial making an illegal phone call...AGAIN. Good pickup for the ACC...... http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/zeller-to-unc.php http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/zeller-to-unc.php Home North Carolina Recruiting Tue, 06 Nov 2007 09:21:42 -0500 Pre-Season Preview: Georgia Tech Location: Atlanta, Georgia 2006-2007 Results: 20-12 Overall, 8-8 Conference Head Coach: Paul Hewitt Record at Tech: 127-95 (.572), 7 seasons Overall Record: 193-122 (.613), 10 seasons Where is Jimmy Chitwood when you need him? Last Year in Review: The 2006-2007 season can be best described as mediocre at best for the Yellow Jackets. With a highly touted freshman class, the Jackets never had the chemistry to consistently play with the conference heavyweights and stumbled to a 20 win season and a first round exit in the NCAA Tourney. http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/preseason-preview-georgia-tech.php http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/preseason-preview-georgia-tech.php Georgia Tech Home Wed, 31 Oct 2007 12:00:32 -0500 UNFINISHED BUSINESS……. Location: Chapel Hill, North Carolina Division: Coastal 2006-2007 Results: 31-7 Overall, 11-5 Conference NCAA Regional Finalist, ACC Regular Season Champion, ACC Tournament Champion Head Coach: Roy Williams Record Overall: 524-131 (.799), 19 seasons Record at UNC: 106-30 (.765), 4 seasons Last Year in Review Tar Heel fans will probably remember the 2007 season with mixed feelings. With a stacked roster, the Tar Heels dominated ACC play and made a deep run in the NCAA tourney. As the #1 national seed, the Tar Heels went ICE cold in the second half against Georgetown and finished the season as a regional finalist. http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/preseason-preview-north-caroli-1.php http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/preseason-preview-north-caroli-1.php Home North Carolina Tue, 30 Oct 2007 12:22:26 -0500 TRR is back for another season of ACC hoops. The season starts in less than two weeks so start looking for our season preview in the coming week. We will start with UNC on Tuesday, October 30th and offer a new preview every day leading into the season. Until then, the TRR will enjoy another weekend of college football and also see if the Rockies have enough juice to give the Sox a good game. http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/the-tobacco-road-report-is-bac.php http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/the-tobacco-road-report-is-bac.php Home Thu, 25 Oct 2007 10:24:07 -0500 By Michael Check out our analysis of the first round of the 2007 NBA draft, including where the top players of the ACC were selected. http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/the-nba-draft-round-1.php http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/the-nba-draft-round-1.php Home Fri, 29 Jun 2007 08:51:38 -0500 reporting that Sean Singletary has decided to withdraw his name from the NBA draft and return to Virginia for his senior season. We think this was the right decision given his projected draft position. Though Singletary was an All-ACC performer, his lack of size and inconsitent shooting hurt his draft position. Sean can't fix the size issue, but he can become a better shooter. This is what the NBA draft rules allow for -- players to test the draft waters and learn directly from pro scouts what their strengths and weaknesses are. ESPN is also reporting that Georgia Tech Freshman Thaddeus Young has decided to remain in the 2007 NBA draft. We think Young could benefit from another year in college, but it's hard to argue against staying in the draft when he's currently projecting in the top 15 and his teammate, Javaris Crittenton, is also leaving Tech. Young has a pro-ready body but will still need some time to develop.]]> http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/singletary-withdraws-young-sta.php http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/singletary-withdraws-young-sta.php Georgia Tech Home Virginia Tue, 19 Jun 2007 09:08:29 -0500 At Tuesday night's awards banquet, both Tyler Hansbrough and Ty Lawson announced their intent to return to North Carolina next season. Their joint announcement comes on the heels of Wayne Ellington's decision to return to campus, pleasing Tar Heel fans across the nation. The only remaining holdout at this point is Brandon Wright, who figures to be a lottery pick should he choose to announce by the early-entry deadline on April 29. http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/hansbrough-lawson-and-ellingto.php http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/hansbrough-lawson-and-ellingto.php Home North Carolina Wed, 11 Apr 2007 08:52:04 -0500 We also wanted to take this opportunity to thank our readers for continuing to visit our site on a regular basis. The numer of page visits at TRR increased each month during the season...up until the point where the ACC dropped out of contention in the NCAA Tournament. Your support has made the innagural season for TRR a big success. Our blogging activity will be lighter over the summer months, but that's mainly because we'll be sitting down with our webdesign team to improve the look of the site and add some features we think readers will like. We'll also have some commentary on the upcoming NBA draft and get out any recruiting news that comes our way. ]]> http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/florida-gators-2007-national-c.php http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/florida-gators-2007-national-c.php Home March Madness Wed, 04 Apr 2007 17:09:49 -0500 By Michael Marcus Ginyard made two free throws to put Carolina up 75-65 with 7:19 to play. Normally this is when the vaunted Carolina run comes. Instead, Carolina would only make 2 of its next 24 field goal attempts, eventually falling to the Hoyas 96-84 in overtime and ending the chances of the ACC in the field of 64. http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/carolina-comes-unglued.php http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/carolina-comes-unglued.php Home March Madness North Carolina Sun, 25 Mar 2007 19:55:51 -0500 By Michael Everyone will be praising UCLA's defense tomorrow, but TRR didn't necessarily see it that way. Yes, UCLA did force 21 turnovers. Kansas, however, played excellent defense as well, forcing 24 turnovers, limiting UCLA to 7 offensive rebounds, and holding UCLA to only 45 field goal attempts. The defenses were a net-wash in my opinion. The difference was: (1) UCLA's ability to hit the three, where they finished 8 of 17, (2) UCLA's ability to find offense late in the shot clock through Afflalo, and (3) missed opportunities by Kansas. If you ever want to define what missed opportunities means, just call Bill Self at the Kansas Athletic Department. I'm sure they'd be happy to give you this game tape for free since they'll be burning every copy they have. Kansas was 14 of 34 on layup and dunk opportunities. They finished about as strong as Britney's stint in rehab. The meek may inherit the earth, but they don't belong in the Final Four. http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/kansas-wimps-out-against-ucla.php http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/kansas-wimps-out-against-ucla.php Home March Madness Sat, 24 Mar 2007 23:21:51 -0500 By Michael Carolina ignited the rocket fuel with 12 minutes to play. By the time it burned out, the Tar Heels had vanquished USC 74-64 and advanced to the round of 8 where they will take on Georgetown tomorrow in a classic matchup. http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/a-tale-of-two-halves-carolina.php http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/a-tale-of-two-halves-carolina.php Home March Madness North Carolina Sat, 24 Mar 2007 22:18:05 -0500 The story in this game was second chance points for the Hoyas. Georgetown grabbed 15 offensive rebounds and turned them into made baskets. Hibbert, Green, and Summers were all active on the offensive glass and it paid off in spades, allowing the Hoyas to shoot 25-56 from the floor despite missing most of their first shots. Georgetown was also good from deep when it counted, converting 8 of 19 from beyond the arc. In contrast, Vandy hit a dry spell and couldn't shake it despite the fact that Hibbert spent much of the second half on the pine and eventually fouled out. For the game Vandy finished a woeful 9 of 27 from deep. There were 4 to 6 wide open looks from three in the second half that didn't fall. Gotta make those to advance. Oh...and you need officials that aren't scared to call a travel on the opposing team's best player in the crunch. Green walked like a jaybird and got away with it. Heck, even Seth and Clark saw it. You know it's obvious then. http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/georgetown-walks-into-the-roun.php http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/georgetown-walks-into-the-roun.php Home March Madness Sat, 24 Mar 2007 22:05:16 -0500 First, you can never stop Greg Oden completely. Here, we suggest ways to limit his success. There are three ways to beat an opposing big man like Oden. One is to have a better big man that can outmatch Oden in the low post. Georgetown's Hibbert is probably the only person in the field of 64 that can reasonably do this. He's an absolute load in the low block and it's doubtful that Oden can stop the jump hook if Hibbert gets position in deep. The second strategy is to make Oden move laterally by using a smaller player that can hit the outside jump shot or turn and drive. Drawing Oden out of his comfort zone and making him move laterally are keys to destroying his advantages inside. Tennessee had this working like a charm, but only found the magic for twenty minutes. It's not clear that Memphis will have the same ability in this regard. Finally, the third way to beat Oden is to run like the wind. It takes a lot more energy for a 250' big man to run up and down the floor than it does for a 185' swing man or 170' guard. Tiring Oden out physically and getting early offense going to the basket before he sets up defensively increases your chances of winning. Kansas, UNC, and perhaps Florida are the only teams that can step up the pace while still matching OSU physically. http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/how-to-stop-greg-oden.php http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/how-to-stop-greg-oden.php Home March Madness Fri, 23 Mar 2007 10:02:01 -0500 Rallying from a 20 point deficit, The Ohio State University edged a shell shocked Tennessee team by one point on Thursday night, 85-84. In a game where Greg Oden was in constant foul trouble and a limited factor, Mike Conley Jr. destroyed the Vols in the second half with dribble pentration and looked poised beyond his years. The Buckeyes used a simple high screen with the 5 man to get penetration that set up kick outs to senior Ron Lewis (25 points). It is hard to call this a complete choke by the Vols but their offense stagnated in the second half and became a series of jacking contested threes. The inability to exploit OSU with Hunter and Oden both saddled with 4 fouls was a key difference in the game. For Oden, this was a nightmare performance, but he did block the potential game winner as time expired. The Saturday matchup with Memphis will be an interesting battle of tempo and styles. OSU is the only Big 10 team that has the athletes to run the floor with the Tigers. Should be a good one. http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/march-madness/osu-leans-on-a-freshmanand-its.php http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/march-madness/osu-leans-on-a-freshmanand-its.php Home March Madness Fri, 23 Mar 2007 09:53:53 -0500 shocking. If we catch our breath over the weekend, we'll post a few thoughts on this.]]> http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/tubby-out-at-kentucky-goes-to.php http://www.tobaccoroadreport.com/home/tubby-out-at-kentucky-goes-to.php Home Thu, 22 Mar 2007 23:28:09 -0500