Wake Forest @ Clemson

In a marquee match-up between two of the nation's last three unbeatens, Wake Forest's interior presence was just too much. James Johnson had 19 points, 8 boards, 3 blocks, and 3 steals and this dunk



while Al-Farouq Aminu added 12 points, 10 boards, and 4 blocks and this dunk.



Chas McFarland also had 12 boards for the Deacs.

It was an ugly first half of basketball, but Wake was able to score the last six of the half (and first five of the second half) to open up a ten point lead. They pushed that lead to 14 midway through the second half, but Clemson would make a comeback. The Tigers are known for their pressure defense, which can put up points in a hurry. That defense was on display against Wake, as the Tiger's went on a 16-3 run to cut Wake's lead to 61-60 with just under five minutes left.

But Wake would respond quickly as Teague would break through a trap in the backcourt and find a streaking Aminu for his second big dunk of the game:



The Demon Deacons would go on to score six straight points after that dunk, taking a 69-60 lead that all but ended things. Wake was not really fazed by Clemson's press outside of that one run the Tiger's put together. For the most part, they just attacked the press with the dribble, getting lay-ups all day long. And while Teague played a great game, he wasn't the only one breaking the press. Many times, it was Johnson or Aminu bringing the ball up. Outside of one five minute stretch, Clemson, one of the better defensive teams in the country, was largely ineffective.

This is probably closer to the type of team Clemson is going to be this year. Yes, they are good, but they are not a top ten basketball team right now and are probably still a cut below Wake, Duke, and UNC in the ACC.

Wake, however, looked borderline unstoppable at times yesterday. They are just a match-up night mare. Not only do they have Teague, who is one of the tougher guys in the country to stay in front of 1-on-1, but they have two match-up nightmares in combo forwards Johnson and Aminu. Add to that the ability to go with two 7-footers up front (McFarland, Tony Woods), and you get the team that should be #1 in the country come Monday morning.

For me, the thing that is scariest about Wake is that they can run with anyone in the country. Clemson and UNC want to play as fast as anyone in the country, and Wake has beaten both of them in the past week. This win against Clemson showed me a lot about Wake. What Clemson wants to do is to get a team to run and push the ball, playing at a pace that is too fast for them. They look for their opponent's to get caught up in the press and rush some bad shots on the offensive end. Well, they succeeded in getting Wake to rush, as there was a stretch in the second half where it never seemed like Wake had possession for more than about 10 seconds. But the problem was that Wake didn't take bad shots. Rather, they were breaking the Clemson press and as a result getting 3-on-2 and 2-on-1 advantages at the other end.

So now I ask you this: who can match up with this Wake Forest team? Duke can, with Henderson guarding either Johnson or Aminu. UConn can. Maybe Pitt. But if you don't have a three man that is big, strong, and athletic, or if you play a three guard line-up, your team could be in for a long day against Wake.