By R.L. Bynum
Coach Michael Malone’s first Carolina team is picked to finish fifth in the preseason ACC men’s basketball poll released Tuesday.
Duke took 45 of the 48 first-place votes (861 points) and is the league favorite for the third consecutive season and the 11th time in the last 14 seasons.
Virginia (778), Louisville (758), and Miami (753) each received one first-place vote and finished second through fourth, leaving UNC (658) projected to finish the highest among the teams with a first-place vote. Clemson is picked sixth (623).
The margin below Carolina is also substantial, with Florida State (519) trailing by 139 points and N.C. State (502) by 156.
North Carolina’s brightest spot in the preseason voting was freshman Maxi Adams, who received three votes for ACC Preseason Rookie of the Year. He finished fourth in a race dominated by Duke’s Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje, who earned 34 of the 48 votes.
Miami’s Caleb Gaskins (5) and Duke’s Cameron Williams (4) also finished ahead of Adams, while Clemson’s Harris Reynolds and Duke’s Deron Rippey each collected one.
Virginia forward Thijs De Ridder was named the ACC Preseason Player of the Year with 30 votes, the first Cavalier to earn the honor since Malcolm Brogdon ahead of the 2015–16 season. De Ridder, a 6-foot-9, 238-pound forward from Brasschaat, Belgium, was the only unanimous pick on the Preseason All-ACC Team. He averaged 15.6 points and 6.2 rebounds in 36 games as a first-year player, shooting 50.8% from the floor and 35.7% from 3-point range, and led Virginia to a second-place ACC finish and the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Duke’s John Blackwell (12 votes) was the runner-up for Player of the Year.
The first team included Louisville’s Flory Bidunga (47 votes), Duke’s Blackwell (44) and Patrick Ngongba II (42), and Miami’s Sheldon Henderson (44). Bidunga was the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year at Kansas last season, and Blackwell earned Third-Team All-Big Ten honors at Wisconsin.
The second team featured Miami’s Malik Reneau (30), Louisville’s Jackson Shelstad (24), Virginia’s Chance Mallory (23), Virginia Tech’s Amani Hansberry (21) and Boumtje Boumtje (21).
No North Carolina player appeared on either team, which means Malone’s group will begin the season without a preseason all-conference selection while trying to outperform a fifth-place projection.
The 74th season of ACC men’s basketball opens on Sunday, Nov. 1, when Notre Dame plays Villanova in Rome, Italy. Thirteen teams begin their seasons on Nov. 2, and the remaining four open on Nov. 3. League play begins on Tuesday, Dec. 29.
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ACC preseason men’s basketball poll
1. Duke (45 first-place votes), 861
2. Virginia (1), 778
3. Louisville (1), 758
4. Miami (1), 753
5. North Carolina, 658
6. Clemson, 623
7. Florida State, 519
8. N.C. State, 502
9. Virginia Tech, 489
10. SMU, 443
11. Syracuse, 353
12. Pitt, 323
13. Stanford, 267
14. Wake Forest, 234
15. California, 225
16. Notre Dame, 153
17. Boston College, 150
18. Georgia Tech, 119
ACC preseason awards
First Team
Name, School, Votes
Thijs De Ridder, Virginia, 48
Flory Bidunga, Louisville, 47
John Blackwell, Duke, 44
Shelton Henderson, Miami, 44
Patrick Ngongba II, Duke, 42
Second Team
Malik Reneau, Miami, 30
Jackson Shelstad, Louisville, 24
Chance Mallory, Virginia, 23
Amani Hansberry, Virginia Tech, 21
Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje, Duke, 21
ACC Preseason Player of the Year
Thijs De Ridder, Virginia, 30 votes
John Blackwell, Duke, 12
Flory Bidunga, Louisville, 3
Malik Reneau, Miami, 2
Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje, Duke, 1
Preseason ACC Rookie of the Year
Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje, Duke, 34 votes
Caleb Gaskins, Miami, 5
Cameron Williams, Duke, 4
Maximo Adams, North Carolina, 3
Harris Reynolds, Clemson, 1
Deron Rippey, Duke, 1
| Date | Time/ scores | Month/day | Opponent/event (final ranks) | TV |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October | Exhibitions | |||
| 9 | W, 88–70 | Friday | vs. USC in Greensboro | |
| 18 | 5 p.m. | Sunday | vs. Indiana in Indianapolis | B1G+ * |
| 27 | 7:30 | Tuesday | vs. Charlotte | ACCN Extra |
| November | Regular season | |||
| 2 | 7 p.m. | Monday | vs. Western Carolina | ACCN |
| 6 | 7 p.m. | Friday | vs. Wofford | ACCN |
| 10 | 7 p.m. | Tuesday | vs. Wyoming | ACCN |
| 13 | 7 p.m. | Friday | vs. Georgia | ESPN2 |
| 20 | 9 p.m. | Friday | vs. Marshall | ACCN |
| 23 | 7 p.m. | Monday | vs. Monmouth | ACCN |
| 27 | 7 p.m. | Friday | Dick Vitale Invitational vs. West Virginia in Charlotte | ESPN |
| December | ||||
| 1 | 7:30 | Tuesday | ACC/SEC Challenge vs. No. 13 Arkansas | ESPN |
| 6 | 3 p.m. | Sunday | vs. Butler | ESPN2 |
| 12 | Noon | Saturday | at Georgetown | Peacock |
| 15 | 7 p.m. | Tuesday | Tobacco Road Classic vs. N.C. State in Greensboro | ESPN2 |
| 19 | 2:30 | Saturday | CBS Sports Classic vs. Kentucky in New York | CBS |
| 21 | 8 p.m. | Monday | vs. The Citadel | The CW |
| 30 | 4 p.m. | Wednesday | vs. California | ACCN |
| January | ||||
| 2 | 4 p.m. | Saturday | at Boston College | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 5 | 9 p.m. | Tuesday | at Louisville | ESPN or ESPNU |
| 9 | Noon | Saturday | vs. N.C. State | ESPN2 |
| 13 | 7 p.m. | Wednesday | at Florida State | ESPN2 or ESPNU |
| 16 | 2:15 | Saturday | vs. Stanford | The CW |
| 19 | 9 p.m. | Tuesday | vs. No. 17 Virginia | ESPN |
| 23 | Noon | Saturday | at Syracuse | ESPN or 2 or U |
| 26 | 7 p.m. | Tuesday | vs. SMU | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 30 | 6 or 6:30 | Saturday | Nashville Hoops Showdown vs. No. 5 Illinois in Nashville, Tenn. | ESPN |
| February | ||||
| 2 | 7 p.m. | Tuesday | at Notre Dame | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 6 | 2:15 | Saturday | vs. Georgia Tech | The CW |
| 8 | 6 p.m. | Monday | vs. Louisville | ESPN |
| 13 | 5:30 | Saturday | at No. 4 Duke | ABC |
| 20 | 7 p.m. | Saturday | at Wake Forest | ACCN |
| 22 | 7 p.m. | Monday | vs. No. 24 Miami | ESPN |
| 27 | 7 p.m. | Saturday | at Virginia Tech | ESPN |
| March | ||||
| 2 | 9 p.m. | Tuesday | at Pittsburgh | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 6 | 6 or 6:30 | Saturday | vs. No. 4 Duke | ESPN |
| 9–13 | Tues.-Sat. | ACC tournament in Greensboro |
| No. | Class | Player | Pos. | Hgt | Wgt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 | Freshman | Maxi Adams | F | 6–7 | 220 |
| 30 | Freshman | Malloy Smith | G | 6–5 | 180 |
| 21 | Freshman | Sayon Keita (SIGH-on KAY-tuh) | C | 7–0 | 205 |
| 5 | Freshman | Kevin Thomas | W | 6–6 | 205 |
| 35 | Sophomore | Cade Bennerman — U | C | 7–0 | 205 |
| 17 | Sophomore | Neo Avdalas — W (NEE-oh ahv-DOLL-lus) | G | 6–9 | 220 |
| 2 | Sophomore | Isaiah Denis | G | 6–4 | 185 |
| 3 | Sophomore | Matt Able — X | G | 6–5 | 200 |
| 22 | Junior | Alex Samodurov (SAH-muh-DUHR-off) | C | 6–11 | 225 |
| 1 | Senior | Terrence Brown — Y | G | 6–3 | 180 |
| 4 | Senior | Jaydon Young (JAY-din) | G | 6–4 | 200 |
| 15 | Senior | Jarin Stevenson (JARE-in) | F | 6–10 | 220 |
| 14 | Graduate | Angelo Brizzi — Z (BRIZZ-ee) | G | 6–3 | 200 |
| 54 | Graduate | Cameron Fens — V (Fenz) | C | 7–0 | 255 |
| Walk-ons | |||||
| 99 | Junior | John Holbrook — SA | F | 6–8 | 230 |
| 32 | Senior | Evan Smith | G | 6–1 | 200 |
V — South Dakota transfer; U — Northwestern transfer; W — Virginia Tech transfer; X — N.C. State transfer; Y — Utah transfer; Z — Buffalo transfer; SA — Holbrook is a designated student-athlete, so he doesn’t count against UNC’s 15-player limit.
Coach Michael Malone’s coaching staff — Associate head coach Chuck Martin; assistant coaches Bryan Tibaldi (tih-BALL-dee), Sean May, Jorge Sanz (HOR-hey sahnth), Pat Sullivan and Brandon Robinson; Director of player development Deon Thompson.
Former players at other schools
| Player | Class | Pos. | Hgt | Wgt | Next school |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Luka Bogavac | Senior | W | 6–6 | 215 | Oklahoma State |
| James Brown | Senior | C | 6–10 | 240 | Howard |
| Derek Dixon | Sophomore | G | 6–5 | 200 | Arizona |
| Kyan Evans | Senior | G | 6–2 | 175 | Minnesota |
| Zayden High | Junior | C | 6–10 | 230 | South Florida |
| Jonathan Powell | Junior | G | 6–6 | 190 | Pittsburgh |
| Ivan Matlekovic | Junior | C | 7–0 | 255 | Pacific |
Photo via @UNC_Basketball
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