A Needed Boost: Win in regular-season finale has Wake Forest feeling rejuvenated

Winston-Salem's hardest winter in many years broke into early spring by the time that Wake Forest finally crossed the ACC's regular-season finish line with Sunday's 70-65 victory over Clemson.

A question arose, after four straight losses, about whether the Deacons would make it out of a frightful February with a resume worthy of an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.

So there was a sense of rejuvenation inside and outside Joel Coliseum after the Deacons all but locked up an invitation to the ball with records of 19-9 overall and 9-7 in the ACC. Wake Forest will play Miami at 2 p.m. today in a first-round game of the ACC Tournament.

"It's going to do wonders for us," sophomore Al-Farouq Aminu said. "I think after all that losing, we're just so determined not to do that again. I think this is a good time to have that kind of mind-set.

"I'm just hoping we can keep rolling on the momentum."

Although the fifth-place finish at least met most preseason expectations, the Deacons, for the second year in a row, played well enough out of the gates to roar into midseason contention for the regular-season crown. Wake Forest improved to 18-5 overall and 8-3 in ACC play after a convincing 75-64 home victory over Georgia Tech and vaulted into the Top 25 at No. 23.

But the high-water mark of the regular season came three nights later at Virginia Tech, where the Deacons led by 11 with 12½ minutes remaining. Whatever confidence and momentum they lost by fading down the stretch of an 87-83 setback took four more games to reclaim against Clemson on Sunday.

You can't always get what you want, as the song goes. But if you try, sometimes you just might get what you need.

"It's always tough to lose four straight like we did, especially when you were in a position to really win this league," senior Ish Smith said. "But I'm more than happy right now that we've gotten off a four-game losing streak and hopefully we can take this on in the tournament."

Coach Dino Gaudio, who dealt with the loss of sophomores James Johnson and Jeff Teague to the NBA before the season, pronounced the regular season a somewhat qualified success.

"I know where we were a couple of weeks ago, but to finish 9-7 in this league, I'm proud of those kids," Gaudio said. "We lose two guys, the 15th pick and the 19th pick, to the draft. Those seniors (Williams, Smith, Chas McFarland and David Weaver) have done a great job. I'm really proud of them.

"Now there's a lot of basketball to be played yet."

The basketball remaining will be played in the postseason, which is where the past two seasons have ended abruptly for Wake Forest. In 2008, the Deacons lost to Florida State in the first round of the ACC Tournament. Last year, they saw all the promise of a 16-0 record go down the double drains of a loss to Maryland in the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament and a numbing 84-69 setback to No. 13 seed Cleveland State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Ron Wellman, Wake Forest's director of athletics, extended Gaudio's contract through the 2013-14 season back in October, but before doing so discussed with Gaudio ways to advance deeper in the NCAA Tournament. Gaudio has said that the ability to rebound and defend should serve the Deacons in good stead, but scoring points has been a season-long problem, especially against set defenses.

In conference games only, Wake Forest ranks first with a field-goal percentage defense of 39.4 and is tied for third with a rebounding margin of plus-2.3 and tied for fifth with a field-goal percentage of 42.1.

Clemson was willing to run with the Deacons on Sunday, but Miami is expected to play the same halfcourt zone that proved so effective in its 67-66 victory over Wake Forest in Coral Gables on Jan. 9.

"They'll probably play us primarily zone, so we have to get ready for that," McFarland said. "They did a good job of it down there and up here, and it's something we have to prepare for."

The Hurricanes are expected to be without senior center Dwayne Collins, who missed the final regular-season game with a stress reaction. The Deacons, on the other hand, will be without the doubts that come with a four-game late-season skid.

"As much as we would like to say we're confident and tell (the media) we're confident, whenever you lose four games straight, your head is stuck between your tail a little bit," Williams said. "And for you to get a win, it lets you know that you can compete and you can win again.

"Now our confidence is churning a little bit and this week we're going to try to get better and get better and try to rattle off a couple of wins in the tournament."

dcollins@wsjournal.com


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