NCAA Basketball miami (fl) Hurricanes

GREENSBORO, N.C. -- The talk of the Atlantic Coast Conference's basketball media day Sunday was the trouble a player could get into if he talked too much.

Or said the wrong thing, or gestured the wrong way, or celebrated excessively, or did anything else that might be considered "unsporting behavior,'' according to a new zero-tolerance policy approved for this season by the NCAA.

Many of the players and coaches gathered at Greensboro's Grandover Resort bluntly said they either did not like the change, didn't understand why it was necessary, or both. The biggest issue: there is too much room left for the wrong interpretation.

March started days ago. The Madness started Wednesday night.

On an evening where bubble teams could've punched their ticket to the NCAA tournament and boosters could've started humming bars of "One Shining Moment," teams turned down invitations like they were to a wedding without an open bar or the People's Choice Awards.

A memo, fellows. This isn't an invitation to a candlelight dinner with Randy Johnson. "Big Dance" doesn't mean you're cutting a rug with Mark Madsen or waltzing cheek-to-cheek with Mike Tyson.

You actually want to go to this thing.

Onion Peels is a recap of last night's action and an unofficial Bill Raftery blog.

Duke and North Carolina were separated by a single game in the ACC standings heading into Sunday; little did Duke know it, but they nearly had a chance to tie the Tar Heels again. However, games against Boston College and Miami, respectively, ended the wrong way for the Devils.

Boston College 80, Duke 74: The same problems that have plagued the Blue Devils all season -- point guard play as well as lack of an inside presence -- came into play again Sunday afternoon.

There was some belief coming into the Miami-Duke game that Duke would just pound on Miami. The Hurricanes had won just a single conference road game in four tries. They were coming off a huge blowout win over sixth-ranked Wake Forest in Coral Gables. Duke on the other hand, has been perfect at home and were still smarting from a blowout loss on the road.

A letdown by Miami was expected and a determined Duke team would control this game and never give Miami any hope. That did not happen. Instead, Duke had to make a big comeback to get in the game in the second half and finally prevail in overtime, 78-75.

If you wanted to play a parlay on Miami and Clemson road-grading Duke and Wake Forest the kind of clubbings usually reserved for the Knicks or Andy Kennedy's cab rides, you probably would've had to look far, far down your betting slip.

Think somewhere in the area of Alex Rodriguez autographing a copy of Joe Torre's new book and Alex Rodriguez shacking up with a woman whose age is less than his homer totals.

And then keep looking down.

When your best wins are over bubble teams like Kentucky and Florida State and your conference record is below .500, any hopes for playing in the NCAA Tournament require some big wins. The Hurricanes accomplished that tonight with a second half blow out of Wake Forest, 79-52.

This was a complete decimation of Wake Forest in the final 20 minutes. Miami only held a three-point lead at the half, but blew the game open from the start of the second half. The Hurricanes went on a 25-8 run. Jack McClinton had a huge game scoring 32 points, dropping a slew of 3-pointers and getting to the basket.

Eddie Rios hasn't really had a great basketball season. He's been suspended twice and he's only averaging about four points per game (in 12 minutes of play.)

And after being arrested for "grand theft" and burglary, it appears that he's really been on a hijacking tear, having stolen several thousand dollars worth of electronic equipment from other Miami students.

Miami's Edwin Rios was supposed to be one of the team's building blocks. The sophomore was a top-20 point guard in the recruiting rankings when he signed with Miami. Instead, he has underachieved and been a problem child. He was first suspended for one game in December, then suspended indefinitely in January. Why? The ever popular "violating team rules."

That is now the least of his concerns as he has been arrested and charged with "two counts of burglarizing an unoccupied dwelling, and two counts of grand theft." So far Miami and the athletic department has no comment.

Miami, has a "zero-tolerance" policy concerning the behavior of its athletes on-the-field after the FIU-Miami football brawl a couple years ago; that has not really been enforced in the realm of basketball. It is a good bet, as the athletic department still tries to overcome the reputation of lawlessness earned by the football program, that Rios is likely done as a Hurricane.

I have no clue why ESPN scheduled North Carolina and Miami for Saturday night primetime. Oh wait. Yes I do. It's because, two weeks ago, the line for that game would have been "Carolina minus infinity" and expecting anything short of a total Hurricane bloodbath would have been insanity.

Then UNC lost twice. And suddenly this matchup was more of a "holy mess let them lose!" type of event where the WWL and the Carolina national bandwagon would be thoroughly embarrassed. Frankly, the game had the making of a potential upset heading into half.

The Tar Heels were only up four, they looked totally ineffective and suddenly Miami was dangerous. Then Wayne Ellington happened.

Derrick Favors and John Wall are the top two recruits in the nation -- Favors, as we mentioned yesterday, was rated number one by Scouts and Wall has been listed as Rivals number one overall prospect.

Favors is now off the board, having committed to be a Yellow Jacket for one year his college career. Wall, meanwhile, remains on the market, so to speak, but there's good news for the teams (Baylor, Duke, N.C. State, Memphis mainly; Kansas, Oregon and Miami are also in consideration) currently pursuing the point guard.

He won't be swayed by Favors decision to attend Georgia Tech when making his decision.