Searching for one last resume booster before conference play begins, Wake Forest will host undefeated No. 13 Vanderbilt on Sunday in Winston-Salem, N.C.
Despite four consecutive winning seasons, the Demon Deacons (9-3) are still searching for their first NCAA Tournament appearance under sixth-year head coach Steve Forbes. Wake Forest has been left on the wrong side of the bubble of the 68-team field a few times in recent seasons. A non-conference victory over a ranked Southeastern Conference team could go a long way in helping the team realize its postseason goals.
So far this season, Wake Forest is 1-3 against major conference opponents. The Demon Deacons lost to then-ranked No. 6 Michigan and No. 15 Texas Tech by a single point in each matchup. Wake Forest does own victories over Memphis and West Virginia.
“In the high-major games that we’ve played, we’ve had about one bad half against Oklahoma at home. I think other than that, we’ve been pretty darn competitive and played pretty hard,” Forbes said this week. “… We have to be at a different level come Sunday.”
Wake Forest is coming off a narrow 71-68 win over Longwood where it shot just 20.8 percent from 3-point territory. Longwood also held an advantage on the boards, 41-35.
The Demon Deacons will be facing a Vanderbilt (11-0) team that ranks 57th nationally in total rebounding, grabbing 40.1 boards per game. The Commodores also rank eighth in the country in scoring, putting up 93.7 points per game.
Vanderbilt has topped 100 points in four games this season, but most recently needed overtime to put away Memphis. Behind 22 points from Duke Miles, the Commodores kept their perfect record intact and won 77-70.
“When you go through that (kind of game) as a team and as a coach, you’ve got film,” second-year Vanderbilt coach Mark Byington said. “You show your guys what we did right, what we did wrong, and we made a ton of mistakes.
“But at the same time, this game was more about our toughness, our defense and just our competitiveness. We just didn’t give in regardless of what was going on.”
A sixth-year senior now playing for his fourth college basketball program, Miles is averaging 17.1 points and a career-best 4.3 assists and 2.6 steals per game. Miles — who previously played at Troy, High Point and Oklahoma — has scored in double figures in 10-of-11 games this season.
For Wake Forest, sophomore forward Juke Harris continues to lead in scoring, averaging 20.1 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. He’s topped 20 points in a single game five times this season and has two double-doubles on the year, both of which came during the Baha Mar Championship in the Bahamas.
“I mean, I don’t know anything about Vanderbilt. I mean, I know they’re good, and I know Mark Byington really well, but … I haven’t watched them,” Forbes said Wednesday. “I mean, we’re just going to go back to practice and do what we do.”
-Field Level Media
