Off the cuff: It's an old refrain from me but it's past time that the ACC Network is allowed to air the games that are on ESPN. Viewers missed the first five minutes of the Carolina-Georgia Tech game because the FSU-Virginia Tech game ran long (even though the outcome wasn't in doubt). It took over 10 minutes for the first game to play its last 56 seconds. ESPN runs scrolls at the bottom of the screen claiming that you can watch the start of the game on the WatchESPN app. But you can't. The game wasn't available on the WatchESPN smartphone app nor was it available through the WatchESPN app on Roku - at least not until the game was available on TV. Games should be spaced out to accommodate for the length of games and pre-and-post game comments. Despite the fact that the score was 11-11 by the time ESPN2 started airing the Carolina game, the network rushed away following the Carolina game to start the Missouri-Texas A&M game. Those who follow the ACC, however, as we do in North Carolina, could give a flip about the Missouri game. Those that do can go to sports bars. ACC games should have pre-game shows and post-game interviews when possible. Two and a half hours should be allotted by networks for game action and interviews. At one time, ESPN and Raycom (before that CD Chesley and after that ACC Network) both aired the same game and you could decide which one to watch. ESPN always takes precedence now and rules the roost on game times. With ESPN floundering, it's time for the ACC and its fans to show its muscle and dictate what they want to see, when and for how long. As for the game, during that first five minutes, Georgia Tech twice held five-point margins before Carolina rallied to tie it at 11 on a Theo Pinson three pointer. Once Carolina weathered a 10-0 Georgia Tech run and 10 first-half turnovers, the game didn't really seem in doubt. Carolina was too powerful on the boards. UNC's Kane Ma, a senior just up from the JV squad, scored in the last minute with a push shot in the lane that banked in for two. |
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