2011 Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament Preview

The 58th annual ACC Tournament tips off at the Greensboro (N.C.) Coliseum on Thursday at noon Eastern time, and it promises to be even more intriguing than its recent incarnations. North Carolina enters the tourney as the top seed on a roll after beating Duke in its regular season finale on Saturday. Duke is the two-time defending champion and a slight favorite coming into the tournament despite losing to the Tar Heels. Four other teams – Florida State, Clemson, Boston College, and Virginia Tech – will be hungry to improve their NCAA Tournament bid hopes, making this the bubbliest ACC in recent years.

The bottom eight seeds will play on Thursday, with the top four seeds – UNC, Duke, Florida State, and Clemson – receiving a first-round bye and starting play on Friday in the quarterfinals.

All Games Played at the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, N.C.

Television Coverage on ACC Network and ESPN-affiliated networks

ESPN coverage subject to blackout in ACC markets

Streaming Live Video available at theacc.com in ACC markets, and at ESPN3.com outside of ACC markets.

Records are for regular season conference play

First Round – Thursday, March 10, 2011

Thursday, 12:00 ET: (8) Virginia vs. (9) Miami – TV: ACC Network

The opening game of the tournament will pit the Virginia Cavaliers (7-9) against the Miami Hurricanes (6-10). Miami won the only match-up between these two teams on February 5 in overtime behind Adrian Thomas’s 20 points, his highest point total so far this year.

Virginia has over-performed this year, and there was some discussion of coach Tony Bennett as ACC coach of the year after posting seven wins without leader Mike Scott, who injured his ankle and left for the season in December.

Miami has struggled this season, losing more close games than the Canes care to count. Frank Haith has done well to keep his team from totally collapsing this year, but any talk of an NCAA bid was hushed in January.

This winner will play top seed North Carolina at noon on Friday.

Thursday, Approx. 2:30 ET: (5) Boston College vs. (12) Wake Forest – TV: ACC Network

Boston College (9-7) won its only game with the Deacs (1-15) this past Sunday, 84-68, in Chestnut Hill. Boston College has had an uneven season, with its only signature conference wins coming against Virginia Tech. Those wins were offset by glaring early-season losses to Harvard and Yale. The Eagles are led by ACC first-team all conference guard Reggie Jackson, who is averaging 18.3 points per game. A loss to Wake Forest would certainly dash any hopes of an at-large bid from the NCAA selection committee.

Wake Forest is the first ACC team to lose 15 games in a season in conference play, and has been in turmoil all season under first-year coach Jeff Bzdelik; its lone victory came against a depleted Virginia squad.

The winner will play fourth seed Clemson at approximately 2:30 on Friday.

Thursday, 7:00 ET: (7) Maryland vs. (10) NC State – TV: ESPN2

The Terrapins (7-9) won their only game against a woeful Wolfpack (5-11) squad, 87-80, behind first team all-ACC forward Jordan Williams’s 26 points and eight rebounds. Local media in Raleigh, N.C., are reporting that NC State is actively seeking to replace coach Sidney Lowe, now in his fifth season.

Maryland’s best wins are probably against conference foes Clemson and Florida State at home, but in a year with a very weak bubble it has not been ruled out of every conversation for inclusion in the field of 68 this year. It will probably take a victory over Duke in the quarterfinals and a trip to the ACC final (both ingredients need to be part of the mix) for the Terps to garner serious consideration.

The winner will play second seed Duke at 7:00 on Friday.

Thursday, Approx. 9:30 ET: (6) Virginia Tech vs. (11) Georgia Tech– TV: ACC Network

Perennial bubble team Virginia Tech (9-7) will play Georgia Tech (5-11) in the Thursday nightcap. The Hokies have been on a rollercoaster all year – they beat Florida State, swept

Maryland, and notched a huge home victory over then-top-ranked Duke on February 26. However, they were also swept by Virginia; they lost to Boston College and Clemson in the two games following the Duke victory; and importantly, they merely split home-and-home games with the struggling Yellow Jackets.

The Hokies are led by first-team all-ACC guard Malcolm Delaney, who is averaging 18.8 points per game. The Hokies must dispatch the Yellow Jackets quickly on Thursday night, and then give Florida State a fight in the Friday night closer to avoid falling out of NCAA tournament consideration.

The winner plays third seed Florida State at 9:30 on Friday.

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Quarterfinals – Friday, March 11, 2011

Friday, 12:00 ET:  (1) North Carolina vs. Virginia/Miami – TV: ACC Network/ESPN2

North Carolina (14-2) enters the ACC Tournament playing its best basketball of the season. After a difficult start – dropping games to Minnesota and Vanderbilt at an early season invitational in Puerto Rico, and then an early-season conference game at Georgia Tech – the Tar Heels have since gone 12-1 and avenged the lone loss in that stretch to arch-rival Duke on Saturday in their regular season finale.

For the first time in ACC history, the regular season champions do not have any players on the first team all-ACC squad, but the Heels do have three players – forwards Tyler Zeller, John Henson, and Harrison Barnes – on the second team, and they provide a powerful inside presence at both ends of the floor.

The point guard position has been freshman Kendall Marshall’s for only a month, but his growth has been phenomenal. The performance of the third team all-ACC honoree will be pivotal for UNC in its hopes of advancing in the ACC Tournament, and then in the big dance.

Carolina defeated Virginia (62-56) and Miami (74-71) in their only meetings this year.

Friday, Approx. 2:30 ET:  (4) Clemson vs. Boston College/Wake Forest

TV: ACC Network/ESPN2

Clemson (9-7) earned the fourth seed and the last first-round bye due to its victory over Virginia Tech in the final game of the regular season on Sunday. The Tigers hope to carry that momentum into tournament play. Clemson brings to this event a 7-4 record in its last 11 games, and marginal hopes for getting a ticket to the big dance. Wins over Florida State, Boston College, and the Hokies are all the Tigers can present to the committee in Indianapolis this weekend.

The Tigers are led by Demontez Stitt, averaging 14.4 points per game, and Jerai Grant averaging 6.8 rebounds per game. Clemson defeated Boston College 77-69, and Wake Forest 63-49 in its only games with them this year. If the Tigers draw the Eagles, this could be one of the most watched games of the tournament, as both teams are desperate to boost their tournament resumes. Neither BC nor Clemson will be able to hold up on Selection Sunday with a loss in that likely quarterfinal collision. Boston College might have a slight edge over Clemson in a comparison of resumes, but that difference is too microscopic at this point. Winning this game will change the teams’ profiles to a considerable degree.

Friday, 7 ET: (2) Duke vs. Maryland/NC State - TV: ACC Network/ESPN2

Duke led the ACC standings from the beginning of the season until losing to North Carolina in its final game last Saturday. Ranked number one for much of the early season, the Blue Devils lost four games this season – at Florida State, at St. John’s, at Virginia Tech, and at UNC – and finished the regular season voted fifth in the nation.

After dominating early season play, Duke came back to earth after the loss of superstar point guard Kyrie Irving, lost since December with a turf toe injury. Hall of Fame coach Mike Krzyzewski adjusted his lineup, moving senior guard Nolan Smith back from the shooting position to the point, and increasing minutes for sophomore transfer Seth Curry at the shooting guard position. The change was effective, but not as productive as when Coach K had Irving available. Irving has not been ruled out of a return to play this season, and he has begun on-court rehabilitation according to local media reports, but there has been no official word regarding his status other than that he is not expected to return.

Senior Kyle Singler, joined by Smith on the first team all-ACC squad, has played well at times as a small forward, but his outside shooting has suffered in recent games, and that has been a common symptom in Duke’s losses.

The Blue Devils swept both Maryland and NC State in games played earlier this season.

Friday, Approx. 9:30 ET: (3) Florida State vs. Virginia Tech/Georgia Tech

TV: ACC Network/ESPN2

Florida State (11-5) has quietly built a solid resume heading into the postseason this year: an early season victory over Duke to hand the Blue Devils their first defeat, and a small collection of conference losses at Virginia Tech, Clemson, and Maryland plus two losses to UNC – the last a two-point loss at home on a last-second three by Carolina’s Harrison Barnes.

The Seminoles were led this season by junior forward Chris Singleton, out with a foot fracture suffered three weeks ago. It is hoped that he can return for at least some portion of the Noles’ postseason this year. Senior guard Derwin Kitchen leads active FSU players with 10.1 points per game, although all players on the roster have stepped up their play since Singleton’s injury, enabling FSU to go 4-2 in that span of time.

Bracketologists generally place Florida State safely into the field of 68 this year, but the Seminoles will be anxious to improve their generally poor seeding projections in the big tournament; a win or two would improve that situation.

Florida State lost to Virginia Tech in the teams’ only meeting this year, 71-59 in Blacksburg. The Noles won 72-63 at Georgia Tech in their only meeting with the Jackets.

Semifinals – Saturday, March 12, 2011

Saturday, 1:00 ET: North Carolina--Virginia/Miami winner vs. Clemson--Boston College/Wake Forest winner - TV: ACC Network/ESPN

Saturday, Approx. 3:30 ET: Duke--Maryland/NC State winner vs. Florida State--Virginia Tech/Georgia Tech winner - TV: ACC Network/ESPN

Championship – Sunday, March 13, 2011

1:00 ET: Semifinal Winners – TV: ESPN

North Carolina and Duke are playing the best basketball in the ACC at this time, but their hunger for a conference tournament title has yet to be measured this year, and in some years the heavy favorites seem to pull up short in order to conserve energy for the big dance. However, if these two heavyweights reach the championship game, then a neutral-court winner-take-all throw-down drag-out is guaranteed, and only the team that wants it more will cut down the nets… oh, and they don’t like each other very much, if you hadn’t heard.

Teams whose hunger should be a given – Boston College, Virginia Tech, and Clemson – will be playing for their NCAA tournament lives this weekend. Clemson’s seed and bye advantage will be a big key in its hopes, but a semifinal match-up with North Carolina would probably stop the Tigers cold after a single win, especially this year. Boston College’s path to two wins (Wake Forest and Clemson) would be the easiest, but the committee would place near zero value on beating the Deacs in the first round of the tournament, so the Eagles would likely need to beat UNC in the semi-finals to gain a real advantage. Virginia Tech is in a similar situation akin to what the Eagles face: Beating Georgia Tech won’t earn much, so a victory over the Seminoles will be critical to the Hokies’ precarious NCAA hopes of ending on the right side of the bubble, for once.

Florida State is the great unknown coming into the tournament – the Noles lost to Virginia Tech, beat Duke, and lost twice to North Carolina. Yet, that’s the precise path the Noles must travel in this bracket.

Welcome to March!

By: David Minter
DFN Sports Staff Writer