ACC Basketball

Alex O'Connell is reportedly looking for a fresh start next season after spending three seasons playing at Duke. 

Per ESPN's Jeff Borzello, the junior guard is entering the NCAA transfer portal. 

O'Connell has primarily been a role player off the bench for head coach Mike Krzyzewski since arriving at Duke for the 2017-18 season.

Last November, Krzyzewski told Sports Illustrated's Shawn Krest one reason O'Connell struggled in his first two seasons was because of the pressure he put on himself:

"In our game, you can't get hard on yourself. After the game, if you feel like you didn't play well, do extra and all that. But during the game, there's no time to think about what you've just done. It's a continuous game. It favors the continuous thinker. You can't live in the last play. That's all I was telling him. 'Do not live in last play. Next play. Next play.' And that's how you become really good player. He is a good player. He has chance to be a real good player, and he's doing a good job for us."

There were high expectations for O'Connell coming out of Milton High School three years ago. The Georgia native was rated as a 4-star prospect and No. 68 overall player in the 2017 class by 247Sports composite rankings. 

The 2019-20 campaign was O'Connell's most productive as a college player. He averaged 5.2 points and 2.2 rebounds per contest in 29 games (six starts). His shooting struggled with career lows in field-goal percentage (40.5) and three-point percentage (27.3). 

The Florida Senate passed a resolution Friday naming the Florida State Seminoles the 2020 college basketball national champions after the NCAA tournament was canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic.

ESPN reported the measure passed by a 37-2 vote and that it will be presented to Noles head coach Leonard Hamilton and FSU president John Thrasher "as a tangible token of the sentiments of Florida State."

The Seminoles finished the regular season 26-5, including a 16-4 mark in conference play to capture the ACC regular-season title and the top seed in the ACC tournament, which was ultimately canceled before the team could play in the quarterfinals.

Florida State was ranked fourth in the country in both the Associated Press and Coaches polls before the season was halted.

The Noles were given a 2.6 percent chance of winning the NCAA tournament by TeamRankings and a 1.7 percent chance of cutting down the nets by ESPN BPI.

However, ESPN's Dick Vitale said he would have selected Florida State in his bracket:

If the NCAA tourney @marchmadness was to be played I would have picked @FSUHoops to be National Champs . @FSUCoachHam is my National Coach of the Year

— Dick Vitale (@DickieV) March 13, 2020

The Florida Senate's resolution will likely lead to copycat measures around the country. The Kansas Jayhawks, Duke Blue Devils, Gonzaga Bulldogs, Baylor Bears and Dayton Flyers were among the other chief title contenders ahead of Selection Sunday.

Precautions taken to prevent the spread of the coronavirus in the United States have brought the 2019-20 men's college basketball season to an abrupt end.

In all likelihood, the ACC would have sent a handful of teams to the NCAA tournament. Florida State, Louisville and Duke seemed destined for top-four seeds, while a late-season surge had Virginia on track for a top-seven position. North Carolina State had been working to put itself on the proper side of the bubble.

However, that's where the story ends.

As the college basketball world adapts to a March without madness, we're reviewing what happened in the ACC this season and highlighting the draft prospects you'll want to know.

                   

Final ACC Standings

1. Florida State (16-4)
T-2. Virginia (15-5)
T-2. Louisville (15-5)
T-2. Duke (15-5)
5. Georgia Tech (11-9)
T-6. NC State (10-10)
T-6. Syracuse (10-10)
T-6. Notre Dame (10-10)
9. Clemson (9-11)
T-10. Miami (7-13)
T-10. Boston College (7-13)
T-10. Virginia Tech (7-13)
T-13. Wake Forest (6-14)
T-13. Pitt (6-14)
T-13. North Carolina (6-14)

                 

Final ACC Stats

Points Per Game

Elijah Hughes (Syracuse): 19.0
Jordan Nwora (Louisville): 18.0
Vernon Carey Jr. (Duke): 17.8
Garrison Brooks (UNC): 16.8
Tre Jones (Duke): 16.2
John Mooney (Notre Dame): 16.2

              

Rebounds Per Game

John Mooney (Notre Dame): 12.7
Olivier Sarr (Wake Forest): 9.0
Vernon Carey Jr. (Duke): 8.8
Steffon Mitchell (Boston College): 8.7
Garrison Brooks (UNC): 8.5

              

Assists Per Game

Markell Johnson (NC State): 6.8
Tre Jones (Duke): 6.4
Kihei Clark (Virginia): 5.9
Wabissa Bede (Virginia Tech): 5.5
Prentiss Hubb (Notre Dame): 5.1

               

Best NBA Draft Prospects

Cole Anthony, UNC

Once considered the No. 1 overall prospect, Anthony played at his highest level late in the regular season. However, he closed with a few rough performances and scored only 24 points in UNC's last three contests. He will be valued for his versatility, but his efficiency and decision-making will be scrutinized in the pre-draft process.

                

Devin Vassell, Florida State

Vassell will be valued for his three-and-D ability. This season, he averaged a team-high 12.7 points with a 41.5 three-point clip. He also contributed 5.1 rebounds, 1.4 steals and a block per game.

               

Patrick Williams, Florida State

While the draft is always a projection, Williams is the kind of prospect who demands a fair bit of guessing. He played 22.5 minutes per game, tallying 9.2 points and 4.0 rebounds in a complementary role. Scouts will be drawn to his mix of power, shooting touch and defensive involvement.

              

Tre Jones, Duke

Jones made enormous progress as a shooter and lifted his three-point percentage from 26.2 to 36.1. As a sophomore, he notched 16.2 points and 6.4 assists per game while showing off consistent value as a defender.

              

Vernon Carey Jr., Duke

The big question for Carey's future is how the NBA values his skill set. His production—17.8 points and 8.8 rebounds—will deservedly attract first-round attention, but he will need to convince teams of his defensive upside.

                           

Follow Bleacher Report writer David Kenyon on Twitter @Kenyon19_BR.

The ACC announced Thursday it has suspended all athletic activities until further notice as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

Per the official statement from the conference, the suspension includes participation in NCAA championship events, practices and recruiting:

#ACC shutting things down until further notice. pic.twitter.com/q4AaTL7Hdr

— Adam Rittenberg (@ESPNRittenberg) March 12, 2020

The ACC announcement comes in the wake of Duke suspending all athletic activities indefinitely, likely meaning it wouldn't play in the NCAA men's basketball tournament. 

Thursday was originally going to be the quarterfinal round of the ACC men's basketball tournament from the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, North Carolina. Florida State and Clemson initially took the court prior to their scheduled 12:30 p.m. ET start time. 

Before tipoff, the ACC announced it was canceling the remainder of the tournament "following additional consultation with the league's presidents and athletic directors" in light of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. 

NCAA president Mark Emmert announced Wednesday the men's and women's basketball tournaments will go on with the arenas only open to a limited number of player family members and essential team staff. 

Per the World Health Organization (h/t CNN.com), more than 124,500 cases of coronavirus have been diagnosed worldwide with 4,607 confirmed deaths.  

 

The Florida State Seminoles and Duke Blue Devils have opportunities to avenge some of the worst losses of their respective seasons in the quarterfinal round of the 2020 ACC tournament.

The top-seeded Seminoles kick off the four-game slate in Greensboro, North Carolina, against the Clemson Tigers, who upset Leonard Hamilton's side February 29. 

Ten days prior to that result, the NC State Wolfpack defeated Duke on their home court, and that ignited a three-game road losing streak for Mike Krzyzewski's side. 

Duke and Florida State are favored in their respective matchups in the afternoon session. 

The Louisville Cardinals and Virginia Cavaliers are the top seeds in the night contests, as they face the Syracuse Orange and Notre Dame Fighting Irish, respectively.

           

ACC Tournament QF Schedule and Odds

All Times ET

Odds via Caesars Palace

No. 1 Florida State (-7) vs. No. 8 Clemson (12:30 p,m., ESPN) (Over/Under: 133)

No. 4 Duke (-8) vs. No. 5 NC State (approximately 3 p.m., ESPN) (O/U: 152)

No. 2 Virginia (-3) vs. No. 7 Notre Dame (7 p.m., ESPN) (O/U: 116.5)

No. 3 Louisville (-6) vs. No. 6 Syracuse (approx. 9:30 p.m., ESPN) (O/U; 143.5)

          

Betting Tips

Florida State (-7) vs. Clemson

Florida State's only loss since February 15 occurred at Littlejohn Coliseum to Clemson. 

Extracting the Tigers from their home arena and putting them on a neutral court takes away whatever advantage they may have had. 

Brad Brownell's side suffered road defeats to Louisville, Virginia, Notre Dame and the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, all of whom finished above it in the regular-season standings. 

Road form and history are not on Clemson's side Thursday, as the ACC tournament's No. 1 seed has won this matchup by double digits in each of the last five years. 

The Seminoles have three double-digit victories in their last six triumphs, and Hamilton will likely make adjustments to Clemson's game plan to quell any threat thrown at it. 

To advance with relative ease, the Seminoles need better guard production than what they received at Clemson.

In that contest, Devin Vassell led the team with 14 points, but no other played totaled more than 12. 

If Vassell, Trent Forrest and M.J. Walker, who all average over 10 points per game, challenge Clemson's defense from the start, covering a seven-point spread is achievable. 

There is a chance the Tigers stick in the contest, but this is also a team that lost three of its last four regular-season games and struggled to put away the Miami Hurricanes Wednesday.

The combination of Florida State's quality and its fresh legs should have it firing on all cylinders for 40 minutes and move it into Friday's semifinals.

              

Duke-NC State Over 152

The winner of both regular-season meetings between Duke and NC State scored 88 points. 

The Blue Devils lost by 22 to the Wolfpack February 19, but they were still able to produce 66 points. 

NC State suffered a 19-point loss at Cameron Indoor Stadium March 2, but it did put up 69 points. 

Those numbers lead us to believe a third high-scoring affair between the two sides will occur in Thursday's second quarterfinal. 

Duke has consistently reached a high offensive total, as it had 85 points or more in each of its last four wins. 

NC State follows a similar trend, as it produced at least 73 points in all of its previous six wins, including Wednesday's win over the Pittsburgh Panthers. 

Duke's trio of Vernon Carey Jr., Tre Jones and Cassius Stanley will likely be the team's offensive catalysts once again.

Carey had 27 points and 12 rebounds in the first game against NC State and he produced two double-doubles in his last three appearances. 

Look for the Blue Devils to feed the freshman down low on offense and rely on him to start fast-break opportunities with defensive boards. 

The transition moments are where Jones and Stanley can shine, as their pace and distribution abilities can hurt NC State's defense. 

Kevin Keatts' Wolfpack have four players who average over 12 points per game and had a quartet of players reach double digits Tuesday. 

NC State might not spring another upset over Duke, but at minimum, it will attempt to score at the same fast rate, which puts the over in a good position.

             

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90

Statistics obtained from ESPN.com

Although the Greensboro Coliseum will be mostly empty, the 2020 ACC tournament will continue as scheduled with Thursday's quarterfinal round.

Soon after the NCAA announced that March Madness will be played in front of a limited group of spectators, the ACC followed suit. Though the remainder of the tournament in Greensboro, North Carolina, will be televised, the seats will be mostly empty.

How the shortage of crowd energy affects the game is a question, but the action on the court should be strong. The ACC's top four seeds are rested and ready to play.

The winner of the ACC tournament will secure an automatic bid to March Madness.

               

ACC Quarterfinals Schedule

No. 8 Clemson vs. No. 1 Florida State, Noon (ESPN)
No. 5 NC State vs. No. 4 Duke, 2:30 p.m.* (ESPN)
No. 7 Notre Dame vs. No. 2 Virginia, 7 p.m. (ESPN)
No. 6 Syracuse vs. No. 3 Louisville, 9:30 p.m.* (ESPN)

Live streams available on WatchESPN.

            

Quarterfinals Predictions

To begin the afternoon, Florida State will be looking for a little revenge. Late in the regular season, the Seminoles took a surprising 70-69 loss during their visit to Clemson.

FSU ceded possession 16 times in that contest, and the ever-problematic live-ball giveaways aided Clemson's surge in the second half. Al-Amir Dawes hit a last-second layup to propel the Tigers past the favored Seminoles.

However, we're not expecting another upset. A cleaner offensive game should propel Florida State into the semifinals.

And the Seminoles' likely opponent is the league powerhouse.

Duke lost to North Carolina State in embarrassing fashion in mid-February, so an upset is hardly improbable. Still, the Blue Devils turned around and walloped NC State in the March matchup thanks to a dominant performance inside the arc.

Unless the Pack manage to catch fire on the perimeter—and they entered Wednesday's action ranked 253rd nationally—Duke should cruise into a showdown with Florida State.

The evening session has a couple of intriguing games, beginning with Notre Dame taking on Virginia.

Virginia edged the Irish in the regular-season contest in a victory that started its current eight-game winning streak. Both offenses shot extremely poorly that night, but UVA managed a 50-49 triumph behind 20 points from Mamadi Diakite.

Put simply, it's more likely an inconsistent Notre Dame offense has problems against an elite Virginia defense. We're sticking with the favorites and banking on Tomas Woldetensae to provide a much-needed three-point boost for the Cavaliers.

The final contest of the evening will pit Syracuse against Louisville, a matchup that wasn't remotely close in mid-February.

Louisville waltzed to a 90-66 victory with a 10-of-24 showing on the perimeter. The nation's 18th-ranked three-point shooting team showed up in a major way that evening.

Although the Cardinals are prone to mediocre games on road or neutral sites, we're expecting a quality showing from a deeper and rested side. Louisville has enough long-range weapons to make Syracuse's zone defense ineffective.

            

Follow Bleacher Report writer David Kenyon on Twitter @Kenyon19_BR.

One of the best big men in college basketball gets a chance to show off his talents to a national audience during the second round of the 2020 ACC tournament. 

Notre Dame Fighting Irish forward John Mooney ranks second in Division I in rebounding and has been a double-double machine.

Mike Brey's side tips off the evening session in Greensboro, North Carolina, against the Boston College Eagles, a matchup that occurs before the North Carolina Tar Heels and Syracuse Orange square off in a battle of two of the ACC's biggest name programs. 

The Miami Hurricanes and Clemson Tigers kick off Wednesday's slate at the Greensboro Coliseum, and they will be followed by the NC State Wolfpack and Pittsburgh Panthers. 

                

ACC Tournament 2nd-Round Schedule and Odds

All Times ET; Odds via Caesars Sportsbook.

No. 9 Miami vs. No. 8 Clemson (-3) (Noon, ESPN) (Over/Under: 132)

No. 13 Pittsburgh vs. No. 5 NC State (-4) (Approximately 2:30 p.m., ESPN) (O/U: 136.5)

No. 10 Boston College vs. No. 7 Notre Dame (-9.5) (7 p.m., ESPN2) (O/U: 140.5)

No. 14 North Carolina (-2.5) vs. No. 6 Syracuse (Approx. 9:30 p.m., ESPN2) (O/U: 148)

        

Betting Tips

Boston College vs. Notre Dame (Under 140.5) 

Notre Dame eked out a 62-61 win over Boston College when the two sides last met February 26. In that contest, Mooney scored 22 points and brought down 12 rebounds, but the Fighting Irish needed to come back from a seven-point halftime deficit to win. 

Notre Dame has recently run into a low-scoring trend against some of the worst teams in the ACC.

In a February 9 win over Clemson, the Fighting Irish managed 61 points and they scored 64 to close out the regular season versus the Virginia Tech Hokies, who were knocked out Tuesday by North Carolina.

The second half of the Notre Dame-Boston College game only produced 48 points, so even if they get off to a fast start, there is potential for the scoring to slow down. 

The two sides also combined to go 16-for-57 from three-point range, which is not a promising sign when you need both squads to score close to 70 points for the over to be in play.

Since the Fighting Irish struggled for a half with Boston College last time around, the 9.5-point spread may be too much. 

With Mooney being one of the few consistent point producers on the floor, the under may have the best value. 

The 22-year-old averages 16.5 points and 12.8 rebounds per game and racked up five double-doubles in his final six regular-season games. 

The concern for Notre Dame is which players support Mooney. Prentiss Hubb had a single-digit point total in two of his previous three appearances and T.J. Gibbs failed to hit the 10-point mark twice in the last four. 

Boston College guards Derryck Thornton and Jay Heath might be able to help the total, but they combined for 24 points in the loss to Notre Dame. 

If some of those trends extend into Wednesday, the under could hit in a close battle.

            

Miami (+3.5) vs. Clemson

It is hard to put much faith in Miami and Clemson after their poor regular-season finishes. 

Clemson fell in three of its last four contests, but the one victory in that span was an upset of the Florida State Seminoles.

The Hurricanes put up a similar mark with their only win over the last four contests coming over the Syracuse Orange. 

Jim Larranaga's side owns a head-to-head win over Clemson from a December 31 overtime bout, and it has the slightest bit of momentum from winning Saturday in the extra frame against Syracuse. 

Senior Dejan Vasiljevic could be the X-factor for Miami, as he is coming off a 17-point showing and had 15 points in the first meeting with Clemson. 

Look for him and Isaiah Wong to be the main threats to the Clemson defense. Wong recorded three 20-plus-point performances in February and picked up 17 versus Syracuse. 

Even though Clemson has the better resume with wins over Florida State, the Duke Blue Devils and Louisville Cardinals, it has been inconsistent for stretches as well. 

Brad Brownell's squad has not been great away from its home arena either, as it possesses a 3-8 road mark. 

No matter which squad comes out on top in this game, it is likely to leave Greensboro Thursday following a meeting with No. 1 seed Florida State.

           

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.

Statistics obtained from ESPN.com.

North Carolina kept its slim NCAA tournament hopes alive with a dominant 78-56 win over Virginia Tech, setting up an intriguing second round of the 2020 ACC tournament.

Garrison Brooks scored a team-high 20 points for the Tar Heels, who will challenge sixth-seeded Syracuse on Wednesday. The winner of the tournament will secure an automatic bid to March Madness, which is the only path to the Big Dance for 14-18 UNC.

Is it likely? No. But right now, possible is all that matters.

Also on Tuesday, Pitt advanced thanks to an 81-72 victory over Wake Forest. Justin Champagnie scored a career-high 31 points for the Panthers, and Xavier Johnson dished eight assists. Pitt's next matchup is against North Carolina State.

Wednesday is the first of back-to-back days featuring four ACC tournament games at the Greensboro Coliseum.

          

ACC Tournament Second-Round Schedule

No. 9 Miami vs. No. 8 Clemson, Noon (ESPN)
No. 13 Pitt vs. No. 5 NC State, 2:30 p.m.* (ESPN)
No. 10 Boston College vs. No. 7 Notre Dame, 7 p.m. (ESPN2)
No. 14 North Carolina vs. No. 6 Syracuse, 9:30 p.m.* (ESPN2)

Live streams available on WatchESPN.

           

Second-Round Predictions

The first matchup of the afternoon pits Miami against Clemson, and the primary storyline is Chris Lykes' availability.

Miami's junior guard averages a team-high 15.2 points, but he missed the regular-season finale due to a face injury and is uncertain for Wednesday.

Lykes scorched Clemson for 27 points in the earlier matchup, so his absence would be significant.

Jim Larranaga called Chris Lykes day to day as UM heads into ACC Tournament.

— David Furones (@DavidFurones_) March 7, 2020

Granted, the Hurricanes have watched freshman Isaiah Wong develop into a confident starter next to DJ Vasiljevic and Kameron McGusty. They're plenty competitive, even without Lykes. Still, Clemson should be able to handle a short-handed Miami team.

The second contest of the early window has NC State looking for a second win over Pitt in two weeks. Late in February, the Wolfpack pulled out a 77-73 victory against the Panthers.

What should encourage NC State is that it wasn't a good showing on its part. The offense went 5-of-22 from three-point range and committed 16 turnovers, both of which are the Pack's worst performances in the last six games.

If they can prevent Champagnie from repeating his 31-point outburst, a victory should be relatively painless.

While it seems the same should apply for 19-12 Notre Dame against a 13-18 Boston College squad, the regular season says otherwise. The programs played a pair of one-point games and split the wins, most recently a 62-61 Notre Dame victory.

If the Irish allow a mediocre three-point shooting team to create open perimeter looks, an upset is perfectly logical. Boston College knocked down 11 threes in its December win.

Nevertheless, Notre Dame is our pick because of double-double machine John Mooney. He totaled 38 points and 30 rebounds in the previous meetings; BC simply has no answer for the 22-year-old.

The nightcap might be the most interesting game.

Fortunately for Syracuse, it won't have a marquee absence. Elijah Hughes didn't play in the second half of Saturday's loss at Miami but is "100 percent" for Wednesday's game, head coach Jim Boeheim said, per Mike Waters of Syracuse.com.

Had he been sidelined, UNC would've been the easy choice—especially after the outstanding showing on Tuesday.

Put simply, the Heels are getting hot at the perfect moment. They're 4-1 in the last five contests, only falling at Duke in the regular-season finale. Brooks has seven straight 20-point outings, and his presence under the rim can disrupt Syracuse's zone. He racked up 26 points and 14 rebounds in the late February clash.

Syracuse needs this victory as much as UNC does, but the Tar Heels have played at a much higher level recently.

          

Follow Bleacher Report writer David Kenyon on Twitter @Kenyon19_BR.

The ACC tournament kicked off Tuesday, and while the spread of the coronavirus led to increased precautions surrounding media access, fans were still in attendance for the event. 

The #ACC has announced that it will not open locker rooms to media during the tournament. pic.twitter.com/Ruvmo0qpgi

— Alan Saunders (@ASaunders_PGH) March 10, 2020

Below, we'll take a look at Tuesday's results and Wednesday's upcoming schedule for the second round of games. 

             

Tuesday Results

Pittsburgh def. Wake Forest, 81-72

North Carolina def. Virginia Tech, 78-56

                

Wednesday Schedule

Miami vs. Clemson: 12 p.m. ET

Pittsburgh vs. NC State: 2 p.m. ET

Boston College vs. Notre Dame: 7 p.m. ET

North Carolina vs. Syracuse: 9 p.m. ET

               

Garrison Brooks Helps North Carolina Extend Season

North Carolina has had an incredibly disappointing season. The one thing that could salvage it would be an improbable run through the ACC tournament and an automatic berth to the NCAA tourney.

The Tar Heels took the first step on Tuesday, beating Virginia Tech 78-56 behind Garrison Brooks' 20 points.

Brandon Robinson added 17 points and six rebounds in the win, while Hunter Cattoor came off the bench to lead the Hokies with 14 points.    

Virginia Tech's ACC season ended with a thud, as the Hokies shot just 29 percent (18-of-62) from the field and 27.8 percent (10-of-36) from three. The Tar Heels finished a more robust 53.8 percent (7-of-12) from beyond the arc. 

Up next for North Carolina is a matchup with Syracuse on Wednesday. At stake is the school's nine-year streak of reaching the NCAA tourney.

                                       

Justin Champagnie Paces Panthers in Win

Pittsburgh's season is alive. 

Thanks to Justin Champagnie's 31 points, six rebounds and two blocks, the Panthers kept their slim NCAA tournament hopes alive with an 81-72 victory over Wake Forest on Tuesday. 

It’s a travesty that Justin Champagnie didn’t receive ACC All-Freshman team honors. #Pitt

— Cale Berger (@cale_berger) March 10, 2020

As disappointing as the last month of Pitt’s regular season was -particularly for Xavier Johnson & Trey McGowens- Justin Champagnie’s emergence as a game changer is the single most hopeful sign for next year.

— Chris Mack (@THEChrisMack) March 10, 2020

At just 16-16 on the season, the Panthers will need to win the ACC tournament to participate in March Madness. The winner of the tournament is given an automatic berth into the NCAA tourney.  

Trey McGowens cleared for takeoff 🛫 pic.twitter.com/BdDRKtWQJ5

— ACC Network (@accnetwork) March 10, 2020

Champagnie's huge game spoiled strong efforts from Olivier Sarr (20 points, 13 rebounds two blocks), Isaiah Mucius (19 points, six rebounds) and Brandon Childress (17 points, four assists), who all kept the Demon Deacons in contention until the closing minutes.

They didn't receive much help, however, with their teammates providing just 16 total points in the loss. Pittsburgh had five players finish with double-digit points, meanwhile. Wake Forest also hurt itself with 18 turnovers, to just eight from Pittsburgh. 

The Panthers will next face NC State on Wednesday.

With three of the five past national champions, the ACC conference tournament is always worth keeping an eye on as we head toward March Madness. 

If that trend is going to continue, there are some teams that have some work to do in the conference tourney. Florida State, Louisville and Duke have been the class of the conference this season but all three are outside of the top five right now. 

In all, ESPN's Joe Lunardi has five ACC teams in the tournament field, but NC State is among his last four in. The Wolfpack are among the teams in the league who will be looking to solidify their resume and get some momentum going to win the game. 

Here's a look at the whole bracket and a schedule for the early games:

        

ACC Tournament Schedule

All games are streamed through ACC Network

First Round: Tuesday, March 10

Game 1: No. 12 Wake Forest vs. No. 13 Pitt | 4:30 p.m. | ACC Network
Game 2: No. 11 Virginia Tech vs. No. 14 North Carolina | 7 p.m. | ACC Network

Second Round: Wednesday, March 11

Game 3: No. 8 Clemson vs. No. 9 Miami | 12 p.m. | ESPN
Game 4: No. 5 NC State vs. Game 1 winner | 2 p.m.* | ESPN
Game 5: No. 7 Notre Dame vs. No. 10 Boston College | 7 p.m. | ESPN2
Game 6: No. 6 Syracuse vs. Game 2 winner | 9 p.m.* | ESPN2

Quarterfinals: Thursday, March 12

Game 7: No. 1 Florida State vs. Game 3 winner | 12:30 p.m.
Game 8: No. 4 Duke vs. Game 4 winner | 2:30 p.m.
Game 9: No. 2 Virginia vs. Game 5 winner | 7 p.m.
Game 10: No. 3 Louisville vs. Game 6 winner | 9 p.m.

Schedule via NCAA.com.

             

Bracket Predictions

Florida State Disappoints

Leonard Hamilton's Seminoles have been one of the biggest stories in the ACC this season. They won their first regular-season championship after losing six of their top eight scorers from a year ago. 

It was a tremendous season, and they've clearly stepped up in a year in which North Carolina finished No. 14 and Duke isn't where they are traditionally. Finding success in the ACC tournament will be another hurdle, though. 

Under Hamilton, the Noles have won the tournament just once, in 2012. Recently, they have been underwhelming in the event. They've won more than one game just once since that title-winning run. 

The way the bracket falls, Florida State could be set up for another disappointment. It should easily defeat the winner of Clemson vs. Miami, but Duke looms as the No. 4 seed on its side of the slate. 

The Blue Devils beat the Noles 70-65 in their only showdown this season, and Duke has five consecutive wins over Florida State stretching back to 2016.

            

North Carolina Makes a Little Run

It's been a rough season to say the least for the Tar Heels. The team had its first-ever losing season under Roy Williams and its first for the storied program since 2002.

It's led to an unprecedented 14th seed in the tournament, but that doesn't mean the Tar Heels can't make some noise. 

After a dreadful run 2-12 from the beginning of 2020 to mid-February they have been playing a semblance of good basketball to end the season. They finished the campaign by winning three of their last four with the lone loss coming by seven at Duke. 

Garrison Brooks has been a big reason for that success. He has scored more than 20 points in six straight contests, putting him in rare company. 

Six straight games with 20+ points for Garrison Brooks.

That had not been done by a North Carolina player since Tyler Hansbrough in his senior year of 2008-09.

— Bryan Ives (@awaytoworthy) March 8, 2020

The Tar Heels will start their tournament run with Virginia Tech and will face Syracuse if they win. Even during the team's worst run of the season, they took the Hokies to double overtime. They just beat the Orange 92-79. 

With Brooks playing well and the Tar Heels finally getting some positive momentum, it wouldn't be surprising to see them make a run to Louisville in the third round. 

              

Virginia over Duke in the Championship

Between Florida State, Virginia, Duke and Louisville, there's good parity at the top of the league.

Duke is well-positioned to take out Florida State. Not only does it have the aforementioned historic edge over the Noles, but it is slightly better when looking at efficiency. It is KenPom's fifth-ranked team in the nation while Florida State is 15. 

Virginia, on the other hand, isn't a favorite of the efficiency metrics this season. It once again has a suffocating defense, ranked No. 1 in the nation on KenPom. But the offense is bad, like 235th-in-the-nation bad. 

The Cavaliers have the fortunate draw of getting Louisville in the semifinal. Tony Bennett's squad just held the Cardinals to 52 points and the Blue Devils to 54 points, proving they can slow down the pace and play their game against their likely semifinal and conference championship game opponents. 

The Hoos aren't as good as they were last year when they won the championship, but they are still plenty dangerous to anyone they face in the ACC tournament.