For the second straight year, the ACC belongs to Duke.
The Blue Devils, the regular season conference champions, claimed their 10th ACC tournament title and became the first team to repeat since NC State in 2020 and 2021.
Clutch moments at the end of regulation and overtime lifted Duke over No. 2 Louisville in the tournament final 70-65. Down 57-53 with under two minutes left to play in the fourth quarter, a close basket for Delaney Thomas and a 3-pointer from Riley Nelson put the Blue Devils back in front.
But coming out of a timeout, Louisville drew up a layup for Mackenly Randolph. Duke failed to respond on its next possession and sent Imari Berry to the line.
Like the first meeting on Feb. 5 in which Berry’s misfortune at the line helped the Blue Devils’ win by one point, Berry missed one of two foul shots. With four seconds left, Thomas made Louisville pay with a game-tying bucket with four seconds left. Duke outlasted Louisville in overtime, holding the Cardinals to 22% shooting.
On the way to the title, Duke edged a hot Notre Dame squad 65-63 and handled Clemson 60-46.
Further down the bracket, No. 3 North Carolina fell short of the tournament final with a 65-57 loss to Louisville in the semifinal.
The Tar Heels struggled to slow down Berry, who knocked down four 3s on the way to a 22-point night. UNC had four players score in double digits, but it was outscored 17-13 in the third quarter.
In the quarterfinal, UNC rode a 29-11 run in the second quarter to dominate No. 6 Virginia Tech 85-68. Lanie Grant, Nyla Harris and Elina Aarnisalo combined for 58 points. Grant knocked down four 3s while shooting 8 for 12 from the field, and Harris matched her scoring with 10 rebounds for a double-double.
No. 4 NC State was a one and done in the tournament, falling flat to Notre Dame 81-63 in the quarterfinal. The Wolfpack shot 4 for 19 from 3 and had no answer for ACC Player and Defensive Player of the Year Hannah Hidalgo, who dropped 25 points without making a 3.
In the first round, No. 15 Wake Forest lost to No. 10 California 75-52.
As far as bids for the NCAA Tournament, Duke’s performance likely earned itself the opportunity to host the first two rounds.
After an abysmal start, the Blue Devils have done more than enough to earn recognition as a high seed, especially considering their 17-game win streak in ACC play that included wins over Notre Dame, Louisville, North Carolina and NC State.
Duke had early chances to prove itself worthy of a top seed but squandered them with blowout losses to South Carolina and UCLA. Looking at how the Blue Devils have played in the last few weeks, those games could go differently if played now, but that’s now a matter of if they survive their next few games.
The latest ESPN bracket projection released after Sunday’s conference championship games has Duke earning a two seed in a quad with seven-seeded Georgia, 10-seeded Princeton and 15-seeded Jacksonville.
For UNC, hosting the first two rounds isn’t as certain.
Although the Tar Heels finished third in the ACC, they didn’t pick up many signature wins that screamed worthy of a top four seed. Outside of the Duke win, UNC missed chances at Notre Dame, at Texas, against UCLA, and it fell short to Louisville twice.
UNC has proven it can play and hang with some of the best teams in the country, but its record against the top likely won’t put it above other teams fighting for home court advantage. ESPN’s projection has the Tar Heels earning a fifth seed, which sends them on the road, and in ESPN’s case, to Minneapolis.
NC State’s performance in the ACC tournament likely won’t help its seeding as the Wolfpack could’ve used some good wins for its resume.
The Wolfpack finished fourth in the ACC but failed to take down its peers at the top of the league. At times, NC State looked as if it could compete and beat elite teams, but other times, it has come out flat.
NC State likely won’t host the first two rounds as ESPN’s projection gave it a six seed and a road trip to three-seed Ohio State.
