ACC Tournament seeding scenarios heading into final weekend

Posted on Friday, Mar. 4, 2022, 11:23 pm

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As we head into the final weekend of the ACC men’s basketball regular season, there’s still some jockeying in play in terms of which schools wind up with which seeds in next week’s ACC Tournament at the Barclays Center.

We do know that Duke, Notre Dame, North Carolina and Miami have wrapped up the top four seeds, and each will receive a double-bye in Brooklyn. 

Virginia (17-12, 11-8 ACC) can lock up the No. 6 seed with either a victory at Louisville Saturday (Noon, ESPN2) or a Virginia Tech loss at Clemson. The last time the Cavaliers didn’t finish among the top four seeds was the 2016-2017 season — prior to that, it was 2012-13.

If the Wahoos finish sixth, they’d go up against Tuesday’s 11-14 winner on Wednesday night in New York at 9:30; if they end up in seventh, they’d play the 10-15 winner at 7 p.m. Wednesday.

Currently, Clemson and Georgia Tech would represent the 10 and 15 seeds, respectively, while Louisville and NC State occupy the 11 and 14 seeds.

To steal the 6 seed, the Hokies (19-11, 11-8) would need to beat the Tigers and UVA would have to lose to the Cardinals. Like the Hoos, the Hokies can finish no higher than sixth and no lower than seventh.

Duke has locked up the top seed outright for the first time since 2006. The fourth-ranked Blue Devils (26-4, 16-3) host North Carolina Saturday night in what will be Mike Krzyzewski’s final regular-season game. Duke defeated the Tar Heels by 20 last month in Chapel Hill.

Notre Dame (21-9, 14-5) is currently the No. 2 seed and can make it official Saturday with either a win at home against Pittsburgh or a North Carolina loss. The Fighting Irish edged the Panthers by a point in the Steel City in late December.

Carolina (22-8, 14-5) has obtained a double-bye and has a chance to jump the Irish for the 2 seed, but it would require an upset over Duke at Cameron in what just so happens to be Coach K’s last home game — and Notre Dame would also have to lose to Pitt.

Miami (21-9, 13-6) could leapfrog UNC with a win at Syracuse on Saturday combined with a Duke win over the Tar Heels. The Hurricanes clinched a double-bye Wednesday by beating Boston College. The Canes edged the Orange, 88-87, in Miami on Jan. 5.

Wake Forest (23-8, 13-7) has secured the No. 5 seed, as the Demon Deacons have already concluded their regular-season slate with a blowout win over NC State Wednesday night. The Deacs, who tied a school record for conference victories, avoided having to play on opening day of the tournament for the first time since 2010.

Florida State (16-13, 9-10) is in eighth place heading into the weekend, and we already know that the Seminoles will face Syracuse (15-15, 9-10) in Brooklyn Wednesday, as those two teams are locked into the 8 and 9 slots (the winner will get Duke in Thursday’s quarterfinal round). The Seminoles and Orange split their season series, with each team winning on the other’s home floor. FSU hosts NC State to conclude the regular season Saturday.

Clemson (15-15, 7-12) can clinch the 10 seed with a win over Virginia Tech Saturday. If the Tigers beat the Hokies, Louisville (12-17, 6-13), Boston College (11-18, 6-13) and Pitt (11-19, 6-13) would then be in a three-way battle for the 11, 12 and 13 spots. BC plays at Georgia Tech Saturday.

NC State (11-19, 4-15) and Georgia Tech (11-19, 4-15) will round out the bracket as the 14 and 15 seeds. The Wolfpack hold the tiebreaker over the Yellow Jackets by virtue of winning the lone regular-season meeting, and would claim the 14 seed should the teams finish with an equal conference record. The only way Tech can avoid the cellar is with a win over Boston College Saturday coupled with a State loss in Tallahassee.

Below, you’ll find the full Saturday slate and next week’s entire tournament viewing schedule.

Saturday’s ACC Schedule

Virginia at Louisville, Noon (ESPN2)

Boston College at Georgia Tech, Noon (ACCNX)

Miami at Syracuse, 1 p.m. (ESPNU)

Virginia Tech at Clemson, 2 p.m. (ACCNX)

NC State at Florida State, 2 p.m. (ESPN2)

Pitt at Notre Dame, 2:30 p.m. (ESPN NEWS)

North Carolina at Duke, 6 p.m. (ESPN)

ACC Tournament Schedule

Tuesday, March 8

Opening Round

Game 1 — No. 12 seed vs. No. 13 seed, 2 p.m. (ACCN)

Game 2 — No. 10 seed vs. No. 15 seed, 4:30 p.m. (ACCN)

Game 3 — No. 11 seed vs. No. 14 seed, 7 p.m. (ACCN)

Wednesday, March 9

Second Round

Game 4 — No. 8 seed vs. No. 9 seed, Noon (ESPN/ESPN2)

Game 5 — Game 1 winner vs. No. 5 Wake Forest, 2:30 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN2)

Game 6 — Game 2 winner vs. No. 7 seed, 7 p.m. (ESPN2/ESPNU)

Game 7 — Game 3 winner vs. No. 6 seed, 9:30 p.m. (ESPN2)

Thursday, March 10

Quarterfinals

Game 8 — Game 4 winner vs. No. 1 Duke, Noon (ESPN/ESPN2)

Game 9 — Game 5 winner vs. No. 4 seed, 2:30 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN2)

Game 10 — Game 6 winner vs. No. 2 seed, 7 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN2)

Game 11 — Game 7 winner vs. No. 3 seed, 9:30 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN2)

Friday, March 11

Semifinals

Game 12 — Game 8 winner vs. Game 9 winner, 7 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN2)

Game 13 — Game 10 winner vs. Game 11 winner, 9:30 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN2)

Saturday, March 12

ACC Championship

Game 14 — Semifinal winners, 8:30 p.m. (ESPN)