ACC Championship Preview & Prediction: #1 UNC vs #2 VirginiaAs impressive as UNC's dismantling of Notre Dame was last night on the defensive end, it will be a much taller order to do it against Virginia which operates with patience and precision. Senior guard Malcolm Brogdon is seemingly unstoppable and has the ability to score from anywhere on the court. Prediction: UNC 71, UVa 70 (Tar Heel Blog)
UNC, UVa meet in top-tier throwdownThis game almost certainly will decide which team gets a No. 1 seed, or at least give one team to get a chance to get one where one didn’t previously exist (North Carolina). Virginia loses and the Cavaliers probably don’t get one. But the Tar Heels won’t want this game because it’s for that, and neither will Virginia. It’s about something bigger. (WRAL Sports Fan)
Carolina vs. Virginia For ACC TitleTop-seeded North Carolina will try to win its 18th ACC Tournament championship and its first since 2008 when it faces second-seeded Virginia on Saturday night in Washington, D.C. Dan Shulman, Jay Bilas and Allison Williams will call the game for ESPN. Tim Brant, Mike Gminski and Debbie Antonelli will have the call for the ACC Network. (GoHeels.com)
Michael Jordan visits Terry Sanford High SchoolPassion, a will to learn and determination are the keys to becoming a strong leader, one of the world's most recognizable athletes told the state's high school student government leaders Friday at Terry Sanford High School. Those were just some of the words of wisdom basketball legend Michael Jordan imparted during a 45-minute stop. (Fayetteville Observer)
Tar Heels look like a different team now that the postseason is hereIn retrospect, it was probably a little silly — and a lot premature — to start worrying about the way the North Carolina basketball team was playing in late January and early February. Maybe the Tar Heels were simply biding their time, waiting for the right moment to start playing their best. It the past two days are any indication, coach Roy Williams’ team has flipped the proverbial switch and have officially shifted into postseason mode. (Wilmington Star News)
Slump or not, Notre Dame finds out that Marcus Paige can still be a painLate in the first half of Friday night’s 78-47 thrashing of Notre Dame in the ACC tournament semifinal, North Carolina’s Isaiah Hicks had his shot blocked, grabbed the ricochet and slung it to teammate Joel Berry. With Notre Dame’s defense in disarray, Berry fired it to Marcus Paige near the top of the key. Paige instinctively thought about swinging it around the perimeter again to a wide open Justin Jackson on the right wing. (Fayetteville Observer)
Virginia, Carolina playing like No. 1 NCAA seeds entering ACC tournament finalAt this late hour, the clock just past midnight, the temptation is to look ahead, to anticipate what should be a classic ACC tournament final Saturday night between the league’s best teams: Virginia and North Carolina. After all, the Tar Heels were breathtakingly ruthless in Friday’s 78-47 semifinal demolition of Notre Dame, the most lopsided semi in the event’s 63 years. (Daily Press)
ACC Tournament: Notre Dame-UNC PositivesNo team will ever achieve perfection, but North Carolina came awfully close Friday night in blowing out Notre Dame, 78-47, in the semifinals of the ACC Tournament at the Verizon Center. Carolina simply dominated the Fighting Irish in every facet of the game. It was as thorough a beating as the Heels have delivered a good team this season, perhaps more so than their 25-point win over Miami three weeks ago. (Tar Heel Illustrated)
Emotion-fueled wins set up ACC finale for UNC-VirginiaWhen North Carolina lost to Virginia in Charlottesville, UNC coach Roy Williams said Virginia was the actor and Carolina was the reactor. The Tar Heels will try to reverse those roles Saturday, when top-seeded UNC faces Tony Bennett’s Cavaliers in the ACC tournament title game. Both teams are hungry to reclaim the ACC tournament championship. (Sports Illustrated)
Tale of the Tape: UNC-VirginiaYou wouldn't think there would be much change in the numbers over two weeks given how much of the season is in the books. Then again no one expected UNC to ramp up its offense in the way it has over that same period. The result is an ACC title game between teams ranked 4th and 7th in offensive efficiency and 4th and 16th in defensive efficiency. (Tar Heel Blog)
Isaiah Hicks records first career double-double, helps lead UNC to ACC Tournament FinalAfter Isaiah Hicks went 5-for-12 from the field in Thursday's win against Notre Dame, Brice Johnson and Kennedy Meeks started teasing the junior forward as soon as he exited the game. “Your field goal percentage was terrible,” yelled Johnson across the Tar Heels’ jubilant locker room following their romp of the Fighting Irish. But Hicks had the last laugh. (Daily Tar Heel)
North Carolina-Virginia PreviewUNC breezed into its second straight title game and fifth in six seasons behind Thursday's 88-71 quarterfinal win over Pittsburgh followed by the largest margin of victory ever in an ACC semifinal game with Friday's 78-47 rout of defending champion Notre Dame. Virginia did what it does best, turning 16 turnovers into 19 points in Friday's 73-68 win over Miami. (Yahoo! Sports)
If North Carolina D and Marcus Paige play like this, be afraid, AmericaThere’s Good Carolina and there’s Bad Carolina. Say hello to Scary Carolina for all 40 minutes. See North Carolina play volleyball at the rim while rolling big, long, athletic bodies at will. Watch the Tar Heels defend with energy like their shorts are on fire. Marvel at North Carolina handing Notre Dame, the defending ACC tournament champions, the most lopsided ACC tournament semifinal loss ever. (CBS Sports)
Previewing VirginiaVirginia enters Saturday’s contest with a 26-6 (13-5 ACC) record. The Cavaliers have won their last four games since topping UNC on Feb. 27. After grinding out a road win at Clemson, Bennett’s squad throttled No. 14 Louisville, 68-48, in its regular season finale. Virginia has seven wins over ranked opponents, including Friday’s win over No. 11 Miami. (Inside Carolina)
Video: Marcus Paige's Big Plays vs. Notre Dame in ACC Semi-final WinSome big shots from Marcus Paige helped the Tar Heels dismantle Note Dame in the ACC Tournament semi-final. A finals showdown with Virginia awaits.
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Saturday, March 12, 2016
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| Team | ACC | Overall |
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| (6) North Carolina | 14-4 | 33-7 | | (16) Florida State | 12-6 | 26-9 | | (14) Notre Dame | 12-6 | 26-10 | | (10) Louisville | 12-6 | 25-9 | | (7) Duke | 11-7 | 28-9 | | (24) Virginia | 11-7 | 23-11 | | Virginia Tech | 10-8 | 22-11 | | Syracuse | 10-8 | 19-15 | | Miami | 10-8 | 21-12 | | Wake Forest | 9-9 | 19-14 | | Georgia Tech | 8-10 | 21-16 | | Clemson | 6-12 | 17-16 | | NC State | 4-14 | 15-17 | | Pittsburgh | 4-14 | 16-17 | | Boston College | 2-16 | 9-23 |
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