2009 Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament Preview

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

03/11/2009 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 56th-annual Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament takes center stage in the Georgia Dome this week, beginning on Thursday, March 12th and finishing on Sunday, March 15th. All 12 members of the conference will participate, with the winner earning the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

It was yet again a banner season in the ACC, with half of the teams in the league amassing 20+ victories and seven finding a spot in the top-25 at some point during the campaign. Now that the smoke has cleared and the regular season is over, five teams are currently ranked, including three in the top-10, setting up what should be a terrific four days of basketball in Atlanta.

The North Carolina Tar Heels picked up the top seed in the tournament although it didn't come easy, as a win over Duke in the regular-season finale clinched the overall top spot (13-3 in league play), as well as a number one ranking in the national polls. Wake Forest and Duke both finished two games back at 11-5, but it was the Demon Deacons that got the two seed by virtue of a tie-breaker. The Blue Devils settle in at the three seed, followed by the surprising Florida State Seminoles (10-6). All four teams in the upper echelon of the standings will be given a bye to the quarterfinal round on Friday.

The Clemson Tigers seemed to be a team of destiny for much of the season, but some tough losses late dropped Clemson to 9-7 in the ACC, good enough for just the fifth seed. Boston College came on strong in the second half, matching Clemson's record at 9-7 and picked up the sixth seed. Other schools that had their moments this year include seventh-seeded Maryland (7-9), eighth-seeded Virginia Tech (7-9) and ninth-seeded Miami-Florida (7-9). NC State (6-10) finished just a game behind those three, while Virginia (4-12) and Georgia Tech (2-14) had a tough time competing.

Opening round action of this tournament will begin on Thursday, with ninth- seeded Miami against eighth-seeded Virginia Tech. Frank Haith's Hurricanes won 18 games this season, including three of their last four to end the regular season. The team certainly proved it could compete, with wins over Wake Forest and Florida State, and narrow losses to both Duke and North Carolina. The Hurricanes are not an offensive juggernaut, but they do rely heavily on the three-pointer, ranking second in the conference with almost eight treys (7.9) per game. It certainly helps to have two-time All-ACC First-Team selection Jack McCLinton on the floor. The veteran guard finished third in the conference in scoring at 19.7 ppg, first in three-point percentage (.464) and first in free-throw percentage (.885). Seth Greenberg's Hokies might reside in the middle of the pack, but they are also one of those teams that can catch a higher seed napping and pull off the upset, just ask Wake Forest and Clemson, two teams that suffered defeats at the hands of Tech this year. Virginia Tech is another program that doesn't score a lot of points as a whole, but does have several talented performers at that end of the floor, including two of the conference's top six scorers in A.D. Vassallo (18.8 ppg) and Malcolm Delaney (18.2 ppg). Both players picked up Third-Team All-ACC honors this year.

The second of four opening round games pits 12th-seeded Georgia Tech against fifth-seeded Clemson. Paul Hewitt's Yellow Jackets are extremely young and it definitely showed this year in terms of wins and losses, including eight losses in the last nine games to close out the regular season. The cupboard isn't exactly bare in Atlanta this year, as Third-Team All-ACC selection Gani Lawal was more than serviceable. Lawal led the team in scoring at 15.0 ppg and ranked second in the conference in rebounding (9.4 rpg). Freshman point guard Iman Shumpert had a terrific debut season as well, ranking third in the ACC in assists (5.1 apg), while earning a spot on the All-Freshman team. Having already lost twice to Clemson this season, the Yellow Jackets will be at a disadvantage in this opening round matchup. Oliver Purnell's Tigers looked to be a serious contender for the regular season title, but three losses in the last four games were impossible to overcome. Still, Clemson is one of the top offensive teams in the conference at 78.9 ppg (third) and boasts of some solid scoring depth with the likes of Trevor Booker (15.2 ppg), K.C. Rivers (14.3 ppg) and Terrence Oglesby (13.6 ppg). Booker picked up Second-Team All-ACC honors and was also named to the All-Defensive squad. Rivers was given honorable mention.

The evening session of the opening round will begin with 10th-seeded North Carolina State against seventh-seeded Maryland. Sidney Lowe's Wolfpack had their ups and downs this season and the result was a less than stellar conference record. Big wins were few and far between for NC State, but the team could put a scare in some of the better teams if the Wolfpack can get off to a good start. The team failed to land anyone on the All-Conference teams, but that is not indicative of NC State's talent level. The frontcourt is in fine shape with Brandon Costner and Ben McCauley. Costner led the team in scoring at 13.6 ppg and is followed closely by McCauley (12.4 ppg), who serves as the team's top rebounder (7.8 rpg). A healthy Courtney Fells (11.6 ppg) and young forward Tracy Smith (10.2 ppg) give the team options. Gary William's Terrapins struggled in-conference for the most part, but a marquee win over North Carolina in late February, has opponents wary of meeting up with Maryland. Junior guard Greivis Vasquez is as versatile as they come, ranking eighth in the conference in scoring (17.2 ppg), as well as leading Maryland in rebounding (5.4 rpg), assists (4.8 apg) and steals (1.4 spg). His overall strong play earned him a spot on this year's All-ACC Second Team.

The opening round will close out on Thursday with 11th-seeded Virginia taking on sixth-seeded Boston College. There wasn't much to get excited about in Charlottesville this season, as the Cavaliers won just four league bouts, one of which was the regular-season finale against Maryland. Still, the team went from January 10th to February 15th without a victory, a span of eight straight defeats and posted just 10 wins overall this year. One bright spot for the Cavaliers was the play of freshman sensation Sylven Landesberg. The 6-6 guard was ninth in the ACC in scoring (16.8 ppg) and was an All-ACC Honorable Mention, along will earning a spot on the All-Freshman squad. Boston College on the other hand, was led by a savvy veteran in Tyrece Rice. The 6-1 senior ranked among the conference's best in both scoring (seventh at 17.4 ppg) and assists (second at 5.4 apg). Sophomore forward Joe Trapani (13.6 ppg, 6.6 rpg) gives the team an option in the frontcourt as well. Despite having a mediocre conference record, the Eagles must be taken seriously, as they already have wins over both North Carolina and Duke under their belts.

Speaking of the Tar Heels, UNC was named the top team in the country to start the season and begins the postseason in the same place. There really isn't much this team does wrong, and with perhaps the best starting five in the country, the Tar Heels will be tough to knock off. As far as offense goes, few squads get it done like North Carolina, which ranks second nationally at 91.2 ppg. The team ranks second in the ACC in field-goal percentage (.485) and boasts of a conference-best +18.6 scoring margin. It all starts with All- American and former National Player of the Year Tyler Hansbrough. The 6-9 senior earned his fourth straight unanimous All-ACC First-Team selection, after averaging a conference-best 21.1 ppg, to go with 8.1 rpg. Ty Lawson is the perfect complement and is perhaps the best point guard in the country, ranking 12th in the conference in scoring (15.9 ppg) and first in assists (6.5 apg). Both players were named to the All-ACC First-Team, with Danny Green earning Third-Team honors, as well as being named to the All-Defensive Team. Even the youngsters on the roster got into the act, with Ed Davis being honored on the All-Freshman team.

Dino Gaudio's Demon Deacons were the last unbeaten team left in the nation at one point and played lights out for much of the season, resulting in an impressive 24-5 overall record. Wake finished the season strong with four straight victories and has to be considered a serious threat to win the whole tournament. Offense has certainly not been a problem in Winston-Salem this season, as Wake ranks second in the conference in scoring (82.0 ppg) and first in field-goal percentage (.497). No player dominated the opposition like sophomore guard Jeff Teague. The 6-2 youngster was a Second-Team All-ACC performer, ranking fourth in the ACC in scoring (19.4 ppg), eighth in field- goal percentage (.493), as well as free-throw percentage (.827). Other Demon Deacons of note include Third-Team member James Johnson (14.6 ppg, 8.4 rpg) and All-Freshman honoree Al-Farouq Aminu (12.9 ppg, 8.3 rpg).

Mike Krzyzewski's Demon Deacons may be the most dangerous three-seed in the country, as they can certainly beat any team in the nation. Winners of five straight heading down the stretch, a regular-season ending loss at North Carolina is the only thing separating Duke from sharing the ACC title. Duke is perhaps the most balanced of the powerhouses in the conference, ranking fourth in the league in scoring (78.2 ppg) and second in scoring defense (65.7 ppg). The team boasts of a pair of standout performers in Gerald Henderson (16.6 ppg) and Kyle Singler (16.5 ppg), who rank 10th and 11th in the conference in scoring, respectively. Henderson's strong play, especially in the second half of the season, landed him a spot on the All-ACC First-Team. Singler was a Second-Team honoree. Point guard Jon Scheyer (14.3 ppg) is no slouch in the scoring department either and paces the team in assists, with nearly three per game.

Leonard Hamilton has once again done a masterful job in rebuilding a program and his stint in Tallahassee has been nothing short of spectacular. The Seminoles enter the postseason as the top defensive team in the ACC, ranking first in both scoring defense (64.5 ppg) and field-goal percentage defense (.386). Despite the strong defensive play game-in and game-out, FSU boasts of one of the ACC's most explosive players in senior guard Toney Douglas. The 6-2 veteran was named an All-ACC First-Team member and ranks second in the conference in scoring at 20.8 ppg and fifth in three-pointers made (2.4 per game). Center Solomon Alabi (8.2 ppg, 5.7 rpg) led the league in blocked shots this season (2.2 per game), earning a spot on the All-Freshman team.