The ACC has 3 Teams in Sweet 16. That is tied with the Big 12 for most in the country.
It’s been a tremendous tournament for the ACC, as the rough OOC results are a distant memory.
Duke, North Carolina, and Miami played like three top 10 teams this past weekend. Who knew that 15 days ago North Carolina and Miami were flirting with the bubble, and Duke was the trendiest top 3 seed to get bounced in the opening rounds.
Now they can talk Elite 8s, and Final 4. When you get the Final 4, then you can talk national championship, but we aren’t there yet.
Thursday Duke vs Texas Tech 9:39 CBS
Duke showed late-game grit against Michigan State that we hadn’t seen all year. Now the Blue Devils face arguably the country’s best defense in Texas Tech. Duke struggled with the ACC’s closest team to Texas Tech in Virginia – losing in Durham and struggling to score at Virginia. This will be a rock fight, but I like Duke in this game. Duke just has too much talent.
Beyond that is the Gonzaga/Arkansas winner. I thought it would be Gonzaga, but Arkansas dominated in the backcourt.
Texas Tech and Arkansas will be fist fights, but they can’t match Duke’s talent. The Final 4 is there for the taking for Duke.
Friday North Carolina vs UCLA 9:39 CBS
This is going to be a fun entertaining game. The winner will be this region’s Final 4 representatives, Sorry Purdue and St. Peters. We’ve said all year there is 2nd weekend UNC and 1st round NIT loser UNC. Right now the Heels are playing their best basketball of the season.
What is UCLA’s Jaime Jaquez’s status? That may be the key to the game. If he’s near 100% Heels lose in a close one. If he’s not, then I like North Carolina’s chance to win and advance to the Final 4
Friday Iowa State vs Miami 9:59 TBS
Two double-digit seeds in this one, but I love Miami’s backcourt of Charlie Moore, Isaiah Wong, and Kam McCusty. Their dominating game against Auburn might have been the tournament’s most impressive performance. They beat a very good USC team making just one 3 pointer. Of the three Sweet 16 games with ACC teams, I feel the most confident about the ACC team advancing in this one..
Iowa State is solid, but I don’t think they have the explosiveness to match Miami.
After that is the Kansas Providence winner. Providence is the better matchup for Miami, but the Canes probably end up with Kansas. What are the sports betting odds, Miami can take down Kansas?
Kansas is tough, no question, but Miami is better in the backcourt. In March give me the team with the better guards in an upset.
The Canes head to their first final 4.
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