The 2018 ACC Tournament kicks off Tuesday, March 6 in Brooklyn at the Barclays Center with a champion being crowned on Sunday, March 10. Duke enters the tournament as a slight favorite (+200) edging out Virginia (+250) in the odds. Miami (+1000) and Clemson (+1200) are next in line in the Vegas odds as favorites to cut down the nets in New York.
The Blue Devils are led by sharpshooter Grayson Allen and a bevy of talented freshman players including Marvin Bagley. Coach Mike Krzyzewski believes his teams is ready for March.
“If you take out the first three conference games, we’ve played as well as anybody on the defensive end in the conference,” Krzyzewski told the News and Observer. “Even with those three games, we’re right there. Not one, Virginia would always be one, but we’re two or three in everything. The kids have worked hard on that.”
Duke may be getting the attention, but Virginia has been the more consistent team. Virginia has only lost two games all season. The Cavaliers only lost one game inside the conference, and it was a one point overtime loss to Virginia Tech. Virginia has won 20 of their last 21 games.
Not only does Virginia enter the ACC as the No. 1 seed, the Cavaliers are ranked No. 1 in the country in the latest AP Poll. Virginia coach Tony Bennett spoke to ESPN about how his team is preparing for the upcoming tournaments.
“Now you are in one-and-done tournament play — the ACC tournament and the NCAA tournament,” Bennett told ESPN. “You continue on, but you understand that it is quality play. You do not change who you are, but you know that if you drop one, you are out.”
Miami is another team to watch thanks to a talented backcourt. Bruce Brown Jr. is having a down shooting year, but can still get buckets. After a slow start, freshman Lonnie Walker has started to find his footing, and could be one of the breakout players in March.
Here’s a look at the 2018 ACC tournament schedule courtesy of the ACC.
ACC Tournament Schedule 2018
Tuesday, March 6
No. 12 Boston College vs. No. 13 Georgia Tech ESPN2 12 p.m. Eastern
No. 10 Notre Dame vs. No. 15 Pittsburgh 2 p.m. Eastern
No. 11 Syracuse vs. No. 14 Wake Forest 7 p.m. Eastern ESPNU
Wednesday, March 7
No. 8 Florida State vs. No. 9 Louisville 12 p.m. Eastern ESPN
BC/Georgia Tech vs. No. 5 NC State 2 p.m. Eastern ESPN
Notre Dame/Pitt vs. No. 7 Virginia Tech 7 p.m. Eastern ESPN2
Syracuse/Wake Forest vs. No. 6 North Carolina 9 p.m. Eastern ESPN2
Thursday, March 8
No. 1 Virginia vs. FSU/Louisville 12 p.m. Eastern ESPN
No. 4 Clemson vs. NC State/BC/Georgia Tech 2 p.m. Eastern ESPN
No. 2 Duke vs. Notre Dame/Pitt/VT 7 p.m. Eastern ESPN
No. 3 Miami vs. Syracuse/Wake Forest/UNC 9 p.m. Eastern
Friday, March 9
Semifinal Game 1 7 p.m. Eastern ESPN
Semifinal Game 2 9 p.m. Eastern ESPN
Saturday, March 10
Championship Game 8:30 p.m. Eastern ESPN
ACC Tournament Championship Odds 2018
Here’s a rundown of the opening ACC tournament championship odds courtesy of OddsShark.com.
Duke +200
Virginia +250
North Carolina +700
Miami +1000
Clemson +1200
Virginia Tech +1200
NC State +1400
Florida State +1600
Syracuse +2000
Notre Dame +2500
Louisville +3300
Boston College +5000
Georgia Tech +10000
Wake Forest +10000
Pittsburgh +25000
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