The ACC & The Postseason
While the Confidential continues to invite fans and friends to join its bracket contest, what about the ACC teams themselves? Well, numerous ACC teams are still dancing.
From a mini-dance standpoint, Virginia and Maryland did not make it to the NCAA tournament, but both were eagerly invited to the N.I.T. Last year’s ACC champion, Florida State, stumbled this year. But they still landed a #4 seed in the NIT and will host Louisiana Tech tonight. Maryland was given a #2 seed and hosts Niagara tonight. Virginia earned a #1 seed and will be hosting Norfolk State tonight. You may recall Norfolk State as a mainstay on the Rutgers’ football schedule.
But everyone is interested in the Big Dance. How about Louisville? Set to join in 2014, everyone knows by now that the Cardinals are the #1 overall seed. Many prognosticators are prognosticating that Louisville will win it all. Giant leap of faith there. But it is hard to disagree with that pick. Syracuse, Pitt, and Notre Dame will be playing ACC games in the fall. But all three are dancing, receiving #4, #8, and #7 seeds, respectively. Pitt may have been screwed with its seed, but it can beat Gonzaga. Will they? We’ll see. Syracuse also got sent to San Jose to play West Coast teams. But they are all dancing.
The ACC is further represented by Tobacco Road, which placed Duke, North Carolina, and North Carolina State as #2, #8, and #8 seeds. Those seeds seem fair. Miami finishes out the ACC teams with a #2 seed in the East. While a #2 seed is argued by some as unfair or disrespectful, it seems within the realm of appropriate. Remember, the Committee can adjust seeds by one or two places to keep the conferences sorted out and prevent rematches.
In any event, there are eleven ACC teams left standing. This time of year, rivalries are set aside and we can all root for our conference mates…at least until they face each other. So good luck to all ACC teams… may your March Madness continue as long as possible…
The Confidential 