ACC Tournament 2017: Semifinals Scores, Championship Bracket and Schedule

The penultimate day of action at the 2017 ACC tournament certainly has high expectations with North Carolina taking on Duke for the third time this season and Florida State challenging Notre Dame for a spot in the finals Saturday. 

The Duke-North Carolina game was going to dwarf any other game on the schedule in terms of interest. It's the best rivalry in college basketball, and the two teams have evenly split their last 98 games. 

Florida State and Notre Dame are hardly afterthoughts in the conference equation. Both teams are ranked in the Top 25 and will be featured prominently on Selection Sunday. The Seminoles and Fighting Irish are seeking their second ACC tournament title.

Matchup	Result/Start Time (ET)
No. 1 North Carolina vs. No. 5 Duke	Duke 93, UNC 83
No. 2 Florida State vs. No. 3 Notre Dame	Notre Dame 77, FSU 73

Date	Matchup	Start Time (ET)	Network
Saturday, March 11	No. 3 Notre Dame vs. No. 5 Duke	9 p.m.	ESPN

Notre Dame 77, Florida State 73

For the second time in three years, Notre Dame will play for an ACC tournament championship thanks to a 77-73 win over Florida State. 

The Fighting Irish were cruising in the first half, opening up a 42-26 lead at halftime. They had four players score in double figures, including 18 points each for Bonzie Colson and Steve Vasturia. 

Florida State tried to make multiple runs in the second half, even getting to within five points with 46 seconds remaining. Notre Dame responded with the next four points to put things out of reach. 

Three-point shooting was the key difference for the Irish. They went 13-of-27 from downtown, compared to 5-of-15 for the Seminoles. 

Notre Dame will take on Duke in the final on Saturday. The Blue Devils defeated the Irish, 84-74, in South Bend on January 30. 

The Fighting Irish will have the stamina advantage by virtue of having a double-bye and only playing two games this week, compared to three for Duke. 

Duke 93, North Carolina 83

Lance King/Getty Images

Duke took advantage of foul trouble for Joel Berry in the second half to knock off North Carolina 93-83 and reach the ACC tournament finals. 

The Tar Heels held a 56-48 lead when Berry was taken out with fifteen minutes and four seconds remaining in the second half after recording his fourth foul. They eventually extended their lead to 13 points before the Blue Devils stormed back with Berry on the bench for 10 minutes. 

Jayson Tatum is becoming a star for Duke in this ACC tournament. He recorded his third straight game with at least 20 points and contributed seven rebounds, two assists and two steals in the victory. Luke Kennard's skill was on full display as he finished with 20 points on 4-of-7 shooting and 10-of-10 from the free-throw line. 

After holding a seven-point lead at the half, North Carolina's offense fell apart in the second half. The Tar Heels were outscored 51-34 and shot just 29 percent over the final 20 minutes.

Kennedy Meeks tried his best to keep North Carolina going with 19 points and 12 rebounds, but the rest of the team couldn't buy a bucket in the second half to stop the bleeding. 

Despite the earlier-than-expected exit, North Carolina is still looking at a potential No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament. Its case will certainly be helped by Kansas' loss to TCU in the Big 12 tournament quarterfinals. 

The win puts Duke in position to win its 20th conference tournament title, though it hasn't been crowned ACC champion since 2011. Saturday will mark the Blue Devils' fourth game in four days, so head coach Mike Krzyzewski has work cut out for him to get his team ready to play a terrific team one more time.