ACC Tournament 2019: Bracket Predictions Before Final Regular-Season Games

The regular season is winding down for ACC basketball, as 12 of the 15 conference teams play to wrap up the conference schedule on Saturday. Those matchups will help determine the seedings for the conference tournament.

Not only that, but there will also be a preview of a potential ACC tournament semifinal in the final game of the conference's regular season. No. 4 Duke will travel to take on No. 3 North Carolina in a game that will help determine the seedings for the top three teams in the upcoming conference tourney.

The ACC has three of the top four teams in the country, with No. 2 Virginia perhaps being the favorite to win this year's conference tournament, which will take place from March 12-16 in Charlotte.

Saturday's ACC Schedule

All Times ET

Syracuse at Clemson, 12 p.m.

No. 14 Florida State at Wake Forest, 12 p.m., ACC Network Extra

Notre Dame at Pittsburgh, 12 p.m., ACC Network Extra

NC State at Boston College, 2 p.m., ACC Network Extra

Louisville at No. 2 Virginia, 4 p.m., ESPN

No. 4 Duke at No. 3 North Carolina, 6 p.m., ESPN

Bracket Predictions

1. Virginia

2. North Carolina

3. Duke

4. Florida State

5. Virginia Tech

6. Syracuse

7. Louisville

8. NC State

9. Clemson

10. Georgia Tech

11. Boston College

12. Miami

13. Wake Forest

14. Notre Dame

15. Pittsburgh

There's only one scenario in which Virginia falls from the No. 1 seed—if the Cavaliers lose to Louisville and North Carolina beats Duke. Don't expect that to happen, however, as Virginia has only lost two games all season, both against Duke, and it should easily take down the Cardinals on its home court.

That would leave North Carolina and Duke to play for the No. 2 seed, with the loser slotting in at No. 3. But much like the last time these two schools met, expect the Tar Heels to take down the Blue Devils.

Not only will North Carolina have home-court advantage, but it's likely that Duke will again be without star forward Zion Williamson.

"We'll have our shootaround in the morning and then give final word after that," Blue Devils coach Mike Krzyzewski said Friday, according to The Athletic's C.L. Brown. "It'll be known by 11 a.m."

Gerry Broome/Associated Press

Of course, things could go differently if North Carolina and Duke meet again in the semifinals of the ACC tournament—which is likely to happen with the schools being the Nos. 2 and 3 seeds—because there's a better chance that Williamson could be back from his knee sprain.

Virginia Tech won its regular-season finale on Friday night, beating Miami 84-70. However, the Hokies are locked into the No. 5 seed because even if Florida State loses to Wake Forest on Saturday, the Seminoles own the tiebreaker with Virginia Tech.

So Florida State will be the No. 4 seed, joining the top three seeds as the teams to receive double byes for the ACC tourney.

Don't expect much movement in the lower half of the ACC standings on Saturday, or for any of the lower seeds to make a run to the tournament championship game. Virginia, North Carolina and Duke are the clear three best teams in the conference, and it's unlikely that any other school wins this year's tourney.

After the ACC tournament, it's quite possible that two schools from the conference could earn No. 1 seeds in the NCAA tournament.

That should likely be the case in this scenario, which is the prediction here—Virginia will earn a No. 1 seed with its impressive resume, but it will fall to North Carolina in the ACC tournament, as the Tar Heels earn the No. 1 overall seed with a win over the Cavaliers and a 3-0 record against Duke this season.

Pick: North Carolina over Virginia in the ACC tournament championship game