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ACC Tournament 2021: Complete Schedule and Updated Bracket Predictions
March 4, 2021
The Florida State Seminoles have come close to winning their second ACC tournament title in the last few years.
Before the men's college basketball season was cancelled last March, Leonard Hamilton's team appeared to be in line to win the crown.
The 2021 ACC tournament could present the Seminoles with their best chance yet to add to their 2012 conference championship.
The league as a whole is down, with teams like the Duke Blue Devils struggling just to make the Big Dance, and even the teams at the top have dealt with issues throughout the regular season.
Before Florida State hits the floor in Greensboro, North Carolina, some of the ACC's bubble teams will make one more run at a berth in the field of 68.
Duke falls into that category, but after its Tuesday defeat to the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, there are more doubts that it can run the table and secure its spot in Indianapolis.
ACC Tournament Schedule
All Times ET
First Round: Tuesday, March 9 (2 p.m., 4:30 p.m., 7 p.m.)
Second Round: Wednesday, March 10 (Noon, 2:30 p.m., 6:30 p.m., 9 p.m.)
Quarterfinals: Thursday, March 11 (Noon, 2:30 p.m., 6:30 p.m., 9 p.m.)
Semifinals: Friday, March 12 (6:30 p.m., 9 p.m.)
Championship: Saturday, March 13 (8:30 p.m.)
Games will be televised on ESPN, ESPN2 and ACC Network.
Bracket Predictions
Duke Fails To Win Enough Games To Reach March Madness
Duke's NCAA tournament hopes have been on life support for quite some time.
Mike Krzyzewski's team did itself no favors by losing to fellow bubble team Georgia Tech on Tuesday in Atlanta.
That result led to ESPN.com's Joe Lunardi placing the Blue Devils on his "first four out" line on Wednesday behind three mid-major programs.
Duke's regular-season finale with the North Carolina Tar Heels on Saturday will not carry too much value on the bubble since the Tar Heels are just two games better in the loss column in ACC play.
Entering Thursday, the Blue Devils are ninth in the ACC standings, which would put it one win away from a matchup with Florida State in the ACC tournament quarterfinals.
Since January 13, Florida State is 10-2, and it dominated matchups with the Clemson Tigers and Virginia Cavaliers.
For Duke to beat the Seminoles, it would take a perfect performance, one it simply has not produced in its rare down season.
The Blue Devils showed some signs of life during their four-game winning streak in February, but they then failed to win overtime clashes with Georgia Tech and the Louisville Cardinals.
In both games, Duke struggled to find consistency from three-point range. It shot 19 percent from beyond the arc in Saturday's loss to Louisville and only hit seven of its 26 attempts from downtown on Tuesday.
Florida State is tied for 33rd in points scored per game, and if Duke shoots as poorly as it did in its last two games, there appears to be no path past the Seminoles.
If the Blue Devils drop out in the quarterfinals, they may be out of luck, especially if other bubble teams achieve more success in the days leading up to Selection Sunday.
Florida State Takes Home Title
Florida State is in prime position to add a rare title to its program resume.
The Seminoles are the highest-ranked team in the ACC and own wins over all of its top contenders to win the conference tournament.
Hamilton's program defeated Virginia, Clemson, Louisville and Georgia Tech by double digits and has a pair of nonconference victories over the Indiana Hoosiers and Florida Gators.
It is safe to say the Seminoles are the most complete team in the ACC, and it could use success in Greensboro as a springboard to a deep run in Indianapolis.
Hamilton's teams reached the Elite Eight in 2018 and Sweet 16 in 2019 and have been a No. 4 seed or better in three of its last four NCAA tournament entries.
Florida State typically boasts some of the best depth in the country, and that is evident with five players who average nine or more points per game.
The Seminoles have a star player in freshman Scottie Barnes, an experienced senior guard in M.J. Walker and a big man in Balsa Koprivica who could affect matchups in the paint.
Virginia should be viewed as Florida State's top threat in the ACC, but the Cavaliers have one win in their last four games over the last-place Miami Hurricanes and struggled to contain the Seminoles on February 15.
If Florida State plays to its current level, it should run through Greensboro and make a run at a top-two seed on Selection Sunday.
Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.
Statistics obtained from ESPN.com.