By Bud L. Ellis
Just say the words "Atlantic Coast Conference" and immediately, thoughts turn to great basketball.
And some of the greatest moments in the long and storied history of the league have occurred in the signature event of the conference’s season – the ACC tournament.
The next chapter of the conference’s legendary story will be authored in Greensboro, N.C., this March. The ACC tournament tips off with four first-round games on March 10, with seeds five through 12 playing for the right to make it into March 11’s quarterfinals. The two semifinal games are March 12, with the championship game set for March 13.
Duke won the title last season, en route to winning the national championship. Duke and North Carolina play Saturday in the regular-season finale, the winner earning the league title and the No. 1 seed entering tournament action.
Florida State and Virginia Tech enter the final weekend of the regular season holding onto third and fourth place, respectively. The top four teams get that all-important bye and won’t have to play on day one of the league tournament.
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Is the ACC Duke's to win again in 2010-2011? It appears so.
ESPN.com's Andy Katz revealed his preseason top 25 and unsurprisingly, the Blue Devils found themselves at No. 1. The defending national champions return four of their five starters, including dynamic scorers Kyle Singler and Nolan Smith. Singler was thought to be a lock to leave for the NBA Draft following Duke's title run, but made the surprising decision to return to Durham for a shot to defend the crown.
Additionally, forward Mason Plumlee is expected to have a breakout season for the Blue Devils. Easily the most talented and athletically gifted player on the team, he was just a role player last season but should be a force if he develops as expected. And incoming freshman Kyle Irving was one of the most highly-touted players in America, a dynamic point guard who can do it all. But the story isn't just about Duke's greatness; it's about the ACC's lack of contenders. The only other ACC team in Katz' top 20 is North Carolina, which faces major turnover following the losses of Ed Davis, Deon Thompson, Marcus Ginyard and the Wear twins. The Tar Heels add Harrison Barnes, the top prospect in the nation and the likely No. 1 pick in next year's draft, but this is still a very young, inexperienced team with no proven player to carry them.
Virginia Tech and North Carolina State could make some noise, but no one expects them to play with the type of consistency needed to win a championship. As a result, it looks like it will be another banner or two for Duke this season.

By Bud L. Ellis
As the first weekend in February dawns, the Duke Blue Devils find themselves on top of the Atlantic Coast Conference.
That’s where the Devils sat after last year’s ACC tournament at the Georgia Dome.
Duke won last year’s tournament, downing Florida State in the title game 79-69 to capture its eighth conference championship in the past 11 years.
Georgia Tech opened the tournament with an upset of No. 17 ranked and fifth-seed Clemson on opening day, 86-81. The Seminoles would end Tech’s run in the quarterfinals, but Maryland was the story on day two of the tourney, upending second-seed and eighth-ranked Wake Forest, 75-64.
The other three top seeded teams – top-ranked North Carolina, Duke and Florida State – joined the Terps in the semifinals. FSU pulled the biggest upset of all, knocking off the Tar Heels 73-70 in the semis. Duke held off Maryland to set the stage for the championship game.
The Devils put three players on the all-tournament team: MVP Jon Scheyer, Kyle Singler and Gerald Henderson.
This year's ACC tournament will be at Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, N.C., March 11-14.
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By Bud L. Ellis
With more than a month to go before the ACC tournament, there isn’t a clear-cut favorite.
In fact, when you look at the conference standings, it’s easy to deduct the conference games coming up the next five weeks will determine the seeding and the order of the tournament because, quite frankly, there isn’t a whole lot of separation between the top and the bottom.
Maryland leads the conference standings entering the weekend with a 4-1 ACC record. Miami is 1-5 overall, but just 3 ½ games out of first and two games out of the middle of the pack.
It’s been a very competitive year in the conference. Defending national champion North Carolina finds itself in next to last, but is only three games out of first. Five of the Tar Heels’ eight defeats have come in conference play.
The top seven teams in the league are separated by just 1 ½ games. While the Big East may boast more ranked teams, the ACC has been the most competitive and evenly matched league in the nation this season.
That will make the weeks leading up to Greensboro Coliseum and tourney time all the more interesting.
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By Bud L. Ellis
Whichever school makes it through the ACC men’s basketball tournament receives an automatic invitation to the NCAA tournament.
Beyond just getting a ticket to the big dance, whichever school can survive the rigors of a weekend of facing the ACC figures to stay in the NCAA tournament for a while.
This year’s ACC tournament, the 57th edition of the event, is March 11-14 at the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, N.C. The bottom eight seeds meet in the opening round, while the top four teams receive an all-important bye. Instead of playing and potentially being bounced on Thursday, the top four get to watch the competition, get some additional scouting report information and, most of all, relax.
Friday is quarterfinals day, followed by the semifinals on Saturday and the championship game on Sunday.
N.C. State won the first three ACC Tournaments, from 1954-56. Reynolds Coliseum in Raleigh played host to the tournament from its inception in 1954 through 1966. The tournament has been held in several locales, including the Greensboro Coliseum in 1967, from 1971-1975, 1977-1980, 1982, 1986, 1988, 1995-1998, 2003-2004, and 2006.
Last year’s tournament was held at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. Duke beat Florida State in the finals, 79-69.
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