ACC Tournament Day 3: Live Updates

The 2023 ACC Men’s Basketball Tournament is officially underway in Greensboro, North Carolina. Tuesday marked the start of the action with the first round, and now the second round will follow on Wednesday, then the quarterfinals, semifinals, and championship Thursday through Saturday.

A big one between Clemson and NC State ended the night, with the former needing a huge win for their NCAA Tournament hopes. Head coach Brad Brownell came through, getting the Tigers an 80-54 win. A fantastic second half was the difference, dominating once leaving the locker room. Virginia will be next up, with a spot in the championship game on the line.

2023 ACC Tournament schedule, results

All times eastern

Tuesday, March 7
First Round

2 p.m. – No. 12 Florida State (60) vs. No. 13 Georgia Tech (61) (ACC Network)
4:30 p.m. – No. 10 Boston College (80) vs. No. 15 Louisville (62) (ACC Network)
7 p.m. – No. 11 Virginia Tech (67) vs. No. 14 Notre Dame (64) (ACC Network)

Wednesday, March 8
Second Round

12 p.m. – No. 8 Syracuse (74) vs. No. 9 Wake Forest (77) (ESPN)
2:30 p.m. – No. 5 Pitt (89) vs. Georgia Tech (81) (ESPN)
7 p.m. – No. 7 North Carolina (85) vs. Boston College (61) (ESPN2/ESPNU)
9:30 p.m. – No. 6 NC State (97) vs. Virginia Tech (77) (ESPN2/ESPN U)

Thursday, March 9
Quarterfinals

12 p.m. – No. 1 Miami (74) vs. No. 9 Wake Forest (72) (ESPN/ESPN2)
2:30 p.m. – No. 4 Duke (96) vs. No. 5 Pitt (69) (ESPN/ESPN2)
7 p.m. – No. 2 Virginia (68) vs. No. 7 North Carolina (59) (ESPN/ESPN2)
9:30 p.m. – No. 3 Clemson (80) vs. No. 6 NC State (54) (ESPN/ESPN2)

Friday, March 10
Semifinals

7 p.m. – Miami vs. Duke (ESPN/ESPN2)
9:30 p.m. – Virginia vs. Clemson (ESPN/ESPN2)

Saturday, March 11
Championship

8:30 p.m. – Semifinal winners (ESPN)

Georgia Tech 61, Florida State 60

Offense was scarce in the first half of Game 1, with Florida State leading Georgia Tech 31-21 at halftime. The Seminoles had nine different players score in the first half, while all six of Georgia Tech’s players to see the floor finding the scoresheet as well. Florida State suffered a pair of injuries in the first half. Matthew Cleveland was helped to the locker room after rolling his ankle, though he will try to return. Baba Miller then hurt his ankle late in the half, too, but he returned to the bench shortly after.

Both Cleveland and Miller came back in the second half, and that was great news for the Seminoles in a very tight game. Unfortunately for Florida State, though, Georgia Tech came away with the 61-60 win after a free throw in the final second of the game to advance to the second round. Florida State’s season comes to an end, while Georgia Tech moves on to face Pitt on Wednesday. 

Boston College 80, Louisville 62

Louisville and Boston College went back and forth for much of the first half of the day’s second game, with the Cardinals eventually taking a 34-31 lead into halftime. Louisville had each member of its starting five reach five points at half, with Brandon Huntley-Hatfield leading the way with nine. 

The game remained close for a while, but Boston College eventually pulled away in the second half to secure the 80-62 victory. The Eagles had four players score in double figures, led by Makai Ashton-Langford with 16. Boston College moves on to face North Carolina in the second round of the ACC Tournament on Wednesday, while Louisville’s season has come to an end.

Virginia Tech 67, Notre Dame 64

Like the first two games of the opening day of the ACC Tournament, the third game of the day was a close one during the first half. Ultimately, Virginia Tech carried a 33-32 lead into halftime. Hunter Cattoor led the Hokies with nine points, coming off of three three-point baskets. Marcus Hammond led the Fighting Irish with 14 points, as the only player of the game to reach double figures.

After seeing Notre Dame race out to a second-half lead, the Hokies stormed back to win 67-64 behind 20 points from Grant Basile and 18 from Justyn Mutts. Virginia Tech advances to the second round, where they will face NC State on Wednesday.

Wake Forest 77, Syracuse 74

In the first game of Day 2, No. 8 Syracuse raced out to a lead, holding it halfway through the first half. However, No. 9 Wake Forest came roaring back, and the score sat at 35-33 in favor of the Orange at the halftime break. Forwards Benny Williams and Chris Bell led the way with ten and eight points respectively for Jim Boeheim’s squad, while Demon Deacons forward Bobi Klintman and his ten points kept Wake Forest in it.

The second half was a different story — an exhilarating game of runs between both squads. In the end, it was Wake Forest who were able to hold off their ferocious opponent, utilizing a clutch Daivien Williamson three-pointer with 0.5 seconds left to move onto the next round by a score of 77-74. The Demon Deacons will now take their talents to Thursday’s opening game, where they’ll meet the No. 1 seeded Miami.

Pitt 89, Georgia Tech 81

At halftime of the second game of the day, it was evident fifth-seeded Pitt was indignant regarding backing into the ACC Tournament with consecutive losses. The Panthers took out their frustration on Georgia Tech, possessing a 44-31 lead at halftime behind a tremendous start from big man Federiko Federiko and his 13 points and five rebounds.

The second half between Pitt and Georgia Tech saw the Yellow Jackets put on a fierce comeback and took a lead with 12:55 left on the clock before the Panthers steadied against their rally. Ultimately, the Panthers won 89-81 and brought Georgia Tech’s season to an end. Jamarius Burton ended up leading the Panthers offense on the day with 21 points, while Javon Franklin led all Yellow Jackets with 19 points. Pitt will now turn their focus onto a third-round matchup with No. 4 Duke at 2:30 p.m. on Thursday.

North Carolina 85, Boston College 61

North Carolina entered Wednesday’s action with their NCAA Tournament lives on the line, with many bracket experts calling their matchup with Boston College a “must-win.” Despite them building a huge lead early, the biggest story of the half was an ankle injury to star Armando Bacot that sent him to the locker room. The Tar Heels led the Eagles 43-29 at the break.

Luckily, Bacot’s injury appeared to be a minor one after receiving treatment and some rest in the locker room. He started the second half to help the Tar Heels secure a 85-61 win and eliminate the Eagles. North Carolina’s backcourt was a problem all night long as Caleb Love and R.J. Davis scored a combined 40 points on 16-of-32 shooting.

NC State 97, Virginia Tech 77

The final game of Day 2 featured NC State and Virginia Tech as they fought for a place in the top-eight of the tournament. NC State took the first half with a huge 53-26 lead, led by Terquavion Smith with 19 points, five rebounds and three assists. Virginia Tech had all eight players who saw the court score in the first half, but their leading scorer after 20 minutes was Justyn Mutts with just six points.

The Wolfpack continued the second half with just as much offense as they started with, eliminating the Hokies from the tournament with a final score of 97-77. Terquavion Smith continued to fill up the stat sheet in the win with 30 points and eight rebounds. Jarkel Joiner added 20 points of his own, and NC State shot 61.9 percent from the field. Next up for NC State is a matchup with No. 3 Clemson in the quarterfinals on Thursday.

Miami 74, Wake Forest 72

Starting off the action on Thursday was No. 1 Miami taking on No. 9 Wake Forest, the latter using their momentum following Daivien Williamson‘s clutch three-pointer on Wednesday to keep up with the Hurricanes at the onset. Still, it was Jim Larranaga’s squad in the catbird seat from the start, utilizing 18 points from Jordan Miller to advance to the next round by a score of 74-72.

Duke 96, Pitt 69

In the second game on Thursday’s slate, it’s been all Duke over Pittsburgh. A dominant performance came from head coach Jon Scheyer’s squad, earning a 96-69 win. Kyle Filipowski was the game’s leading scorer, finishing with 22 points. Next up will be top-seeded Miami in a heavyweight matchup.

Virginia 68, North Carolina 59

The third game of the day has ended in favor of Virginia, holding off North Carolina with a 68-59 win. For head coach Tony Bennett, his team will head to the semifinals and face off against the winner of Game No. 4. The season is most likely over in Chapel Hill, falling on the wrong side of the NCAA Tournament bubble.