By Sonny Jones
Well, that certainly didn’t go as hoped. Of the four North Carolina-based schools in the ACC tournament quarterfinals only one will be playing tonight in the semifinals. Tonight’s semifinals will feature the top four seeds. No upsets.
Duke scored the first 12 points and never looked back in routing Pittsburgh 96-69 on Thursday. The Blue Devils (24-8) are playing as well as any team in the league as they face top-seeded Miami (25-6) in tonight’s semifinals. The Hurricanes hung on by the hair of their chinny, chinny, chins in beating Wake Forest 74-72.
North Carolina (20-13) faces an uncertain NCAA tournament future after losing to Virginia 68-59. The Tar Heels stayed close throughout, but you never sensed they were going to win. It was a microcosm of an extremely disappointing season. It makes you wonder if UNC was really that good last season or really this bad this season. It’s probably somewhere in the middle. The Tar Heels got hot in March a year ago and never did this season. We will see if UNC slips into the NCAA tournament. Would the Heels accept a NIT bid?
N.C. State (23-10) will be in the NCAA tournament when the brackets are released Sunday. The Wolfpack showed in its 80-54 loss to Clemson Thursday night that it will live and die behind the guard play of Terquavion Smith and Jarkel Joiner. The duo combined for 21 points against Clemson after scoring 50 in Wednesday’s 20-point romp of Virginia Tech.
Clemson (23-9) will play Virginia (24-6) in Friday’s other semifinal in Greensboro.
• Quick question: If you are a fan of UNC, N.C. State or Wake Forest are you pulling for Duke to win and rallying behind your state or are you so anti-Dookie that you hope Miami blows past the Blue Devils?
• The East Carolina women’s basketball team earned a bid to the NCAA tournament Thursday night with a 46-44 win against Houston in the American Athletic Conference tournament championship game. Freshman Amiya Joyner converted a three-point play with 1:30 remaining, then blocked a potential game winning basket with 3.2 seconds left. The Pirates were picked to finish last in a preseason conference poll. It will be ECU’s first trip to the NCAA tournament since 2007.
• East Bladen High graduate Ann Hancock will guide her Wingate Bulldogs against North Georgia today in the first round of the NCAA Division II Southeast Regional women’s basketball tournament in Salisbury. Hancock is in her 10th season as head coach at her collegiate alma mater.
• Both UNC Pembroke basketball teams earned bids to the NCAA Division II tournament. The UNCP women will play top-seeded Catawba in today’s Southeast Regional in Salisbury. The UNCP men’s team will play North Georgia in Augusta, Georgia today.
TODAY IN SPORTS HISTORY
• 2022 – After a 99-day lockout, Major League Baseball and MLB Players Association reach a new collective bargaining agreement; MLB teams set to play full 162 game season.
POTATO PICKS TO WATCH TODAY
• WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC: South Korea vs. Japan, 5 a.m., FS1
• PGA: Players Championship, noon, GOLF
• WOMEN’S BASKETBALL: Big 12 – West Virginia vs. Oklahoma St., noon, ESPNU
• BASKETBALL: Conference USA – Middle Tennessee vs. Florida Atlantic, 12:30 pm., CBSSN
• BASKETBALL: Southeastern – Alabama vs. Mississippi St., 1 p.m., ESPN
• BASKETBALL: American – Houston vs. East Carolina, 1 p.m., ESPN2
• MLB: Atlanta at Tampa Bay, 1 p.m., MLBN, BALLY SPORTS
• WOMEN’S BASKETBALL: Big 12 – Texas vs. TBD, 2:30 p.m., ESPNU
• BASKETBALL: Conference USA – North Texas vs. UAB, 3 p.m., CBSSN
• BASKETBALL: Southeastern – Missouri vs. Tennessee, 3 p.m., ESPN
• BASKETBALL: American – Temple vs. Cincinnati, 3:30 p.m., ESPN2
• BASKETBALL: Mid-American – Toledo vs. Ohio, 5 p.m., CBSSN
• WOMEN’S BASKETBALL: America East – Albany vs. Vermont, 5 p.m., ESPNU
• BASKETBALL: Metro Atlantic – Iona vs. Niagara, 6 p.m., ESPNEWS
• BASKETBALL: Big East – Connecticut vs. Marquette, 6:30 p.m., FS1
• BASKETBALL: ACC – Duke vs. Miami, 7 p.m., ESPN
• BASKETBALL: Big 12 – Iowa State vs. Kansas, 7 p.m., ESPN2
• BASKETBALL: American – UCF vs. Memphis, 7 p.m., ESPNU
• BASEBALL: N.C. State at Miami, 7 p.m., ACCN
• BASKETBALL: Mid-American – Kent St. vs. Akron, 7:30 p.m., CBSSN
• NBA: Cleveland at Miami, 8 p.m., NBATV
• NASCAR ARCA: General Tire 150, 8 p.m., FS2
• BASKETBALL: Metro Atlantic – Marist vs. Saint Peter’s, 8:30 p.m., ESPNEWS
• BASKETBALL: Big East – Xavier vs. Creighton, 9 p.m., FS1
• BASKETBALL: Mountain West – San Jose St. vs. San Diego St., 9:30 p.m., CBSSN
• BASKETBALL: ACC – Virginia vs. Clemson, 9:30 p.m., ESPN
• BASKETBALL: Big 12 – Texas vs. TCU, 9:30 p.m., ESPN2
• BASKETBALL: American – Tulane vs. Wichita St., 9:30 p.m., ESPNU
• WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC: China vs. Australia, 10 p.m., FS2
• MMA: Bellator 292, 10 p.m., SHO
• NBA: Toronto at L.A. Lakers, 10:30 p.m., NBATV
• WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC: Panama vs. Italy, 11 p.m., FS1
• BASKETBALL: Pac-12 – Arizona St. vs. Arizona, 11:30 p.m., ESPN
• BASKETBALL: Big West – UC Riverside vs. UC Santa Barbara, 11:30 p.m., ESPNU
• BASKETBALL: Mountain West – Utah St. vs. Boise St., midnight, CBSSN
• WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC: Czech Republic vs. Japan, 5 a.m. (Saturday), FS1
• WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC: Netherlands vs. Chinese Taipei, 6 a.m. (Saturday), FS2
Sonny Jones can be reached at wibbyj@gmail.com.
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