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ACC Tournament 2025: 1 big question facing each of the top-4 seeds in Charlotte
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Seven games have already been played over the past 2 days, But the reality is that the ACC Tournament doesn’t actually begin until today.
That’s when the top 4 seeds make their first appearance at Charlotte’s Spectrum Center.
Although there’s always a chance of something unexpected happening, as NC State proved by running the table as the No. 10 seed a year ago in Washington, this year’s tournament champion is almost certain to come from the group that includes top-seeded Duke, No. 2 Louisville and No. 3 Clemson, with No. 4 Wake Forest hoping to save its fading NCAA Tournament hopes by pulling off an upset or 2.
The Blue Devils will get things started this afternoon against No. 8-seeded Georgia Tech while the Cardinals play No. 7 Stanford, the Tigers face No. 6 SMU and the Deacons take on No. 5 North Carolina.
Each of their opponents has played at least once already in this event. Now that the preliminaries are finally out of the way, here is 1 big question facing each of the top 4 teams now that the real tournament is about to get underway:
Will Duke try to save something for the NCAA Tournament?
Jon Scheyer is a disciple of Mike Krzyzewski, who was never an advocate of holding anything back when there’s a trophy to be won and a banner to hang from the rafters at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
So don’t expect the top-seeded and top-ranked Blue Devils to coast through this tournament with the idea of saving themselves for the next, more important one. Maintaining momentum and cutting down the nets on Saturday, especially if it involves a chance of beating Clemson and avenging the only blemish on their ACC record, remains Job 1.
That being said, the other major goal over the next 3 days is to make sure that everyone in the regular rotation leaves Charlotte healthy. Duke has endured some injury scares over the past few weeks with starting guard Tyrese Proctor and defensive specialist Maliq Brown both missing time with what turned out to be minor maladies.
Does Louisville have anything left to prove?
The short answer is no. Pat Kelsey’s second-seeded Cardinals are playing with house money from here on out. Anything else they accomplish, either this week or next week in the NCAA Tournament, is a bonus.
They’ve already exceeded all expectations with their regular-season performance. They’ve won 25 games, earned Kelsey the ACC’s Coach of the Year award and are safely into the NCAA field for the first time since 2019.
Louisville arrives in Charlotte as the league’s hottest team, having won 9 straight and 19 of their last 20 with the only loss coming back on Feb. 1 at Georgia Tech.
Of all the top seeds, the Cardinals are the biggest variable. They’ve proven their ability to play with and beat the best, having taken down Clemson and forced Duke to rally from a 14-point deficit before dropping a single-digit decision. And yet, because of their lack of depth and their dependence on the 3-point shot, there’s always the possibility of an early exit.
Is this finally the year Clemson ends its championship drought?
The Tigers have been in the ACC since its inception in 1953 and yet, they’re still trying to win their first tournament championship. They’re the only original member without at least 1 title. In fact, they’ve made it to the final just twice, in 1962 and 2008, losing both times.
But there are signs that this could finally be the year in which the law of averages finally catches up with Clemson and ends its long drought.
For one thing, Brad Brownell’s team has already beaten top-seeded Duke, having handed the nation’s No. 1 team its only conference loss before a raucous court-storming crowd at Littlejohn Coliseum on Feb. 8. Its 26 wins are the most in a regular season in school history. And because of its No. 3 seeding, it won’t have to see the Blue Devils again until Saturday’s championship game.
But first things first. Before the Tigers can think about cutting down the nets at Spectrum Center, they’ll have to find a way to get through today’s opening game. That’s something they’ve failed to do in 50 of their previous 69 tournaments. And 23-win SMU, the No 6 seed, is hardly a pushover.
Which Wake Forest will show up in Charlotte?
Today’s quarterfinal showdown between Wake Forest and North Carolina is essentially an NCAA Tournament elimination game for both teams.
While a win won’t get either the Deacons or the Tar Heels into the field of 68, it will keep their slim hopes on life support for at least another day. A loss, on the other hand, will officially knock one of them off the bubble.
Even though Wake won the regular-season matchup between the in-state rivals, it’s a 5.5-point underdog in its rematch with the Tar Heels, according to DraftKings Sportsbook. A big reason for that is the up-and-down nature of the Deacons this season.
At its best, Steve Forbes’ team has looked every bit the part of a top-4 seed. It beat No. 22 Michigan back in November, led Duke for most of the second half before faltering down the stretch in February and routed Georgia Tech by 26 last Saturday. On the flipside, though, the Deacons are in bubble trouble because of inexplicable losses to ACC bottom-feeders NC State, Virginia and Florida State.
Those stumbles have helped drop Wake to No. 68 in the NCAA’s NET rankings. But with Quad 1 opportunities available over the next 3 days, starting with today’s game against UNC, an at-large bid is still a realistic possibility..
But only if the good Deacons show up in Charlotte.
Award-winning columnist Brett Friedlander has covered the ACC and college basketball since the 1980s.
