ACC Bracketology: NC State off bubble, UVA and UNC title favorites

CHAPEL HILL, NORTH CAROLINA - FEBRUARY 26: (L-R) Sterling Manley #21, Brandon Huffman #42 and Andrew Platek #3 of the North Carolina Tar Heels cheer during their game against the Syracuse Orange at the Dean Smith Center on February 26, 2019 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images) /

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Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images /

Locks

Virginia Cavaliers, North Carolina Tar Heels, Duke Blue Devils, Virginia Tech Hokies, Florida State Seminoles, Syracuse Orange, Louisville Cardinals

There are a lot of locks in this week’s edition, although one team is teetering on the side of “Work left to do”. The Virginia Cavaliers and North Carolina Tar Heels lead the way as top contenders for No. 1 seeds currently.

Freshmen Nassir Little and Coby White have stolen the show for North Carolina this season. White put up a career-high 34 points against Syracuse on Wednesday night, becoming the first freshman in school history to achieve three 30-plus point games.

The Cavaliers did away with the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets behind solid showing from the trio of Ty Jerome, De’Andre Hunter and Kyle Guy. The trio hopes to keep things going with their first game in March this Saturday.

The Duke Blue Devils loss to the Virginia Tech Hokies this past Wednesday could or couldn’t hurt their chances, depending on how you look at it. It’s worth noting though, the Hokies have gone eight games without senior guard Justin Robinson and have won five of those games.

Duke could get a pass depending on how many games Williamson misses and if they struggle when he returns. For now, consider them a 2-seed.

The Hokies have quietly climbed into fourth place in the ACC standings at 11-5 with a marquee win over Duke. Their seed continues to rise with the emergence of Kerry Blackshear Jr., but they’ll need Robinson back for the tournament. Consider them a 5-seed.

The Florida State Seminoles got back to their winning ways after falling big to the Tar Heels on the road this past Saturday. They’re still a solid lock to make the NCAA Tournament, with their seed teetering in the 5/6 range. For now, they’re pushing for a 6-seed.

The Syracuse Orange and Louisville Cardinals are two teams that have been on losing streaks of late. The Orange have lost two games in a row and the Cardinals have lost three in a row. They’ll need to finish strong if they hope to get a high seed. Right now, both teams can be considered 9-seeds.