Duke is a No. 2 seed, faces Lehigh

Duke is a No. 2 seed in the NCAA tournament and will face Lehigh in its opening game on Friday at the Greensboro Coliseum.

The Mountain Hawks (26-7) won the Patriot League championship over Bucknell. Lehigh lost by nine points at Michigan State earlier this season.

The Blue Devils are in the same region as No. 1 overall seed Kentucky. No. 3 seed Baylor and No. 6 seed UNLV are two potential opponents for the Blue Devils.

If Duke can get past Lehigh, it would face Notre Dame or Xavier in the second round on Sunday in Greensboro. Notre Dame is coached by former Duke assistant Mike Brey.

The Blue Devils’ had a strong NCAA tournament resume with wins over No. 1 seeds North Carolina and Michigan State in addition to Kansas and Michigan.

After winning the NCAA title in 2010, Duke was eliminated in the Sweet 16 by Arizona last year.

-Jack Daly

ACC all-tournament team

ATLANTA — Florida State’s Michael Snaer earned ACC tournament MVP honors on Sunday after he led the Seminoles to an 85-82 victory against North Carolina in the tournament’s championship game. With the victory, FSU won its first ACC men’s basketball championship in school history.

Snaer on Sunday led the Seminoles with 18 points, and he made four 3-pointers. He averaged 18 points in Florida State’s three tournament victories.

North Carolina senior forward Tyler Zeller and sophomore point guard Kendall Marshall joined Snaer on the all-tournament first team. Florida State senior point guard Luke Loucks also received first-team honors, as did N.C. State sophomore forward C.J. Leslie.

North Carolina’s Harrison Barnes, Florida State’s Bernard James, N.C. State’s Lorenzo Brown, Duke’s Austin Rivers and Maryland’s Terrell Stoglin all made the all-tournament second team.

-Andrew Carter

No ACC comment on the no-call

The ACC declined Sunday to talk about the multiple controversies involving the referees and N.C. State at ACC tournament game on Sunday, but ESPN did, even the participants in the game-deciding sequence from Saturday's memorable game between the Wolfpack and North Carolina exchanged messages of mutual respect on Twitter.


ESPN showed the highlight of UNC's Kendall Marshall's game-winning shot over N.C. State's Alex Johnson with 10.2 seconds left in the 69-67 UNC win on a seemingly endless loop on Saturday night and into Sunday afternoon before the broadcast of the title game between the Tar Heels and Florida State at 1 p.m.


In a game that featured 42 fouls, including eight on charge or block calls, there was no call after Marshall and N.C. State guard Alex Johnson collided with about 12 seconds left while Marshall dribbled to the basket.

During ESPN's broadcast of the game, color analyst Len Elmore said after Marshall's shot: "Are you kidding me? With all of the contact and all of the fouls called? How can you ignore that play? It's gotta be a block or a charge but you can't ignore it."

On Sunday, ACC commissioner John Swofford, associate commissioner Karl Hicks and head of officials John Clougherty declined to comment about the officiating issues at the tournament, which started on Thursday when three officials each wore the initials "KH" on a piece of white tape on their sneakers.

The apparent tribute by officials Jamie Luckie, Mike Eades and Bernard Clinton was a reference to veteran ACC official Karl Hess, who declined an invitation to work the ACC tournament.

Hess ejected two former N.C. State players, Chris Corchiani and Tom Gugliotta, from their seats behind the scorers' table at the RBC Center on Feb. 18. Subsequently, the conference reprimanded Hess for not following the proper protocol in ejecting the fans.

Hess, whom Swofford has referred to as one of the best officials in college basketball, was invited to work the ACC tournament by Clougherty but declined, because he did not want to be a distraction, Clougherty said, and instead Hess worked the Big East tournament in New York.

The officiating issues moved back into the spotlight in the second half of the N.C. State-UNC game on Saturday. Brian Dorsey, who worked the Feb. 18th game in Raleigh with Hess, called two fouls on N.C. State's C.J. Leslie in a 32-second span in Saturday's game. Leslie had 22 points in the game before fouling out with 8:03 left in the game.

After the game, Leslie declined to comment about the foul situation, so did N.C. State coach Mark Gottfried, who had several heated exchanges with Dorsey during the second half of Saturday's game.

"Can't talk about that, you get fined," Gottfried said on Saturday.

N.C. State Debbie Yow declined to comment on Sunday about the issues between the program and the officials.
Marshall and Johnson diplomatically took the debate from the Philips Arena floor to Twitter on Saturday night.

Marshall, whose Twitter handle is "KButter5" wrote to Johnson, whose handle is "SupermanJohnson": "@SupermanJohnson coulda went either way, but I'll take it! make noise in the tourney bro."

Johnson responded: "Hopefully we get selected tomorrow and we will meet again! Lol."


A review of the ESPN telecast shows that Dorsey called four of the five fouls on Leslie and was involved in four key calls in the game.

Dorsey called a charging foul on Leslie at 8:35 in the second half, which was Leslie's fourth foul, and a reach-in on Leslie on a Harrison Barnes shot attempt at 8:03.

With 58.6 seconds left, Dorsey whistled Scott Wood for a foul on Barnes, with UNC trailing 67-66. Ray Natili was the official closest to the play but Dorsey came across the court to make the call.

On UNC's final sequence, Dorsey was on the baseline on the same side of the floor as Marshall and Johnson but didn't make a call with 10.2 seconds left, despite the similarities between the Marshall-Johnson collision and the charge he called after the Leslie collision with UNC forward Justin Watts at 8:35.

ESPN's Elmore was critical of the officiating throughout the second half of the broadcast, pointing out the inconsistencies of calls on similar plays.

"It's unfortunate because the officials out here have great reputations, that's why they're doing this game but everybody has a bad day," Elmore said. "Unfortunately, somebody has to pay for it."

Elmore also got on the officials when North Carolina's Tyler Zeller, who led all scorers with 23 points, fouled out, missing the final frenetic 68 seconds of the game.

"We mentioned both benches might have a quibble with the way this last eight minutes have been officiated," Elmore said. "Wow."

ESPN had to blur out Gottfried's reaction, which included profanity, to the no-call by Dorsey before the Marshall basket. 

"That's a charge!" Gottfried clearly screams to Dorsey.

ESPN's cameras didn't capture Dorsey's response but official Tim Nestor physically interceded and moved Dorsey to the other side of the court, away from Gottfried and the N.C. State bench.

A review of the game broadcast showed Dorsey made 16 foul calls in the game, same as Natili, with 10 against N.C. State and six against UNC. Natili made nine calls against UNC with seven against State and Nester had six calls against State and four against UNC.

Dorsey was involved in four block/charge calls, two in N.C. State's favor and two in UNC's. 

Johnson was involved in three block/charge collisions. He picked up a charge on James Michael McAdoo and Watts in the first half. Dorsey called the charge on Watts with 2:06 left in the first half.

ACC Tournament elevator

UP: A North Carolina-Florida State rematch. It’s not often that a potential ACC tournament championship game between UNC and Duke would seem like the less appealing of potential championship games. But that was the case on Saturday after the Tar Heels’ 69-67 victory against N.C. State in the ACC tournament semifinals. UNC and Florida State will play today for the second time this season and we all remember what happened the first time, when FSU handed the Heels an embarrassing 90-57 defeat that was the most lopsided defeat of the Roy Williams’ time at UNC.

UP: Justin Watts: The UNC senior has been a forgotten, unheralded player throughout his senior season. But all along, his teammates have spoken about how invaluable Watts has been behind the scenes. On Saturday, he proved his worth on the court, too. He did everything from playing point guard for the Heels, to defending N.C. State’s C.J. Leslie. And Watts’ late steal when the Pack had a chance to tie the game was among UNC’s most important plays.

UP: Florida State’s defense. During their 62-59 victory against Duke in the second ACC tournament semifinal, the Seminoles held the Blue Devils to 37.3 percent shooting. Duke’s 59 points were a season low, and the Blue Devils also committed 16 turnovers. Florida State turned those into 19 points.

DOWN: The officiating in UNC’s victory against N.C. State. Wolfpack coach Mark Gottfried declined to comment about the officiating after the game, so we’ll do it for him: It was inconsistent, at best. On both ends. The officials often wavered on block/charge calls, and seemed to call them differently throughout the game - or sometimes not call them at all. In some moments, they called the game tightly and in other moments they let both teams play physically. Consistency lacked.

DOWN: N.C. State’s finish. As much as Wolfpack fans might want to gripe about the refs, N.C. State had chances in the final moment to beat UNC, but the Wolfpack didn’t make winning plays. Instead they turned it over twice in the final minute with opportunities to either take the lead or tie the game.
Number of the day: 15. That’s how many times the lead changed before UNC prevailed with a 69-67 victory against N.C. State. The ACC tournament in recent years has been criticized for not being what it once was, and the UNC-State game provided a glimpse into the past. Emotions boiled while both teams played at a high level. The crowd at Philips Arena rose to its feet to watch the final minute or so – and with good reason.

DOWN: Statistical line of the day: During a low scoring semifinal Saturday, North Carolina’s Tyler Zeller stood out – even amid foul trouble. In 32 minutes against N.C. State, Zeller scored 23 points and had nine rebounds. Just another day for the ACC’s Player of the Year.

They said it: “We can’t think about that game and try to use that to win or we’re going to get beat. We can’t think it’s going to be easy or that we’re going to beat them by 30. It’s North Carolina. It’s not going to be easy. That’s what it’s going to come down to – who’s the toughest? Who’s the most focused?” –Florida State senior guard Michael Snaer on playing UNC for the ACC championship after the Seminoles’ 33-point victory against UNC on Jan. 14.

-Andrew Carter

UNC vs. Florida State: Who has the edge

STARTERS
Kendall Marshall (7.5 ppg, 9.7 apg) vs. Luke Loucks (6.6 ppg, 4.0 apg)

Loucks has developed into a solid starter in his senior season with the Seminoles, but Marshall is arguably the best point guard in the ACC and he recently set the ACC’s single-season record for assists. His ability to score has also improved, as evidenced most recently by his game-winning shot on Saturday against N.C. State in the semifinals of the ACC tournament.
EDGE: UNC

Reggie Bullock (8.7 ppg, 4.8 rpg) vs. Michael Snaer (14.4 ppg, 3.9 rpg)

Bullock has been an underrated part of UNC’s success during the second half of the season, and he’s developed into a very good defensive player. But Snaer is among the top eight players in the conference, and Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski described Snaer on Saturday as the fiercest competitor in the ACC. Snaer has made two game-winning 3-pointers at the buzzer this season.
EDGE: Florida State

Harrison Barnes (17.2 ppg, 5.1 rpg) vs. Deividas Dulkys (6.7 ppg, 2.6 rpg)

Dulkys had the game of his college career during FSU’s 90-57 victory against UNC in Tallahassee on Jan. 14. He scored 32 points and made 8 of his 10 3-point attempts. Since, though, he hasn’t scored more than 14 points in any game. Barnes has had a somewhat quiet season, given his level of expectations and those surrounding him, but he’s still one of the better players in the conference.
EDGE: UNC

James Michael McAdoo (5.4 ppg, 3.7 rpg) vs. Bernard James (10.6 ppg, 8.2 rpg)

McAdoo made his first career start on Saturday and is likely to start again today in place of the injured John Henson. McAdoo has played well during the final one-third of the season, and he has become more confident and aggressive. But James, a former staff sergeant in the Air Force, is a tough matchup for anybody, let alone a freshman making his second start.
EDGE: Florida State

Tyler Zeller (16.4 ppg, 9.2 rpg) vs. Xavier Gibson (7.1 ppg, 4.5 rpg)

Gibson is one of six Florida State seniors who have helped build the Seminoles into a regular ACC contender in recent seasons .His role has expanded this season, and he scored 16 points in FSU’s victory earlier this season at Duke. But Zeller is the ACC Player of the Year for a reason. He has been UNC’s most consistently productive player night-in and night-out since conference play began.
EDGE: UNC

BENCH
UNC’s P.J. Hairston, Justin Watts, Stilman White and Desmond Hubert vs. Florida State’s Okaro White, Jeff Peterson, Ian Miller and Jon Kreft

The Tar Heels’ bench was a weakness for most of the season and a major question mark entering the post season. But UNC’s reserves have put together their best back-to-back performances of the season. Still, the Seminoles have enviable depth. White is a rangy, athletic player who can take it inside or shoot from the perimeter, and Miller, an aggressive penetrator who can create his own shot, would start for most teams in the conference.
EDGE: Florida State

INTANGIBLES
Both teams will have no shortage of motivation. The Tar Heels are attempting to win the ACC tournament championship for the 18th time, while Florida State is seeking its first tournament championship. A Florida State victory would crown the Seminoles’ arrival as an ACC power, and it would provide proof that FSU’s 90-57 victory against UNC earlier this season wasn’t a fluke. A victory for UNC, meanwhile, would cement a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament for the Tar Heels, who desperately want to avenge that 33-point loss against Florida State – a defeat that was the worst of Roy Williams’ nine seasons as the Heels’ head coach.
EDGE: Even

-Andrtew Carter

DeCock: Duke will have hands full in semis sans Kelly

ATLANTA - Thanks to a late turnover by Virginia Tech, Duke escaped with a narrow win Friday night, but the 60-56 win raised as many questions as it answered for the Blue Devils.

Namely, who knew Ryan Kelly was so important to Duke?

Sure, the 6-foot-10 forward from Raleigh can stretch defenses with his 3-point shooting ability, and he's averaging 11.8 points and 5.4 rebounds, but it turns out his mere presence in Duke’s forward rotation is absolutely and unquestionably essential. The rest of it is a bonus.

With first Mason Plumlee and then Miles picking up early fouls, Krzyzewski used Josh Hairston liberally and resorted to a four-guard lineup for large portions of the game. (Micheal Gbinije, the presumed fourth option, never got off the bench.)

That let Virginia Tech hang around right to the finish. The Hokies had the ball down four with 26.4 seconds to go, but their turnover turned into an Austin Rivers and-one at the other end, all but sealing the win for Duke.

Perhaps more damaging, with the weakened forward rotation, Duke had to look outside for offense even more than usual, which ended up with an unusual result: A team-high 13 3-point attempts for Tyler Thornton, who made, uh, three. As a team, Duke went 5-for-26 from international waters while the two Plumlees and Hairston combined for 19 points.

That’s one thing against a team like Virginia Tech, which has a short bench and isn’t the biggest team in the world, but the situation will be completely different tomorrow, no matter the opponent.

Miami has Reggie Johnson and Kenny Kadji; Florida State has Bernard James and a cast of thousands. Whether it’s fouls to give, inside offense or sheer bulk on the boards, either team will have a significant advantage on Duke sans Kelly.

It was easy to guess that would be the case going into Friday’s game, but the narrow escape against the Hokies confirmed the worst-case scenario: The Blue Devils are going to have their hands full.

- Luke DeCock

John Henson vs. N.C. State: A look back

ATLANTA - If John Henson's injured left wrist keeps him out of North Carolina's ACC tournament semifinal game against N.C. State here on Friday, the Wolfpack likely wouldn't be too disappointed. Henson has simply dominated N.C. State throughout his career, and the Wolfpack hasn't had any answer for him inside.

Here's a look at how Henson has fared against N.C. State during the past three seasons:

Jan. 26, 2010 - North Carolina 77, N.C. State 63
7 minutes
2 points
1-2 FG
0-2 FT
0 offensive rebounds
2 defensive rebounds
3 blocks

Feb. 13, 2010 - North Carolina 74, N.C. State 61
26 minutes
9 points
4-9 FG
1-5 FT
3 offensive rebounds
5 defensive rebounds
3 blocks

Jan. 29, 2011 - North Carolina 84, N.C. State 64
30 minutes
16 points
6-10 FG
4-8 FT
4 offensive rebounds
12 defensive rebounds
7 blocks

Feb. 23, 2011 - North Carolina 75, N.C. State 63
33 minutes
8 points
3-7 FG
2-2 FT
4 offensive rebounds
11 defensive rebounds
6 blocks

Jan. 26, 2012 - North Carolina 74, N.C. State 55
28 minutes
9 points
4-9 FG
1-4 FT
2 offensive rebounds
8 defensive rebounds
5 blocks

Feb. 21, 2012 - North Carolina 86, N.C. State 74
33 minutes
14 points
6-11 FG
2-4 FT
2 offensive rebounds
11 defensive reboundsd
2 blocks

So in UNC's past four games against N.C. State, Henson has averaged 11.8 points, 13.5 rebounds and five blocks per game. If Henson is unable to play - and it appears there's a good chance he won't - then freshman James Michael McAdoo would make his first career start. McAdoo finished with 14 points and a team-high 8 rebounds in UNC's 85-69 victory against Maryland on Friday. McAdoo played a career-high 29 minutes.

- Andrew Carter

UNC forward John Henson on his wrist injury, playing status

All North Carolina junior forward John Henson could do was brace himself and hope for the best.

With about 15 minutes to play in the first half of the Tar Heels’ 85-69 victory against Maryland on Friday in the ACC tournament semifinals, Henson collided in the air with the Terrapins’ Ashton Pankey.

The collision came after Henson had secured a rebound, and he was attempting a follow shot when Pankey’s contact sent Henson tumbling. He lost his balance – and his footing – and used his left hand to break his fall. A media timeout provided Henson a brief reprieve, but he motioned to be taken out of the game after attempting a free throw.

When he left the game, he walked past the Tar Heels’ bench and straight towards their locker room. Henson later returned and played for 40 seconds before leaving the game again – this time permanently. An x-ray on his left wrist, conducted at halftime, came back negative.

But that doesn’t necessarily mean that Henson will play on Saturday when the Tar Heels face N.C. State in the ACC tournament semifinals at 1 p.m. at Philips Arena. Henson left the arena on Friday wearing a brace on his left wrist, and whether he plays Saturday won’t be decided until the hours or minutes before the game.

“I don’t know,” Henson said when asked whether he’d play against N.C. State. “We’ll see and, you know, we’ll know tomorrow morning probably before the game.”

Henson wanted to come back against Maryland.

“I tried to go a couple of times,” he said. “I was back here with a manager catching and passing and trying to dribble, and I just couldn’t. I don’t think I would have helped the team if I was out there.”

Henson described his wrist injury as a “sprain.” When he stepped to the free throw line in the moments after suffering the injury, he knew something was wrong as soon as he felt the ball hit his hands.

“It hurt so much to hold the ball,” he said. “And that’s when I knew I probably couldn’t go.”
And so he didn’t. The question now, of course, is whether Henson will on Saturday.

- Andrew Carter

Charlotte to pursue hosting ACC tournament

The ACC is expected to send out an RFP (request for proposal) this spring to sites interested in hosting the men's basketball tournament in the future and Charlotte plans to pursue the event.

The ACC tournament will be played in the Greensboro Coliseum in 2013 through 2015. After that, no sites have been determined.

Charlotte has not hosted the event since 2008. With approximately 20,000 seats available in Time Warner Cable Arena, the building fits the paramaters league officials want for future sites.

"The (Charlotte) building works for us size-wise in today's market," ACC commissioner John Swofford said. "The last experience in Charlotte was outstanding in every respect and the feedback we got from schools and fans was extremely positive."

Mike Crum, chief financial officer and vice president for business development with the Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority, said the group is already planning a proposal to the ACC.

"With the experience people had in 2008 and the additional improvements we've made to Charlotte as a travel and tourist destination, when we have the opportunity to tell our story, we'll have a great story to tell," Crum said.

Swofford said the traditional success of the tournament in Greensboro and Charlotte will likely keep the event based in North Carolina with occasional visits to other areas, perhaps Atlanta or Washington, D.C.

"My sense is the schools want to continue to bounce it out of North Carolina periodically but they understand the success of the tournament has been built largely in North Carolina," Swofford said.

-- Ron Green Jr.

Video: Update on injury to UNC's John Henson

North Carolina coach Roy Williams gives an update on Tar Heels forward John Henson's wrist injury and the chance he'll play in Saturday's ACC tournament semifinals.