ACC Teams Afraid of the Dark

Rise and shine Tar Heel fans. It's game day. Eight hours and 45 minutes until tip-off and I hope you're pumped. Knowing you have a game coming up is a great feeling, one that a number of ACC teams will not be able to feel for quite some time.

After going 3-1 on the first day and a half of tournament play, ACC teams went 0-3 on Saturday night. Big Ten teams won both ACC/B10 matchups by a combined five points. Aside from Carolina, who tends to own the Big Ten in NCAA Tournament play, it seems the Big Ten is winning the Challenge that actually matters. The most surprising ACC loss is #4 seed Wake Forest who got taken out behind the woodshed by Cleveland State. This one wasn't even close, though their tournament performances since 2000 have been underwhelming (at 5-6 overall with one Sweet 16 appearance). So, I don't know about you, but looking at this team (young, inexperienced, struggling down the stretch) and the matchup with Clev. St. (who beat #3 seed Syracuse at home on a buzzer shot), maybe it wasn't such a surprise.

I consider the FSU loss a bigger surprise because in my opinion Wisconsin was the "last team in," not an Arizona squad that has beaten some people and could still beat some more. But the one thing not beating people right now is the ACC, hopefully Carolina is able to change that.

And with the sunset in Greensboro predicted to be 7:32pm, let's make sure we leave no room for doubt. Duke, on the other hand, their tip-off is 8:15pm, and they better hope they have their blankeys.