ACC Tournament Cheering Guide: Day One

The ACC Tournament is officially underway today, and while the Virginia Cavaliers do not play until tomorrow night, there’s certainly plenty to keep an eye on and Wahoo fans have a rooting interest. Virginia almost definitely needs to win the ACC Tournament in order to make the big dance.

There is a balance to be found between rooting for upsets which might make Virginia’s path easier, and rooting for good teams to knock off the higher seeds later on.

Here is the bracket:

Game 1: #12 Pittsburgh vs #13 Boston College
Time: Today at 2PM
Line: BC -2
Who to root for: Boston College
Why: This is on the other side of the bracket, so it almost definitely does not matter. The chances of Virginia facing either of these teams in the tournament is almost zero. However, should one of these teams go on a big run, Virginia would be happy to face either in the Final. We’re rooting for BC for two reasons. First, Virginia handled BC much more easily than they handled Pitt this year. And second, despite being the lower seed, BC is a better team and has a better (albeit small) chance to knock off Wake Forest in the next round.

Game 2: #10 Clemson vs #15 NC State
Time: Today at 4:30PM
Who to root for: Clemson
Line: Clemson -5
Why: The winner of this game faces the Hokies in the next round, and Clemson is coming off a win over the Hokies. The Hokies were 1-1 this season against the Wolfpack, but the loss was way back in early January, and NC State has one win since crushing the Hoos on January 22nd. Clemson is the better team and has a better chance of knocking off the Hokies.

Game 3: #11 Louisville vs #14 Georgia Tech
Time: Today at 4:30PM
Line: Louisville -1.5
Who to root for: Louisville
Why: This is the only game that truly matters for Virginia, as they will face the winner of this game. Virginia just won on Louisville’s home court, on senior day. And though it didn’t end up the blowout it seemed it could’ve been, the Wahoos were not seriously threatened in the second half. The Cardinals have won twice in two months. They have lost interest and are just waiting for the season to end.

Check back tomorrow for a Day 2 guide, as well as a preview of Virginia’s opponent.