– by Adesina O. Koiki
A Lot of Sports Talk editor-in-chief
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WASHINGTON — The road to an all-Tobacco Road final at the 2024 ACC Men’s Basketball Tournament is still very clear. However, few would have guessed one of the cars that made it through heavy traffic to get themselves one step away from playing for the ultimate prize.
North Carolina State, the No. 10 seed in this year’s tournament, pulled off its third win in three days on Thursday night, taking out second-seeded Duke 74-69 in the third of four quarterfinal games inside Capital One Arena on Thursday evening. Despite the worry of fatigue going into the game for the Wolfpack, it was the Blue Devils who showed rust, missing their first nine field goal attempts of the game. NC State, meanwhile, made five of its 11 three-pointers in the first half on its way to a 35-32 halftime lead.
Arizona State transfer DJ Horne, who is just coming back from injury, scored 12 of his 18 points in the first half, and the Wolfpack did not relinquish the lead at any point in the second half.
Another upset almost was in the offing in the nightcap, but No. 3 Virginia was able to see off eleventh-seeded Boston College 66-60 in overtime to advance to the semifinals. Jacob Groves led the Cavaliers with 15 points and 11 rebounds, while the team’s leading scorer, Reece Beekman, chipped in with 11 points 11 assists and seven rebounds in 43 minutes played.
The Eagles, who defeated Miami and Clemson during the first two days of the tournament, took a six-point lead at halftime and, after losing the lead late, were able to tie the score on Mason Madsen’s long jumper right before the regulation buzzer to send the game into overtime. However, they were not able to score in the extra session until 57 seconds remaining remained in it, when a Claudell Harris three cut the Cavaliers’ lead to 63-60. A layup by Jordan Minor on the ensuing possession clinched the game for the Hoos, who are looking to win their first ACC Tournament since 2018.
*Editor’s note: Above the byline is the photo gallery from Thursday’s event, with all photos taken by ALOST staff photographers Yusuf Abdullah, Clifford Ray Williams and Elliott Brown. After clicking on the first photo to enlarge the picture, make sure to press the left and right arrow buttons to scroll through the rest of the pictures. There are 38 pictures in total.
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