While the focus will undoubtedly skew toward Duke — with or without Cooper Flagg — UNC, Clemson and Louisville are coming off thrilling finishes in their own quarterfinals.

Duke coach Jon Scheyer is practicing extreme caution with all-American Cooper Flagg as the Blue Devils seek an ACC title. But the 6-9 freshman should be back for NCAA Tournament.

It wasn't a surprise that a Duke freshman was named the Most Valuable Player of the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament on Saturday night. What may have been surprising is that he wasn't named Cooper Flagg.

North Carolina is headed to the 2025 NCAA Tournament as a No. 11 seed and part of the First Four in Dayton after narrowly sneaking in following a disappointing season. Gaining admission to the Big Dance should alleviate some of the heartbreak the Tar Heels felt following a heartbreaking loss to Duke in the ACC Tournament semifinals.

North Carolina was very much on the NCAA tournament bubble last week and projected by many to miss the field when it fell short of the ACC championship game in a heartbreaking semifinal loss to Duke.

The North Carolina Tar Heels’ NCAA Tournament journey is off to a chaotic start. North Carolina dealt with significant travel problems on Monday ahead of their First Four game in Dayton, Oh., according to Luke DeCock of The News & Observer.