Back to Greensboro we go for the 2013 (and 2014 and 2015) ACC Tournament. Jim Boeheim can't wait. (Pic per OrangeandWhite.com)

With the sheer number of upsets in college basketball this year, are we due for a wild week in Greensboro, N.C.? (Well, as wild as a week can get in Greensboro).

The ACC Tourney is certainly due for some excitement.

In the last two seasons, there hasn’t been an upset that wasn’t within three seeds.

It’s been since 2009 that a non-1 or 2 seed has won the title (been since 2004 that a team seeded lower than third won it, Maryland).

Previewing day one…

Round One

12:00 – 8. Boston College (15-16, 7-11) v. 9. Georgia Tech (16-14, 6-12)

Previous Meeting(s): 74-72 BC home win.

What’s on the line (besides advancement): Boston College can win its fourth-straight game.

Key matchup: Jackets holding down Hanlan – Georgia Tech’s scoring can come from any number of places, often doesn’t come enough en route to the 6-12 conference mark, but BC has been able to count on freshman guard Olivier Hanlan. In the last six games, Hanlan has scored 20-plus points in upsets of Maryland and Clemson and double-figures in eight-straight.

The difference: Both teams have found something down the stretch, with the Eagles winning three-straight and Georgia Tech 2-of-4. Tech led the bulk of the matchup in Chestnut Hill over the weekend before letting it slip away at the end. BC has some solid shooters, a different-than-most playing style on both ends and confidence right now.

Pick: Boston College

2:30ish – 5. NC State (22-9, 11-7) v. 12. Virginia Tech (13-18, 4-14)

Previous Meeting(s): 90-86 OT win for the Wolfpack at home.

What’s on the line (besides advancement): State is playing for NCAA seeding and maybe a sleeper run to a title after a disappointing regular season as the preseason favorite. For the Hokies, Erick Green can keep his school record-setting scoring season going with the upset.

Key matchup: Hokies guarding Wolfpack forward Scott Wood – He hit six three-pointers to lead State in scoring (22) in the first matchup. The Hokies allowed Deacs guard C.J. Harris to knock down six from long-range (out of six attempts) in a 90-79 road loss on Sunday.

The difference: NC State scores (75.1 ppg in ACC play) and the Hokies don’t defend (75.7 ppg allowed).

Pick: NC State

7:00 – 7. Maryland (20-11, 8-10) v. 10. Wake Forest (13-17, 6-12)

Previous Meeting(s): Maryland 67-57 in Winston-Salem; 86-60 Maryland in College Park.

What’s on the line (besides advancement): The Deacs can top their best win mark yet under Jeff Bzdelik.

Key matchup: Deacs’ second chances against Maryland’s size – Wake Forest didn’t shoot well in either matchup against Maryland (32.7 and 34.4 percent), and consequently, were also a combined minus-31 in rebound margin.

The difference: Motivation is a tricky thing this time of year, and Maryland, who had been a borderline NCAA Tourney bubble team until recently, is going to struggle to have much come Thursday. They’ve lost 5-of-7 coming in, while Wake snapped a run of three-straight losses at home against Virginia Tech. The Deacs have been ridiculously bad in the ACC Tourney under Bzdelik, losing by 19 points per game…so I’m stepping out on a limb here for the upset pick.

Pick: Wake Forest

9:30ish – 6. Florida State (17-14, 9-9) v. 11. Clemson (13-17, 5-13)

Previous Meeting(s): 71-66 FSU in Clemson; 60-57 FSU in Tallahassee.

What’s on the line (besides advancement): For the Tigers, it’s keeping their skid from dropping to losses in 9-of-10 games. FSU is the returning ACC Tournament champ, and look to continue to build on a strong finish, graduating just one scholarship senior.

Key matchup: Clemson guard offensive production against FSU D – Clemson matched Miami blow-for-blow early down on the road last weekend with 12 quick points from freshman Jordan Roper in the game’s first five minutes, but he didn’t score again. The other Tiger guards contributed four points total in the 62-49 loss. Clemson is far from a guard-oriented team, but four points in the final 35 minutes of a game isn’t going to cut it Thursday.

The difference: FSU is playing well – Clemson isn’t, which explains the disparity in seeding. That may not mean a thing come the Thursday nightcap in Greensboro, but we shall see. The Tigers actually own the better of two poor average scoring margins in ACC play (-5.2 to -6.1).  They had the Seminoles on the ropes in Tallahassee before some foul trouble setup a banked-in Michael Snaer buzzer-beater three-pointer. Have a feeling the Tigers might make this interesting, but I’m struggling to pick the upset.

Pick: Florida State

Quarterfinals (Prediction in Bold)

12:00 – 1. Miami (24-6, 15-3) v. 8. Boston College

2:30ish – 4. Virginia (21-10, 11-7) v. 5. NC State

7:00 – 2. Duke (27-4, 14-4) v. Wake Forest

9:30ish – 3. UNC (22-9, 12-6) v. Florida State

Semifinals

1:00 – 1. Miami v. 5. NC State

3:00 – 2. Duke v. 3.UNC

Final

1:00 – 1. Miami v. 2. Duke

The Why: Miami has stumbled to the finish, splitting their final six games, while Duke has rolled since getting Ryan Kelly back. After the Hurricanes drilled the Blue Devils in Coral Gables (90-63) and Duke edged Miami (79-76) in the rematch, this promises to be a classic. Both teams are battle-tested, but I have a feeling Miami gets it together for a strong run into the NCAA Tournament.

Bonus

All-ACC Team (If I voted)

VT guard Erick Green (Player of the Year – Green was relentless on a team where it would’ve been easy to take some nights off. Unquestioned ACC POY in my eyes).
Miami guard Shane Larkin
Virginia guard Joe Harris
NC State forward Richard Howell
Duke forward Mason Plumlee

Miss  regular posts from us? (Anybody?) I’m breaking down ACC baseball every week on a blog on OrangeandWhite.com and will talk plenty of ACC football as well this spring and summer.

Kenny Kadji more than made up for the absence of injured fellow Hurricanes big man Reggie Johnson, helping Miami (11-3, 2-0 ACC) defeat the Tar Heels (10-5, 0-2 ACC) by pouring in 18 points, nine rebounds, and four blocks. James Michael McAdoo led the Heels with 14 points and six rebounds. The Miami win ended a ten game losing streak to North Carolina.

No. 20 NC State 83, Georgia Tech 70

NC State improves to 2-0 in ACC play and 13-2 overall. Georgia Tech falls to 0-2 and 10-4 overall.

Boston College 86, Virginia Tech 75

Boston College improves to 1-1 in ACC play and 9-6 overall. Virginia Tech falls to 0-2 and 9-6 overall.

Florida State 65, Maryland 62

Florida State improves to 2-0 in ACC play and 10-5 overall. Maryland falls to 1-1 and 13-2 overall.

Wake Forest 55, Virginia 52

Wake Forest improves to 1-1 in ACC play and 8-6 overall. Virginia falls to 1-1 and 11-4 overall.

Quinn Cook scored a career-high 27 points for Duke (15-0, 2-0 ACC) as they stifled Clemson (8-6, 0-2 ACC) with their pressure defense, holding the Tigers to just 10 points in the first half (their lowest scoring first half in 12 years). Devin Booker led the Tigers with 12 points and 15 rebounds but it was nowhere near enough to make this a competitive game. **Duke forward Ryan Kelly left the game with a right ankle injury early in the second half and did not return. His status is undetermined for Duke’s game Saturday at NC State.

Stat fact: The 10 points allowed in the first half against the Tigers was the fewest points allowed in a half against an ACC team for Duke since February 24, 1979, when they shut out rival North Carolina in the first half.

Virginia (11-3, 1-0 ACC) used a 15-2 run in the second half to take the lead for good over visiting North Carolina (10-4, 0-1 ACC), thanks in large part to junior guard Joe Harris, who finished the game with 19 points for the Cavaliers. Reggie Bullock led the Tar Heels with 22 points, but the Heels as a team only shot about 37 percent from the floor, and that would doom them in their ACC opener. James Michael-McAdoo was the only other player in the game to score in double-figures, finishing the contest with ten points, but only made four of his nine shot attempts from the floor. The win gave Virginia their first win over North Carolina at John Paul Jones Arena.

Ryan Kelly and Seth Curry each had 22 points for the Blue Devils (14-0, 1-0 ACC) as they rolled over Wake Forest (7-6, 0-1 ACC), despite 22 points and 11 rebounds by Demon Deacon forward Travis McKie. The Devils hit 11 three-pointers on 24 attempts and forced 19 Wake Forest turnovers.

No. 23 NC State 78, Boston College 73

The Wolfpack (12-2, 1-0 ACC) escaped the Eagles’ (8-6, 0-1 ACC) upset bid in Chestnut Hill, as ten players scored in double-figures in the conference-opener for both teams. Freshman Rodney Purvis led six NC State players in double-figures with 19, and Richard Howell had yet another double-double for the Pack with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Sophomore forward Ryan Anderson led all scorers with 22 points and 13 rebounds for the Eagles.

Maryland 94, Virginia Tech 71

Maryland (13-1, 1-0 ACC) was very impressive as they dismantled Virginia Tech (9-5, 0-1 ACC) thanks to freshmen Seth Allen (21 points) and Jake Layman (20 points). Erick Green scored 28 points to try and keep the Hokies in the ballgame but it was nowhere near enough as they never got the Terrapin lead closer than 15 in the second half in the ACC opener for both teams.

Miami 62, Georgia Tech 49

Miami (10-3, 1-0 ACC) handed Georgia Tech (10-3, 0-1 ACC) their first loss ever in the new McCamish Pavilion thanks to a career high 22 points off the bench from Rion Brown. The Hurricanes dominated the boards, out-rebounding the Jackets 40-29 for the game. Georgia Tech hit just 17 of 52 shots, as they played from behind the whole second half.

Florida State 71, Clemson 66

The Seminoles (9-5, 1-0 ACC) held off a furious second half rally by the Tigers (8-5, 0-1 ACC) thanks to Okaro White (who scored 15 points to lead the ‘Noles) when he stole a Clemson in-bounds pass with 17 seconds left, giving Florida State a road victory. Clemson forward Devin Booker led all scorers in the ACC opener with 19 points and 11 rebounds.

Sat.: Wake Forest (7-5) @ Duke (13-0): Blue Devils 82-61
Virginia Tech (9-4) @ Maryland (12-1): Terps 82-69
Miami (9-3) @ Georgia Tech (10-2): ‘Canes 68-65
NC State (11-2) @ Boston College (8-5): Wolfpack 74-65
Florida State (8-5) @ Clemson (8-4): Tigers 67-64
Sun.: UNC (10-3) @ Virginia (10-3): ‘Hoos 68-66

Top-ranked Duke (13-0) remained unbeaten as they took down a feisty Davidson (7-6) team in Charlotte. The game was tied at 29 at the half, but Duke used tough defense to run away from the Wildcats.

Wake Forest 66, Xavier 59

The Demon Deacons (7-5) got 19 points from Travis McKie as they beat Xavier (7-6) in the Skip Prosser Classic. The win was Wake Forest’s third straight.

Georgia Tech 74, Chattanooga 58

The Yellow Jackets (10-2) won their sixth straight as they handled their business against Chattanooga (5-9) at home Wednesday night. Marcus Georges-Hunt scored 16 points to lead Georgia Tech as they remain undefeated at home.

Auburn 78, Florida State 72

The Seminoles (8-5) lost a game on the road they really shouldn’t have at Auburn (6-7). Michael Snaer scored 18 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for Florida State, but it wasn’t enough to avoid an embarrassing loss for the ACC.

Miami 76, La Salle 59

The Hurricanes (9-3) took down La Salle (9-3) at home Wednesday night thanks to 18-point outings by guards Durand Scott and Shane Larkin. The ‘Canes trailed by six at the half but outscored the Explorers 46-23 in the second half.

Clemson 92, Citadel 51

Clemson (8-4) closed out their non-conference schedule with a win at home over the Citadel (3-8) Tuesday night. Freshman Adonis Filer scored a career high 21 points and didn’t miss a shot from the floor as he led the Tigers to their second straight victory.

E.J. Manuel can win a fourth bowl game he's taken the majority of snaps, in the ACC's top spot, Miami (pic per OrangeandWhite.com).

Orange (Miami, Fla.): No. 12 Florida State (11-2) v. No. 16 Northern Illinois (12-1), Jan. 1, 8:30 p.m. ET

Why To Watch: Well, it’s the last ACC football of the season, and FSU is prone to making games that aren’t supposed to be interesting – interesting.

Who To Watch (Huskies): QB Jordan Lynch – Quarterback Jordan Lynch enters No. 4 in the nation in rushing (1,771 yards/136.2 YPG), and also in the top-25 in pass efficiency (152.9) with almost 3,000 yards passing and 43 total touchdowns.

Stat Advantage for FSU: Passing defense v. Northern Illinois’ pass attack – Lynch is a solid passer, with a middle-of-the-road 60th-best pass offense, but faces the No. 3 pass ‘D’ in the ‘Noles (160.8 YPG).

Stat Advantage for Northern Illinois: Turnover margin – NIU ranks in the top-30, while FSU is 96th.

What Happens: FSU is nearly a two-touchdown favorite, and the Seminoles’ senior class is going for a fourth-straight bowl win. NIU has been impressive, reeling off 12-straight wins, at almost 24 points per in scoring margin, and the trip to sunny south Florida is their fifth-straight bowl. If the ‘Noles are focused, they should pull away, but the Huskies aren’t going to lay down easily.

The Picks: Brandon Rink – FSU 31-20; Griffin Wong – FSU 31-14; J.J. Greenstein – FSU 31-21; W. Gustin Vandiford – FSU 44-17.