ACC Tournament Semifinals Preview:

It was a great Friday of quarterfinal action in the ACC Tournament, with three games going down to the last possession.
The day started off with a repeat of last year: Virginia Tech outplaying UNC for most of the game only to see the Heels close it out in the last minute with some clutch shooting from Hansbrough. Just like last year, the Hokies played some of their best ball of the year in the ACC Tournament, but will likely not get over the hump into the NCAAs.
Florida State just beat surprise team Georgia Tech on a Derwin Kitchen layup and one with 7 seconds left. I didn't see any of this game so I don't know how it transpired but it looked like FSU was pretty much ahead the whole game.
Wake Forest didn't show up in their quarterfinal game, playing very poor perimeter defense and hoisting up way too many 3s in their loss to Maryland. The Terps had a healthy double digit advantage for most of the second half and now look like they will be in the Tournament.
Duke and Boston College played a very entertaining game that hinged on a last second 3 by Rakim Sanders. Sanders missed, and Duke won. The Devils played very strong defense but had a bad shooting first half (Gerald Henderson picked up 2 fouls in the first minute of the game). They came back to hit some shots in the second half, but give BC credit, they never folded.

That sets up a great semifinal Saturday:

#4 Florida State vs. #1 North Carolina (1:30)
The Seminoles lost a heartbreaker at home to UNC earlier this year on a Ty Lawson buzzer-beating 3 and will be looking for revenge. And they have a great shot, as Mr. Lawson might not play. In the Virginia Tech game, UNC went with Bobby Frasor at point, which was effective, but changed the whole tempo of the game. Still, the Heels have Tyler Hansbrough, who can single-handedly will the team to victory. I think a big key in this game will be Danny Green, who really struggled against the Hokies. If he can hit 3s over Florida State's outstanding defense Carolina has a great chance.
For Florida State, it's all about Toney Douglas. He is also the kind of player that just wills his team to victory. I am pretty high on the Noles and think they will do well in March Madness. And they have a good shot at victory here.

#7 Maryland vs. #3 Duke (4:00)
These teams don't like each other all that much. And while Maryland has a good history against Duke, they haven't gotten it done this year. Their performance in Cameron was pathetic, down 25 at halftime. That being said, there's no question Maryland is a different team now. But will that be enough to topple Duke?
Much of what Maryland does is based on emotion. Greivis Vasquez is a very emotional player and when he pours in 25 points a game his teammates feed off of that. On the other hand, Duke is a team that doesn't let itself get too up or down. They succeed off of precision, being where they need to be when they need to be there. And of course they win with lockdown defense. If Duke can force Maryland to get frustrated and throw up bad shots it could be a long day for the Terps.