Duke men’s basketball officially secured the No. 1 seed in this week’s ACC Tournament after the team’s defeat of North Carolina. The Blue Zone breaks down the Blue Devils’ potential path to a record-extending 23rd ACC Tournament title:
After Saturday’s Tar Heel takedown to close out the regular season, head coach Jon Scheyer’s squad shifts its focus to the upcoming ACC tournament. With the number one seed secured, the Blue Devils will sit out the first two rounds of play, before taking on the winner of Georgia Tech vs. Virginia Thursday at noon.
Duke bested both sides in the regular season, felling the Yellow Jackets 82-56 in mid December, before beating the Cavaliers 80-62 on February 17th. Neither side was able to hang with the Blue Devils on either end of the court, as the winning side made more than half of their attempts in both contests. On the defensive side, neither opponent was able to make more than 39% of their shots, a testament to Duke’s defensive dominance.
Should the Blue Devils prevail against Virginia or Georgia Tech Thursday, Duke would likely face Wake Forest or North Carolina in the next round. The semifinals should be more competitive than the quarterfinals, with the Winston-Salem based group being one of the few teams to give Duke a scare this season, and the Tar Heels undoubtedly hungry for revenge after being swept during the regular season.
The Demon Deacons almost took down Scheyer’s squad in late January, clogging up the paint and providing enough pressure on the outside to make the Blue Devils uncomfortable on the offensive end. However, on the road in Winston-Salem, the Durham side also put together a strong defensive showing and secured a low-scoring 63-56 victory.
The two teams matched up again two games ago, with Duke cruising to a 93-60 smacking. Scheyer’s team has evolved significantly since its January stumble, so another matchup with Wake Forest should end up similarly to the previous one. For the Tar Heels, the scoring ability of RJ Davis is an omnipresent threat, but as evidenced Saturday night, the Blue Devils seem a cut above their rival this season.
There’s a slight chance that neither the Demon Deacons or Tar Heels advance, as either Notre Dame or Pittsburgh could go on a Cinderella-style run, but Duke has more than enough skill on both sides of the ball to quickly dispatch either side.
In the finals, the Blue Devils would likely match up with either Louisville or Clemson. Since taking an 11-point road victory in its first contest of the conference slate, Duke hasn’t faced the Cardinals, and head coach Pat Kelsey’s group has improved greatly since then.
Chucky Hepburn has had a stellar season in his first campaign with Louisville, averaging 16.3 points per game. The team’s backcourt is a formidable unit, but its big men group is lacking and would likely struggle to give the Blue Devils much resistance around the rim.
The other likely opponent for Duke, Clemson, has been the only squad to take down the Blue Devils in 2025, led by Chase Hunter, Ian Schieffelin and Viktor Lakhin. Lahkin and Hunter both notched efficient scoring games in their victory, combining for 36 points on 14-of-20 shooting, but the Tigers won the game on the glass. Schieffelin led his team with 10 of their 36 rebounds, 13 more than Duke. If the Blue Devils can level up their effort on the boards, strong games from Lakhin and Hunter will still be a threat, but overcomeable.
On the off chance that neither Clemson or Louisville comes out of their side of the bracket, Duke’s opponent would likely be Stanford or SMU. The Mustangs would likely do so on the back of Boopie Miller, and the Cardinal would likely be led by Maxime Raynaud. While both are outstanding players, neither present a large threat to Duke, and would almost definitely see their upset runs stymied in the finals.
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