After finally beating North Carolina last night, all that separates Duke from the ACC Tournament title is an extremely underrated Florida State squad.
When Zion Williamson returned from his knee injury, many pundits pronounced Duke as the team to beat in the ACC Tournament despite a 3-3 finish to the regular season. Critics argued that Williamson would need time to shake off the rust from his three week layoff, but they learned that it is foolish to bet against the best player in the country.
Williamson has been an impact player for Duke in both of their ACC Tournament victories, including last night’s 74-73 classic against North Carolina. The Tar Heels had beaten Duke twice without Williamson and hung tough throughout this one, but the Blue Devils simply had too much Zion for North Carolina to deal with.
Williamson was the unquestioned star for Duke, pouring in 31 points and grabbing 11 rebounds to help Duke advance to the ACC’s title game for the first time since they won it in 2017. While a lot of people are now back on the Duke bandwagon, they should be in for a significant challenge tonight against Florida State.
Overshadowed in all the Zion-hoopla was Florida State’s impressive victory over Virginia in the first semifinal. The Cavaliers had lost only twice entering the game, but Florida State dominated the glass, out-rebounding Virginia 35-20 to control the contest with their size.
That size should be a unique challenge for Duke, which has relied on the superior athleticism of Williamson, R.J. Barrett, and Cam Reddish to generate offense. Florida State is a veteran team that nearly made the Final Four a year ago, so they won’t be intimidated by seeing the Blue Devils’ fabulous freshmen take the floor.
How to watch Duke vs. Florida State
Date: Saturday, March 16
Time: 8:30 p.m. ET
Location: Charlotte, NC
Venue: Spectrum Center
TV: ESPN
Live Stream: WatchESPN