Here come the Blue Devils. Five wins in a row has Duke in a tie for first place in the ACC and climbing to a No. 3 in our updated men’s tournament field.
Technically, North Carolina remains the league’s current automatic qualifier thanks to a head-to-head win against Duke earlier this month. The two teams will meet in Durham to end the regular season on Mar. 9.
The Blue Devils’ run hasn’t come against the cream of the crop in the ACC: Notre Dame (71-53), Boston College (80-65), Wake Forest (77-69), Florida State (76-67) and Miami (84-65). None of the five teams are in the updated bracket, though the Demon Deacons are one of the first teams out of the field. But with five more games to go before the ACC tournament, a strong finish could lift Duke to a No. 2 seed.
Another contender on the rise is Creighton. The Bluejays have won four in a row capped by an 85-66 takedown of No. 1 Connecticut that may qualify as the best win by any Division I team this season. The Bluejays join Duke on the No. 3 line and, like the Blue Devils, could continue to rise up the bracket. Creighton still plays Seton Hall and Marquette before heading into the Big East tournament.
Last four in
Gonzaga, Nebraska, Nevada, Butler.
First four out
Villanova, Wake Forest, Mississippi, Cincinnati.
Next four out
Utah, Colorado, Providence, SMU.
Conference breakdown
Multi-bid leagues: Big 12 (9), SEC (8), Big Ten (6), Mountain West (6), Big East (5), ACC (4), American Athletic (2), Atlantic 10 (2), Pac-12 (2), West Coast Conference (2).
