The Florida State Seminoles have been known as a great defensive team throughout the season. However, sometimes hot shooting can trump any defense. That was the case Saturday afternoon as Duke shot 46% from behind the arc to win another ACC Championship by the count of 79-69.
Duke seized control of this game from the beginning behind the strong efforts of Jon Scheyer and Gerald Henderson, who finished with 29 and 27 points, respectively. These two joined Kyle Singler by making four three-pointers a piece and ended the Seminoles' dream of capturing their first ACC Tournament title.
Florida State did not go down without a fight, however, as they battled back on a couple occasions after being down by over 20. They were lead by yet another strong performance by senoir guard Toney Douglas, who finished with 28 points. After hitting only four shots in the entire first half, the Noles had a much better second half and finished shooting 47% from the floor. However, the hole they dug themselves in the first half was just too deep and timely three point shots from the Blue Devils would not allow them to get back in the game.
It is also important to note that the much smaller Blue Devils were able to out-rebound the tallest team in the nation, 34-30. This is quite a feat for Duke, who now looks to end their recent struggles in the NCAA tournament. While the case could certainly be made for Duke to grab the final number one seed, look for the Blue Devils to grab a two seed when the pairings are announced in a couple hours.
This was certainly an exciting ACC tournament, with several games going down to the wire and great performances by Toney Douglas and Jon Scheyer. Now the nation turns to the wisdom of Greg Gumbel, as the selection show gets ready to air at 6:00 on CBS. So grab a seat and get ready to see where our Deacons will end up as you try to stay awake through the Big Ten Championship!