ACC Basketball: Day Two Afternoon Session Recap

No. 8 Pittsburgh vs. No. 9 Syracuse

The first game of Day Two at the ACC Tournament got off to a slow start thanks to clock troubles, but the ending certainly didn’t disappoint.

Syracuse opened the game with a 22-12 run, but the Pittsburgh Panthers roared back at the end of the first half behind some tremendously stingy defense to take a 31-29 lead to the half.

Jamie Dixon’s squad continued to pull ahead at the start of the second half behind some hot shooting from freshman Cameron Johnson, who came in averaging just 4.3 points a game, but finished with a career-high 24 points.  The Panthers continued to dominate the rest of the half and found themselves ahead 66-54 with 4:22 left.

In what many considered an elimination game for one of the last few at-large spots in the NCAA Tournament, the Orange didn’t go down easily. Jim Boeheim’s squad began to press the Panthers and were able to create plenty of turnovers that allowed them to inch their way back into the game.

A fatsbreak dunk from Michael Gbinije, who finished with 24 points, tied the game up at 68-68 with just 1:54 and the Syracuse faithful in attendance roared in approval. While the Orange put together a valiant comeback, DC native James Robinson grabbed a steal and finished a coast-to-coast layup with 1:04 to put Pittsburgh up 70-68. After Gbinije missed a jumper on the other end, Robinson showed the ice in his veins once again with a mid-range jumper to put the Panthers up 72-68 with only 22 seconds left.

Gbinije kept the slim hopes of a Syracuse comeback alive with a triple, but after a missed free throw from Sheldon Jeter, Trevor Cooney missed a potential game-winning three and Pittsburgh hung on for the 72-71 victory.

Final: Pittsburgh 72     Syracuse 71

My Player of the Game: Cameron Johnson (Pittsburgh): 24 Pts (8-of-16), 6 Rebounds

Next Up: No. 8 Pittsburgh vs. No. 1 North Carolina

No. 5 Duke vs. No. 12 NC State

Following the defensive battle between the two former Big East teams in Pittsburgh and Syracuse, game two at Verizon Center was completely the opposite.

High-flying Duke and NC State played in what felt like an NBA game as the teams traded buckets for the entire 40 minutes. Brandon Ingram, who will likely ply his trade in the NBA next season, showed why he is such an exciting prospect with his first half performance. The 6’9” freshman drained three-pointers from the outside and was able to convert in the paint as well. All in all, Ingram finished with 19 first half points, but even while Ingram was nearly unstoppable, NC State and Cat Barber were even better.

Barber finished with 15 first half points and the Wolfpack shot 22-of-35 (62.9%) from the field to take a 53-50 lead to the break.

Neither team could string defensive stops together and the shootout continued into the second half. For Duke though, their second half hero wasn’t Grayson Allen or Brandon Ingram, it was Marshall Plumlee. The 6’11” graduate student was a force all afternoon and flushed home a dunk to put the Blue Devils up 74-72. Over the next four minutes, Plumlee and Duke continued to dominate the glass and two three-pointers from Grayson Allen helped extend the lead to 84-75 with 6:06 left.

In a game that was full of runs, the Wolfpack clawed their way back into the game with ten straight points from Barber and a Cody Martin jumper to tie the game at 89-89 with 1:34 remaining. When Duke needed someone to carry them late, it was Plumlee once again as the high-energy center converted an and-one with 1:14 left to put Coach Krzyzewski and the Blue Devils up 92-89.

NC State had chances late to try and tie the game, but nothing would fall. Barber (29 points) heaved one last three-point attempt as the seconds ticked down that clanked off the backboard to secure the 92-89 win for Duke.

Final: Duke 92    NC State 89

My Player of the Game: Marshall Plumlee: 17 points (5-of-5), 10 Rebounds

Next Up: No. 5 Duke vs. No. 4 Notre Dame