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Report: ACC Tournament could be played at Madison Square Garden

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The ACC Tournament, which has always been held in traditional ACC territory, may be making a move up north to the world’s most famous arena, Madison Square Garden.

Duke last played in Madison Square Garden against Michigan State in 2011, but may soon be playing the ACC Tournament at MSG every year. (Chronicle File Photo)

Duke last played in Madison Square Garden against Michigan State in 2011, but the Blue Devils may soon be playing the ACC Tournament at MSG every year. (Chronicle File Photo)

ESPN New York is reporting that the ACC is “investigating” playing it’s men’s basketball tournament at Madison Square Garden, with one source going so far as to saying that the only thing preventing the tournament’s relocation is legal ramifications.

Madison Square Garden was the home of the Big East Tournament since 1983, but now the former Big East has disintegrated. The new Big East reached a deal with Madison Square Garden to hold it’s tournament in the Big Apple through 2026, but Madison Square Garden can get out of its contract with the new Big East if the league fails to meet certain specifications.

Greensboro, N.C., the home of the 2013 ACC Tournament, will also host the tournament in 2014 and 2015, but after that the location is up for grabs. Madison Square Garden did not apply for the tournament by the official deadline, but there are ways around that formality. In addition to Madison Square Garden, there is a chance the ACC could take its talents to Brooklyn and play in the Barclays Center.

With the addition of northern schools like Pittsburgh, Syracuse and Notre Dame to the ACC next season, the conference is already experimenting with new locations for its conference championships. The conference announced last month that the ACC Tournament for men’s lacrosse will be held at PPL Park in Philadelphia in 2014 and 2015. With a new northern base centered around former Big East powers, a potential move to Madison Square Garden is a prospect that should be taken seriously.

Duke basketball vs. Maryland live updates

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Duke 74, Maryland 83 (FINAL): Seth Curry’s timely three-pointer from the top of the key brough Duke within six points. On Duke’s next possession, Thornton had two very good looks from beyond the arc, but he could not hit it—the story of tonight for Duke. Maryland, meanwhile, continued to play aggressively and make the Blue Devils pay at the charity stripe to pull off the upset for the Terrapins.

Duke 62, Maryland 69 (3:26, second half): The cold shooting continues for the Blue Devils. Thornton missed badly on an open trey from the wing and later Kelly failed to convert on a three-point attempt from the left wing. Maryland continues to play aggressively and has Duke on its heels down the stretch. Two free-throws by Curry and a lay-up by Cook brought Duke within nine points. Two more free-throws, another nifty lay-up by Cook and lay-up by Plumlee have reduced the Terps’ lead to just seven points. Wells comes up limping before the media timeout for Maryland.

Duke 52, Maryland 59 (7:39, second half): Like he did in the first half, ‘Sheed is showing offensive aggression. He now has two second-half buckets, giving him 16 points on the evening.

But Maryland took advantage of a mismatch on a switch, allowing Nick Faust to hit an open 3-pointer and opening the lead back up to seven. After Hairston responded with two free throws, Alex Len threw home a slam, putting the Terrapin fans back on their feet.

Duke is showing hustle, but they still can’t make their shots. Now 2-of-16 from beyond the arc. Much different game if they’re hitting a normal percentage, which would be closer to six or seven made shots in that many attempts.

Duke 46, Maryland 50 (11:51, second half): Though it’s a bit strange ‘Sheed didn’t play for the first 4:51 minutes of the half, Thornton made a key layup, bringing Duke within two, the first time since early in the first half Duke has been that close.

‘Sheed eventually checked in for Cook with 15:09.

The Blue Devils brought the game within one after a three-point play from Kelly, making the score 45-44. That’s when the Duke fans got loud. They got loud once again after Plumlee hit two free throws to again bring the game within one. Plumlee now leads the Blue Devils with 13 points, six of which have come off emphatic dunks.

Plumlee looked like he tied the game at one point, but the bucket was whistled back for a charge.

Duke still is cold from beyond the arc, going just 2-of-15. Curry is 1-for-5, Kelly is 0-for-4.

Hairston is 0-for-2 on midrange jumpers.

Duke 37, Maryland 41 (16:43, second half): It looked like the half was off to a good start when Mason Plumlee made a hook shot, but Maryland responded with five unanswered points.

But in what could be the turning point of this game, Curry nailed a 3-pointer and was fouled, converting for the four-point play and bringing the Blue Devils within six. That got the Duke fans on their feet. Curry and Kelly need to get going for this game to even up.

Seth then hit a jumper to bring Duke within four, forcing Mark Turgeon to call a timeout.

Notable that ‘Sheed, after scoring 12 in the first half, didn’t start this half. He hasn’t checked in yet either. Thornton started the game, but after such a strong performance, you’d think ‘Sheed might be rewarded with some minutes.

Duke 26, Maryland 34 (HALFTIME): A sign of change toward the end of the half? Thornton got on the board with his first points and Duke’s first 3-pointer of the game, bringing Duke within four. Faust responded with a trey on the ensuing possession, but a three for Duke is bigger than one for Maryland—the Blue Devils need to get hot from beyond the arc to atone for their early game struggles.

Overall now, the Terrapins are 6-of-13 from beyond the arc, Duke is 1-for-10, closing the half out with a missed trey by Cook.

‘Sheed added another jumper and now has 12 points off the bench. Think he starts in the second half?

Key halftime stats:

  • Duke 10-of-30 (33%) from the field.
  • Duke 1-of-10 (10%) from 3-point range, Maryland 6-of-13 (46.2%).
  • 0 points for Seth Curry.
  • Rasheed Sulaimon 4-of-8 from the field and 4-for-4 from the free throw line.
  • Dez Wells with 16 points on 7-of-9 shooting.

Duke 21, Maryland 28 (3:01, first half): Ryan Kelly became the next Blue Devil to get on the board with an acrobatic and-one, finishing a no-look layup through contact and hitting the foul shot. That brought the Blue Devils within nine, then Cook hit a floater to bring the game within seven, energizing the Duke crowd.

Naturally, Dez Wells responded with the game’s next points, though Plumlee put home his second slam of the night to keep it within seven.

Both teams really worked frantically in transition for a few consecutive possessions, though neither team was able to convert. In that span, Kelly missed another 3-pointer–he’s now 0-for-3 from deep. Overall, Duke is 0-for-7 on 3-pointers. That has to change from them to turn this game around.

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Duke basketball gears up for ACC Tournament

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Members of the Duke basketball team met with the media Wednesday afternoon, where they discussed the team’s preparation and mentality going into this weekend’s ACC Tournament, the recent lineup shuffle, and the tournament’s future. Here are the highlights of what they said:

One of the hot topics for the Blue Devils who addressed the media was the recent struggles of Rasheed Sulaimon. (Photo Credit: Ella Banka/The Chronicle).

Quinn Cook:

  • “We led 14-0, they kind of made a little run back, but we stayed poised, stuck to our game plan, stayed in charge the whole game. Some slip-ups in the second half, myself a couple turnovers, some miscues on their press—we’ve been doing a lot of press stuff—but it’s all about keeping that hunger that we have right now”—On what the team hopes to carry forward from the UNC win into postseason play
  • “Defense wins championships—at Duke, defense is the biggest thing…. The biggest thing with the guards: myself, Seth, Tyler, and Rasheed—we like to keep the guy we’re guarding below their average and get a lot of turnovers”—On how he measures defense
  • “Tyler does the little things that don’t show up in the box scores. [He's] a second point guard that helps me a lot, he communicates he echoes, he commands. [He] guards their best perimeter player, get in there with the big guys and rebound…. Our success doesn’t go anywhere without him”—On the contributions of Tyler Thornton
  • “Rasheed hasn’t had a normal freshman year. He came on so strong. Freshmen are usually going to go through a time period where they struggle a little bit, and he’s been struggling a bit the past three games. Coming off the bench, he’s accepted it thus far in practice, he’s been going hard with the other guys against us, making us better. His attitude has stayed great. He’ll still be the scorer, the driver that he is, just from a different position now, he’s okay with that”—On freshman Rasheed Sulaimon, who was replaced by Thornton in Saturday starting lineup against North Carolina
  • “If it’s at Madison Square Garden, that’d be fun”—On possible future sites of the ACC Tournament
  • “We’re getting the feel back. He was out two months, so it’s not  going to happen overnight…. These past two practices have been great, we’re getting back to where we were before he got hurt. Still got a long way to go, but we’re just taking baby steps to where we need to be” —On getting reacquainted with playing with Ryan Kelly

Tyler Thornton

  • “I’m glad my coaches have confidence in me to have me out there on the floor a lot, have me be able to make plays, and just do whatever I can to help the team out,”—On being reinserted into the starting lineup
  • “You’re never going to shut anybody down. I measure it by making someone work harder than they want to to get the ball and score the ball. And it’s not just the individual basis either, it’s all about the team…. Guys start taking plays off, and that’s how you know you’re sort of getting into their lid and frustrating them a little bit,”—On his defensive goals
  • “Tournament form is a different mindset—it’s one-and-done. Our  coaches do a great job of keeping us focused on the task at hand and not looking ahead past anybody. And they do a great job of scouting on the fly…. Last year we weren’t focused at this time of the year, and it showed in the way we played and how we handled the situation that we were in. This year it’s a totally different mentality. A lot of the guys that are on the team this year went through last year, and nobody wants that to happen again.”

Mason Plumlee

  • “This season we have a new group, new roles. It’s not fair to keep bringing up last year to players like Rasheed and Quinn who didn’t play much last year. Obviously it’s in the back of a lot of our heads, but if we go the NCAAs and win our first-round game, that’s not a successful season.”—On whether last year’s loss to Lehigh is a source of motivation
  • “He’s had a really two good days of practice after the Carolina game. I think he’s in a good position because he knows that we need him and he knows that whenever he’s ready to go…. He’s done a great job this year but we just have to make sure he’s at his best at this point in the season. And he’s capable of that, he’s not tired, it’s not like he’s hitting a freshman wall or anything like that,”—On the recent struggles of Rasheed Sulaimon
  • “It’s really impressive because whether [Thornton] comes off the bench or starts—for a lot of players, mentally they can’t handle being in and out of the lineup—and with him it doesn’t matter. Just look at some of the plays he’s made over his career. Coach was showing on film the play where he dives against Carolina, throws the ball off the other guy, falls into the bench – to me that’s symbolic of his career. He’s just going to do whatever it takes….I think that’s why shots like in Maui, I think that’s why it happens, because he’s so deserving of making those shots, because he’s really a selfless player and all about the team,”—On Tyler Thornton’s impact

Seth Curry

  • “[The leg] feels a lot better. Having a few days off makes a big difference. I [played consecutive days] earlier in the season in the Bahamas. You’ve just got to manage pain. The day after games it’s been hurting less and less, so that’s improvement,”—On managing his injured leg while playing in a grinding tournament format
  • “We’re clicking right now. We ended the regular season on a horrible note last year, and we had to fix a lot of things going into the tournament, and that’s when Ryan got hurt. This year we know who we are as a team, we don’t have to fix anything, we just need to fine-tune some things. We have a lot of confidence.”—On a relaxed team this year entering the postseason

 

Duke opens play in the ACC Tournament Friday night with a quarterfinal match-up against either Maryland or Wake Forest, who play tomorrow.

Duke women’s basketball vs. Florida State live updates

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Duke 72, Florida State 66 (final): When Duke needed a push to knock off a surging Florida State squad, it was the team’s freshman point guard who stepped up in a big spot for the Blue Devils once again.

Alexis Jones threaded the needle to a cutting Richa Jackson for a big bucket to give the Blue Devils a 62-60 lead. Jones then used a hesitation move to knock down a floater on Duke’s next trip down the floor.

After a dominant performance in the first half on the glass, Duke did not have the same tenacity on the boards in the game’s closing minutes. Florida State garnered a number of second-chance opportunities in its final trips down the floor, but could not finish at the rim.

Freshman point guard Alexis Jones helped the Blue Devils create offensive opportunities. (Photo by Steven Bao/The Chronicle)

Jones continued to create opportunities for the Blue Devils, jumping ahead of her defender after a steal by Elizabeth Williams and finishing with an easy fast break layup to give Duke a six-point advantage with less than three minutes to play.

Florida State tried to claw its way back into the game in the closing second, but Duke converted on its opportunity from the free throw line to advance to tomorrow’s ACC championship game.

Duke 60, Florida State 58 (3:46 second half): An 8-0 run by Florida State has the Blue Devils on their heels. Duke has struggled to find looks inside and has been unable to convert on easy looks. Florida State has fought back to tie the game thanks to much-improved rebounding and aggressive defensive play. Tricia Liston knocked down a big 3-pointer to give Duke back the lead, but Leonor Rodriguez answered with a triple for the Seminoles on their next trip down the floor. Haley Peters cut to the basket for a lay-in to give the Blue Devils a two-point advantage. With less than four minutes to play, it appears that Duke is holding on for dear life.

Duke 47, Florida State 42 (11:20 second half): The Blue Devils continue to turn the ball over, but they are finally starting to force some turnovers of their own. Duke still has four more turnovers than it does assists, but has also forced eight second half turnovers from Florida State. Chloe Wells and Tricia Liston have kept their hands up on defense, jumping in the passing lanes to knock the ball down and create steals and fast break opportunities. Wells has been all over the place for the Blue Devils, recording four assists and registering a steal and a block. A jumper by Richa Jackson from just inside the foul line pushed Duke’s advantage to five heading into the media timeout.

Duke 43, Florida State 37 (15:45 second half): The Blue Devils appeared to be in trouble until an aggressive move by a Seminole player swung the game’s momentum back the other way.
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Race for the ACC: Women’s Basketball

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First round action at the 2013 ACC Tournament got underway Thursday at the Greensboro Coliseum, with a full slate of four games. Results were as follows:

No. 5 Miami 45, No. 12 Virginia Tech 39

No. 8 NC State 56, No. 9 Clemson 45

No. 10 Wake Forest 86, No. 7 Georgia Tech 67

No. 11 Boston College 66, No. 6 Virginia 57

Another complete day of action in Greensboro begins at 11 a.m. Friday. By virtue of their win Thursday, the Hurricanes meet No. 4 Florida State. No. 1 Duke will then face off against the Wolfpack, followed by No. 2 Maryland against the Demon Deacons. In the nightcap, No. 3 North Carolina meets the Eagles. Semifinals will be Saturday, with the championship game at 2 p.m. Sunday.

Duke aiming to keep dreams of No. 1 seed alive

Following last week’s road loss at Miami, its first conference defeat of the season, Duke dropped one spot in the national polls to No. 6, switching places with California. Heading into Friday’s game against N.C. State, the Blue Devils (27-2, 17-1 in the ACC) find themselves on the outside looking in when it comes time for the NCAA selection committee to announce the tournament’s No. 1 seeds. The committee is almost assured to tab Baylor, Notre Dame, and Connecticut as top seeds­. The final number one seed, in the Spokane regional, will likely go to either Stanford or California, depending on who performs better in the Pac-12 Tournament.

To have any sort of shot at a No. 1 seed, Duke must win the ACC Tournament title. Doubts are still fresh in everyone’s mind about what caliber team the Devils are without co-ACC Player of the Year Chelsea Gray, who is sidelined by a knee injury for the rest of the year. To win the title, Duke will likely have to defeat two ranked opponents, which would send a strong message to the committee. Anything less than a title would relegate the Blue Devils to a No. 2 seed, and an early-round exit could push their stock down even further.

It’s worth noting that Friday’s matchup against N.C. State is a rematch of last year’s quarterfinal game, in which the ninth-seeded Wolfpack stunned top-seeded Duke, 75-73. In their only matchup of the 2012-13 season, Duke went to Raleigh and earned a 67-57 victory on Jan. 3.

Can a darkhorse team snatch the tournament crown?

Currently, the ACC is expected to send five teams to the NCAA tournament: Duke, Maryland, North Carolina, Florida State, and Miami. But if none of those teams wins the tournament title, the conference’s automatic bid will go to the surprise winner, changing tournament calculus for the tournament committee and creating ramifications that could burst bubbles across the country. An unforeseen run by an N.C. State or Wake Forest to capture the title could push Miami out of the NCAA tournament if the ‘Canes go down to Florida State on Friday. A more likely scenario would be that the ACC would unexpectedly send six teams dancing, taking away an at-large berth for a bubble team in another conference. Of the three, N.C. State has the best chance of getting to the finals. The Wolfpack lost by just 10 to Duke earlier this year, and that was a Duke team fully equipped with the talents of Chelsea Gray. If N.C. State can get past the Blue Devils, they would face either Miami or Florida State, two good but beatable teams. Boston College has a chance to beat third-seeded North Carolina, but could have difficulties topping a very potent Maryland squad, which won twice this season against the last remaining darkhorse, its quarterfinal opponent Wake Forest, by a combined 37 points.

Virginia sees tournament hopes dashed by BC

After a strong start to conference play, the Cavaliers hit a rough patch, at one point dropping seven out of eight games, including losses to two of the ACC’s three worst teams. But with a win over Florida State in their regular season finale, Virginia had a chance at salvaging the season, if they could make a deep run in the ACC Tournament. Those dreams came to a halt Thursday night, as the sixth-seeded Cavaliers fell by nine at the hands of No. 11 Boston College. The Eagles had four players score in double figures, led by guard Kerri Shields’s 16 and Kristen Doherty’s 15. Boston College will go for its second straight upset at 8 p.m. Friday when it takes on No. 3 North Carolina.

Upset Special: Miami over Florida State

Florida State, losers of three of its past four contests, will benefit from the much-needed rest provided by a first-round bye, but the Hurricanes have come on strong near the end of the season. Despite an ugly six-point victory over No. 12 Virginia Tech, Miami has won five of its past six, including a critical home win over top-seeded Duke. The Hurricanes will also be looking to avenge two relatively lopsided losses to the Seminoles this season–they fell 86-65 in Tallahassee and 93-78 in Coral Gables. Look for big games from Miami guard Stefanie Yderstrom, forward Morgan Stroman and center Shawnice Wilson, who at six-foot-six has a three-inch height advantage over the tallest Seminole defender. With a victory, Miami could land inside the AP Top 25, and drastically improve its NCAA seed.

Duke lacrosse earns postseason honors

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Jordan Wolf became the first player in Duke lacrosse history to earn all-ACC honors in each of his first two seasons. Wolf’s selection was announced last Thursday as a result of voting by the league’s coaches. Wolf earned his first all-ACC selection during his freshman season when he finished second on the team in scoring with 31 goals and 20 assists. This year, Wolf is the team’s leading scorer, having notched 28 goals and 27 assists in 16 games.

Seniors C.J. Costabile and Robert Rotanz also earned all-ACC selections. This was Costabile’s second selection as well. Costabile was also named ACC Co-Defensive Player of the Year along with Maryland’s Jesse Bernhardt. He has tallied five goals and three assists in 2012 and has also picked up a whopping 104 ground balls. The long-stick midfielder has also proven to be relentless at the faceoff x, winning a team-high 113 of his 216 attempts this season.

Head coach John Danowski was also named the ACC’s Coach of the Year. This is Danowski’s third Coach of the Year award in his six seasons at Duke.

Danowski recently led the Blue Devils to their fourth ACC tournament title in the past six seasons. Costabile was one of five Blue Devils named to the ACC all-tournament team. Costabile was joined by freshman Will Haus, sophomore Josh Dionne, junior Dan Wigrizer and the tournament’s MVP, sophomore Christian Walsh. Walsh tallied four goals and two assists in Duke’s 12-9 victory over North Carolina to clinch its eighth ACC title.