WRAL Sports Fan

WRALSportsFan

ACC Nets Four NCAA Tourney Bids

Mar 13, 2006

RALEIGH — The Atlantic Coast Conference will send just four of its 12 teams to this year's NCAA Tournament: No. 1 Duke, Boston College, North Carolina and N.C. State.

Florida State, considered a "bubble team," did not get an invitation.

The Big East is sending a record eight teams to the Big Dance, while two other conferences are each sending six teams.

Duke's ACC Tournament win Sunday over Boston College helped it earn the NCAA Tournament's overall top seed. Duke (30-3), assigned to the Atlanta regional, will open the tournament Thursday near home in Greensboro, against Southern University. Also at Greensboro, eighth-seeded George Washington (26-2), the only Division I team with less than three losses, faces ninth-seeded North Carolina-Wilmington.

Boston College, assigned to the Minneapolis regional, earned a No. 4 seed and will play Pacific Friday in Salt Lake, Utah.

North Carolina, which lost to BC Saturday in the ACC Semifinals, earned a No. 3 seed and will play No. 14 seed Murrary State Friday in Dayton. UNC is assigned to the Washington regional.

N.C. State earned a No. 10 seed and will play No. 7 California in Dallas on Friday.

Game times will be announced on Monday, and WRAL-TV will broadcast all of the games via multicasting on its digital channels. Look for a complete schedule on WRAL.com.