CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) – North Carolina’s win over rival Duke ended up putting the fifth-ranked Tar Heels two games better than anyone else in the rugged Atlantic Coast Conference. Coach Roy Williams is hoping that has his team prepared for what’s to come.
“Winning the league and winning it by two games is something we’ll always be proud of,” Williams said after Saturday’s 90-83 win over the No. 17 Blue Devils. “I think it is the best league. Top to bottom, there’s no league in the country like it. Now we’ve got to back it up and do in the postseason what we did last year.”
Last year, the ACC put a record six teams in the NCAA Sweet 16, four in the Elite Eight and two in the Final Four.
The league’s final day of the regular season featured three games featuring two ranked teams – No. 15 Florida State beat No. 25 Miami 66-57 , No. 8 Louisville beat No. 19 Notre Dame 71-64 , and UNC’s home win – to highlight the week of action for AP Top 25 teams.
The Tar Heels (26-6, 14-4) had already clinched the No. 1 seed for the ACC Tournament in Brooklyn to start the week, but stumbled to 43 points in a loss at No. 23 Virginia . But the Cardinals’ win against the Irish ensured the Tar Heels would win the ACC regular-season crown outright, then UNC’s win later that night gave it the two-game margin in a league with a national-best seven ranked teams.