Written by DAVID GLENN
When the Atlantic Coast Conference averaged exactly five NCAA Tournament invitations per year way back in the 1980s, that number was considered a stunning success story. Because the ACC included only eight universities at the time, five teams in the Big Dance represented more than 62 percent of the league’s membership, and that marked the best ratio of any league in college basketball.
When the ACC averaged roughly five NCAA Tournament invitations per year for the first half of the 2020s, however, that number was considered an unmitigated disaster. Because of multiple rounds of expansion over multiple decades, the conference had grown to nine, then 12, then 15 and most recently 18 members, such that an average of about five teams in the Big Dance in modern times represented only an extremely disappointing 28 percent of the league’s membership. Somewhere along the way, the ACC lost its long-held reputation as the best college basketball conference in America.
With that stark then-versus-now contrast in mind, the 2026 edition of Selection Sunday brought very good news for the ACC. Eight league members received NCAA Tournament invitations this time, including bubble teams NC State and SMU. That marked the conference’s largest representation in the Big Dance since it placed nine teams on the ultimate March Madness platform in both 2017 and 2018.
When considering a blend of both quantity and quality, the ACC’s all-time modern apex may have come in 2019.
That year, among the league’s seven NCAA Tournament participants, coach Tony Bennett led Virginia to the national championship, and four additional conference members joined the Cavaliers on the second weekend of the event. Coach Mike Krzyzewski led Duke to the Elite Eight, and UNC’s Roy Williams, Florida State’s Leonard Hamilton and Virginia Tech’s Buzz Williams led their teams to the Sweet 16, meaning a whopping five of the final 16 teams standing were carrying the ACC banner. Four of those coaches since have retired, of course, and the other now works in another league.
Since the COVID pandemic led to the cancellation of the NCAA Tournament in 2020, the ACC hasn’t had either a national champion or — prior to this year — a large number of NCAA Tournament entries, although coach Hubert Davis led UNC to the national championship game in 2022, Miami went to the Final Four in 2023, NC State advanced to the national semifinals in 2024, and Duke made it there under coach Jon Scheyer last year.
This year, the ACC champion Blue Devils have the #1 overall seed in the Big Dance, ACC runner-up Virginia looks like a dangerous three seed, Louisville and UNC will compete as six seeds, Miami as a seven, Clemson as an eight, and both NC State and SMU as 11 seeds.
Along with fellow #1 seeds Arizona, Florida and Michigan, Duke is considered among the favorites to win this year’s NCAA title. The Devils most recently won the national championship in 2015, under Krzyzewski, before Williams led UNC to the NCAA crown in 2017 and Bennett helped UVa cut down the nets in 2019.
Now the ACC hopes its eight participants maximize its chances of another banner postseason for the entire league seven years later.
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Featured image via Associated Press/Alex Brandon
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