Semi Finals Bound: Notre Dame, Duke, UNC, and NC State Move On After Winning In The ACC Quarterfinals
GREENSBORO, N.C. – Four teams moved to the semi finals in some hard-fought matches in an astonishing Friday of the ACC Tournament. Below is an analysis of the quarterfinal games.
No. 6 Notre Dame 73, California 64
In the quarterfinals, No. 6 Notre Dame bounced back to outlast California thanks to Hannah Hidalgo’s 25 points. The second seeded Fighting Irish (26-4) had to battle back from a six point deficit with a little over a quarter left to play. Notre Dame took charge after a significant 12-0 run featuring Hidalgo and Miles put them on top.
California (25-8) put up a decent shooting average of 45.8%, but they coughed the ball up 28 times, which allowed the Fighting Irish to score plenty of easy buckets. Lulu Twidale lead the Golden Bears scoring with 16 points and Marta Suarez added a double double scoring 14 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. Duke is set to face Notre Dame in the semifinals.
No. 11 Duke 61, Louisville 48
Duke had no problems defeating Louisville in their quarterfinal game with Oluchi Okananwa coming off the bench to score an impressive 13 points.The third-seeded Dukes have now won four consecutive games after holding Louisville to 18 first-half points and winning 75-54. Duke’s record now moves to 25-7.The leading scorers for Duke were Reigan Richardson with 12, Ashlon Jackson, and Toby Fournier had 11 and 10 respectively. Mackenly Randolph was the leading scorer for the Cardinals with 13 points, but Louisville was unable to overcome Dukes overwhelming defense. Duke has advanced to the semi-finals where they will meet Notre Dame.
No. 22 Florida State 56 – No. 14 North Carolina 60
No 14 North Carolina has booked a place alongside the seminoles for the next rounds thanks to a stellar perfomance from Alyssa Ustby pulling 12 points and 18 rebounds. The score was a bit close with No 22 Florida State having two free throw shots in the final seconds to seal the victory.
To help as Reniya Kelly, who had been previously injured, had some powerful offensive plays helping give the Tar Heels (27-6) the win. Other tracks from lighter performers are Lexi Donarski and Indya Nivar, who both scored 12 and 10 respectively. Every single time Makayla Timpson from Florida State stepped three point range, her shots were faintly blocked, with her hitting a tournament record for blocks during a game with eight. She also had 15 points with 8 rebounds. North Carolina has and will continue to face off vrshi NC C5 in the nasemi finals.
Georgia Tech 72 – No. 7 NC State 73
In another close fight with **No.
7 NC State defeated Georgia Tech in a close overtime victory to reach the semifinals. Aziaha James netted 16 points, including two free throws with 7.1 seconds left that clinched NC State’s triumph.
The top-seeded Wolfpack (25-5) had a slow start, but managed to catch up during the surging fourth quarter. In the final seconds of the game, Georgia Tech (22-10) was unable to shoot in their last possession, finishing their run in the tournament. NC State is set to play against North Carolina in the semifinals.
The increase in level of difficulty within the competition will enhance the exhilarating match ups that will make the ACC Tournament semifinals more interesting. Don’t forget to check out our further news articles!
