Toby Fournier provided 17 points and 10 rebounds as defending champion Duke opened play in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament with Friday’s 60-46 quarterfinal victory against Clemson in Duluth, Ga., avenging a loss from less than two weeks earlier.
The top-seeded Blue Devils (22-8), who are ranked 13th nationally, also received 14 points from Delaney Thomas and 11 points from Taina Mair. Duke, which lost two of its final three games in the regular season, led by as many as 25 points in the rematch with Clemson and next meets Notre Dame in Saturday’s semifinals.
Mia Moore scored 17 points for ninth-seeded Clemson (21-11), which managed only 28 points through the first three quarters and trailed by 18 points with nine minutes remaining. The Tigers committed 21 turnovers and shot 35.3% (18-for-51) from the field.
No. 12 Louisville 87, Syracuse 61
Tajianna Roberts scored 17 points to lead six players in double figures as the second-seeded Cardinals cruised past the Orange.
Reyna Scott notched 15 points, while Mackenly Randolph and Skylar Jones both had 12 points and Laura Ziegler and Imari Berry each contributed 11 points as Louisville shot 55.9% from the field. The Cardinals (26-6), who’ll face the North Carolina-Virginia Tech winner on Saturday, were up 45-33 at halftime and began the third quarter on a 12-3 binge. Randolph grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds.
ACC Rookie of the Year Uche Izoje had 22 points and nine rebounds for seventh-seeded Syracuse (23-8), which was aiming for a third straight victory. Sophie Burrows added 12 points and nine rebounds while Jasmyn Cooper had 11 points for the Orange, who were 4-for-25 on 3-point attempts.
No. 16 North Carolina 85, Virginia Tech 68
Lanie Grant’s 21 points, featuring four 3-pointers, boosted the third-seeded Tar Heels over the sixth-seeded Hokies.
Nyla Harris contributed 19 points and 10 rebounds and Elina Aarnisalo had 18 points and six assists for North Carolina (26-6), which faces Louisville in Saturday’s second semifinal. The Tar Heels, who also received 10 points from reserve Nyla Brooks, trailed 16-11 going to the second quarter but surged to a 40-27 halftime lead.
Carleigh Wenzel had 26 points, aided by 14-for-15 shooting on free throws, for Virginia Tech (23-9). The Hokies, who fell in overtime to North Carolina during the regular season, went 2-for-18 on 3-pointers.
Notre Dame 81, North Carolina State 63
Hannah Hidalgo, the ACC Player of the Year, poured in 25 points and the fifth-seeded Fighting Irish rolled in the quarterfinal game.
Iyana Moore, who made four 3-pointers, posted 17 of her 20 points in the first half for the Irish (22-9), who were up by 14 points before holding a 40-32 halftime edge. Moore and Hidalgo accounted for 33 of first-half points, and the margin grew to 62-41 going to the fourth quarter. Cassandre Prosper added 13 points for Notre Dame, which improved to 4-0 vs. NC State in ACC tournament matchups.
Khamil Pierre’s 17 points, Zamareya Jones’ 14 points, Qadence Samuels’ 12 points and Zoe Brooks’ 10 points paced fourth-seeded NC State (20-10), which hit only four of 19 shots from 3-point range. The Wolfpack committed 17 turnovers.
–Field Level Media
