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GREENSBORO, N.C. — In his five seasons at Virginia, senior point guard Kihei Clark has accomplished nearly everything possible for a major college player. He helped lead the Cavaliers to the national championship as a freshman in 2019, was part of three teams that won outright or shared ACC regular-season titles, and has broken a slew of ACC and school records.
But before Saturday, there was one thing he had yet to achieve – win an ACC Tournament championship. Clark and the 13th-ranked Cavaliers (25-6) had a chance to do that when they faced off against No. 21 Duke in the title game Saturday night at Greensboro Coliseum.
“It would mean a lot. It’s something I haven’t been able to accomplish,” said Clark, Virginia’s all-time assist king (708) and the ACC’s leader in career wins (76). “I’m just going to treat it like a regular game and go out and play Virginia basketball.”
Clark scored 13 points and dished out four assists in the Cavaliers 76-56 semifinal win over Clemson on Friday night. He went 3-for-6 from behind the arc, matching his season high for perimeter buckets.
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With UVA’s victory over Clemson on Friday night, Cavaliers coach Tony Bennett improved to 16-9 in ACC Tournament games and moved into an eighth-place tie with Florida State’s Leonard Hamilton for most coaching victories in the tournament.
The win over the Tigers moved Bennett past three coaches on the all-time tournament wins list – N.C. State’s Everett Case, UVA’s Terry Holland and Georgia Tech’s Bobby Cremins, all of whom ended their careers with 15.
The top seven on the list, led by Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski with 69, are in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame or both.
Ovation for Shedrick
Cavaliers junior forward Kadin Shedrick has enjoyed a resurgence of sorts this week in Greensboro. After seeing little to no playing time over the final few weeks of the regular-season, the Holly Springs, N.C., native has been a key contributor off the bench in wins over North Carolina and Clemson.
He had eight points, seven rebounds, one block and one steal in Friday’s win over the Tigers before fouling out late. He received a loud ovation from the UVA fans as he made his way to the bench.
“Obviously I appreciate the support from the fans,” he said. “It means a lot that they stuck with me through this whole thing.”
The 6-foot-11 Shedrick didn’t see action in either of the Cavaliers final two regular season games, at home against Clemson and Louisville. But he stayed motivated and supported his teammates, patiently waiting for his next chance to make his mark.
He played 18 minutes in the team’s quarterfinal win over North Carolina, blocking five shots and contributing two monster dunks to the win. His defensive mastery continued against Clemson, as he regularly cleaned the glass and altered the Tigers’ shots with his massive length in the paint.
No reminiscing for Scheyer
Duke first-year coach Jon Scheyer won an ACC Tournament championship in Greensboro as a Blue Devils player in 2010 and attempted to win his first crown as a coach on that same court Saturday night.
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The Blue Devils beat top-seeded Miami 85-78 in the semifinals Friday in front of a very pro-Duke crowd.
“Well, Greensboro is a special place,” Scheyer said. “For me, I thought the crowd was incredible. When the chants started, ‘Let’s go Duke,’ that was everything to me. ... That’s a pretty special feeling.
“I’m not really reminiscing right now. The whole year I’ve tried to be in the moment. If I start talking about 2009, 2010, (the players) are going to start rolling their eyes, so I’m not going to start that at all.
“But the main thing is that it’s a big-time opportunity to play in the championship game for the ACC Tourney, and we’re going to savor it and give it our all (Saturday) night.”
Sprained ankle for Omier
Miami third-team All-ACC forward Norchad Omier went down with an ankle injury only seconds into the Hurricanes semifinal matchup with Duke on Friday. He was helped off the floor and into the tunnel toward the team’s locker room. He did not return to the game.
Miami coach Jim Larranaga said afterward that Omier sprained his ankle and that no bones were broken.
“We’ll just see day-to-day,” the coach said.
Tip-ins
- Duke, the winningest program in ACC Tournament history with 109 wins, reached the finals for the 35th time, tying North Carolina for the most in conference history. The Blue Devils were looking to add to their record 21 ACC Tournament titles.
- Scheyer attempted to become only the third first-year head coach to guide his team to an ACC Tournament title. Scheyer looked to join Duke’s Vic Bubas (1960) and North Carolina’s Bill Guthridge (1998).
- Duke freshman forward Kyle Filipowski had 17 points and 11 boards in the win over Miami on Friday for his 15th double-double of the season, which leads all freshmen nationally. He went 8-for-9 from the floor and was 16-for-19 in his first two tournament games.