ACC NCAA Appearances From 2010-2019

Maybe the ACC will defy merit and flood the NCAA tournament field with seven or more entrants.

Maybe Florida State, the only ACC program besides Virginia that’s flirted with the AP top 10 since mid-January, will go one bracket deeper than its 2018 Elite Eight effort and return to the Final Four for the first time in nearly a half-century (1972).

Maybe hard-nosed Clemson, boasting one of the best winning percentages in school history (.750 through March 2), can notch three NCAA victories to match the program high-water mark reached under Bill Foster in 1980.

Maybe a resilient Georgia Tech squad with an NET ranking better than most league compatriots will secure its first NCAA berth in a decade, capping a resurrection behind the babyface-shielded command of unsung coach Josh Pastner.

Maybe the Virginia Cavaliers, lame duck defending national champions and darlings of the basketball-as-minuet set, will surprise everyone, probably including themselves, and win a repeat NCAA title.

Maybe Virginia Tech, regaining its footing after a coaching change to a more humane Mike Young, can win three NCAA contests for the first time in school history.

Maybe hot and cold North Carolina can resurrect the moth-eaten redemption theme from its 2017 NCAA title run (a banner successfully waved by UVa in 2019) and make a proud recovery from last season’s spiral to a losing record.

Maybe Louisville will rekindle memories of its days as a national power, washing away the vomitous taste left by merited NCAA penalties that officially cost the 2013 national title and the jobs of its coach and AD.

And maybe we’ll quickly tire of hearing commentary, some near-jubilant, about the demise of Duke’s 24-year streak of consecutive NCAA appearances.

No maybe about it.