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Notre Dame Basketball: A Lot of Movement Left in the ACC

By Noah Strackbein

Feb 14, 2017; Chestnut Hill, MA, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish guard Rex Pflueger (0) drives to the basket while guarded by Boston College Eagles guard Ky Bowman (0) during the first half at Silvio O. Conte Forum. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 14, 2017; Chestnut Hill, MA, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish guard Rex Pflueger (0) drives to the basket while guarded by Boston College Eagles guard Ky Bowman (0) during the first half at Silvio O. Conte Forum. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports /
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Notre Dame basketball may be two games out of first place in the ACC, but still have all the opportunities to move as high as No. 2.

Listen: Who's in an who's out of the NCAA Tournament

Remaining on Notre Dame’s schedule are Georgia Tech, Boston College, and Louisville. With three wins, the Irish have a strong case to move up the ACC standings. But as long as the Irish win out, their seed in the ACC Tournament still has every chance to keep climbing.

Current ACC Standings

  • North Carolina 12-3
  • Louisville 10-5
  • Duke 10-5
  • Florida State 10-5
  • Notre Dame 10-5

Starting with North Carolina. The Irish currently sit two games behind the Tar Heels for first place in the conference. However, UNC still has Pitt, Virginia, and Duke still on their schedule. Pitt is likely a win for the Tar Heels, but outside of that, there is still a possibility Duke, and Virginia beat North Carolina.

With two losses to end the season, UNC moves to 13-5 in the ACC. Because they beat Notre Dame during the year, the Irish won’t be able to move into first place. They could get as far as No. 2, though.

Next is Duke. The Blue Devils have Florida State, UNC, and Miami left to play. With the same conference record, they will only need one loss to fall beneath Notre Dame. Saying they’ll beat all three of these teams is a stretch. After defeating North Carolina the first time, their match against the Tar Heels may be the best shot at a loss.

Florida State is in the same boat but is more of a stretch. The Seminoles schedule features Clemson, Duke, and Miami. Fortunately, for the Irish, they only need to drop one game to fall behind Notre Dame. It may be tough if FSU gets by Duke, but there is still a decent shot that the Seminoles find one miscue and land below Notre Dame in the conference.

Louisville is the easy one. The Cardinals don’t need to lose any game before their last. That’s because they square off with Notre Dame during the final game of the regular season. With a win, they stay at No. 2 in the ACC. With a loss, Notre Dame takes a huge leap to the second spot. The Irish got the best of Louisville the first time around. With their new small ball lineup, they could be looking at an even bigger edge with the Cardinals.

Final ACC Standings

  • North Carolina 13-5
  • Notre Dame 13-5
  • Louisville 12-6
  • Duke 12-6
  • Florida State 12-6

It really isn’t a long shot. There is a lot of action left in the ACC. Three games can move the entire top five around. If it all works out, Notre Dame could take full advantage of the chaos. With all the cards in place, the Irish are looking to move as far No. 2 in the conference.

Next: Georgia Tech is a beatable challenge

Notre Dame takes on Georgia Tech Sunday at 6:30 PM EST before facing Boston College, and then heading to Louisville to close out the regular season.