The 2020–21 Atlantic Coast Conference men's basketball season began with practices in October 2020, followed by the start of the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season in November. Conference play started in December 2020 and concluded in March with the 2021 ACC men's basketball tournament at Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, North Carolina. The season marked the 67th season of Atlantic Coast Conference basketball.

The Virginia Cavaliers won the regular season title with a conference record of 13–4. Georgia Tech won the ACC tournament over Florida State.

Head coaches

Coaching changes

Wake Forest fired Danny Manning after six seasons, where he posted a 78–111 record. On April 30, 2020, the Demon Deacons hired Steve Forbes as his replacement. Boston College fired Jim Christian in the middle of the season, after leading the team to a 3–13 record. Christian's overall record with Boston College was 78–132 and 26–94 in ACC play. Scott Spinelli served as interim coach until the end of the season. After the season Earl Grant was hired as the new head coach.

Coaches Team Head coach Previous job Years at school Record at school ACC record ACC titles NCAA tournaments NCAA Final Fours NCAA ChampionshipsBoston College Jim Christian Ohio 7 75–119 25–85 0 0 0 0Clemson Brad Brownell Wright State 11 185–142 85–93 0 6 0 0Duke Mike Krzyzewski Army 41 1,084–291 441–180 16 35 12 5Florida State Leonard Hamilton Washington Wizards 19 382–221 164-142 1 10 0 0Georgia Tech Josh Pastner Memphis 5 65–67 31–43 0 0 0 0Louisville Chris Mack Xavier 3 44–21 25–13 0 1 0 0Miami Jim Larrañaga George Mason 10 190–113 87–75 1 4 1 0NC State Kevin Keatts UNC Wilmington 4 65–36 30–26 0 1 0 0North Carolina Roy Williams Kansas 18 467–152 202–88 3 15 8 3Notre Dame Mike Brey Delaware 21 437–233 200–148 1 12 0 0Pittsburgh Jeff Capel Duke (Assistant) 3 30–36 9–29 0 0 0 0Syracuse Jim Boeheim Syracuse (Assistant) 44 964–399 404–247 0 31 4 1Virginia Tony Bennett Washington State 12 277–96 136–58 2 7 1 1Virginia Tech Mike Young Wofford 2 16–16 7–13 0 0 0 0Wake Forest Steve Forbes East Tennessee State 1 0–0 0–0 0 0 0 0 Notes: Year at school includes 2020–21 season. Overall and ACC records are from the time at current school and are through the end of the 2019–20 season. NCAA tournament appearances are from the time at current school only. NCAA Final Fours and championship include time at other schools

Preseason

Preseason watchlists Below is a table of notable preseason watch lists.

WoodenNaismithCousyWestErvingMaloneAbdul-Jabbar Scottie Barnes – Florida StateGarrison Brooks – North CarolinaKihei Clark – VirginiaSam Hauser – VirginiaMatthew Hurt – DukeDavid Johnson – LouisvilleJalen Johnson – Duke Matthew Hurt – DukeJalen Johnson – DukeWendell Moore Jr. – DukeScottie Barnes – Florida StateDavid Johnson – LouisvilleGarrison Brooks – North CarolinaCaleb Love – North CarolinaSam Hauser – Virginia Scottie Barnes – Florida StateKihei Clark – Virginia D. J. Steward – Duke Jalen Johnson – DukeWendell Moore Jr. – DukeSam Hauser – Virginia Aamir Simms – ClemsonMatthew Hurt – DukeGarrison Brooks – North Carolina Armando Bacot – North CarolinaWalker Kessler – North CarolinaJay Huff – VirginiaMark Williams – Duke

Preseason polls

AP AthlonSports Blue RibbonYearbook CBS Sports Coaches ESPN KenPom SportsIllustratedBoston College 103 106 Clemson 58 40 Duke 9 12 9 12 8 10 3 15Florida State 21 21 18 30 18 23 19 13Georgia Tech 60 RV 73 Louisville RV 26 RV RV 14 Miami 48 41 North Carolina 16 15 17 28 16 15 23 10NC State 59 55 Notre Dame 90 100 Pittsburgh 82 83 Syracuse 53 RV 29 Virginia 4 4 4 5 4 4 16 5Virginia Tech 65 30 Wake Forest 121 130

ACC preseason media poll

The preseason media poll and preseason All-ACC teams were announced at a virtual tipoff event that was held on November 11 and November 12. 155 media members voted on the preseason poll and preseason All-ACC teams.

Preseason poll First-place votes shown in parentheses. Virginia (97) – 2214 Duke (34) – 2146 Florida State (15) – 1973 North Carolina (7) – 1933 Louisville (2) – 1693 Syracuse – 1234 Miami – 1223 NC State – 1149 Georgia Tech – 1147 Clemson – 1057 Virginia Tech – 794 Notre Dame – 769 Pitt – 635 Boston College – 404 Wake Forest – 229

Preseason All-ACC teams

2020 ACC Men's Basketball Preseason All-ACC Teams First Team Second TeamGarrison Brooks – North Carolina Sam Hauser – Virginia Scottie Barnes – Florida State Jalen Johnson – Duke Aamir Simms – Clemson Chris Lykes – MiamiDavid Johnson – Louisville Jose Alvarado – Georgia Tech M. J. Walker – Florida State Kihei Clark – Virginia Wendell Moore Jr. – Duke

ACC preseason player of the year Garrison Brooks – North Carolina (102) Sam Hauser – Virginia (24) M. J. Walker – Florida State (10) Wendell Moore Jr. – Duke (7) Aamir Simms – Clemson (5) Matthew Hurt – Duke (3) Chris Lykes – Miami (3) Kihei Clark – Virginia (1)

ACC preseason rookie of the year Scottie Barnes – Florida State (64) Jalen Johnson – Duke (60) Caleb Love – North Carolina (9) Day'Ron Sharpe – North Carolina (6) D. J. Steward – Duke (4) Reece Beekman – Virginia (3) Jeremy Roach – Duke (3) RJ Davis – North Carolina (3) Mark Williams – Duke (2) Cam Hayes – NC State (1)

Regular season

Rankings + Legend   Increase in ranking   Decrease in ranking   Not ranked previous week     First Place votes shown in ()

  Pre Wk2 Wk3 Wk4 Wk5 Wk6 Wk7 Wk8 Wk9 Wk10 Wk11 Wk12 Wk13 Wk14 Wk15 Wk16 FinalBoston College AP C Clemson AP RV RV 24 RV RV 19т 12 20 RV RV RV RV RV RV RVC RV RV RV RV 18 12 22 RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RVDuke AP 9 6 10 21 20 20 21 19 RV C 8 11 23 25 RV 24 23 RV Florida State AP 21 22 20 15 21 18 25 RV RV 16 20 17 16 11 11 15 14C 18 21 15 21 19 22 RV 25 16 19 19 16 9 11 13 14 10Georgia Tech AP RV RVC RV RV RV RVLouisville AP RV RV 25 23 RV RV RV 16 RV 25 RV RV RV RV C RV 24 22 RV RV 25 18 RV 23 RV RV RV RV Miami AP C North Carolina AP 16 14 16 22 17 RV RV RV RV RV RV C 16 14 21 17 RV RV RV RV NC State AP RV RV RV C RV RV RV Notre Dame AP C Pittsburgh AP C Syracuse AP RV RV C RV 25Virginia AP 4 15 18 17 16 23 22 18 13 8 14 9 7 15 21 16 15C 4 18 16 15 24т 21 22 12 8 15 9 8 14 20 15 15 24Virginia Tech AP 16 15 RV 24 24 19т 20 16 20 16 18 18 16 22 22 25C 15 RV RV RV 20 20 14 19 16 17т 17 15 19 21 24 RVWake Forest AP C

Conference matrix This table summarizes the head-to-head results between teams in conference play. Each team will play 20 conference games, and at least 1 against each opponent. The full conference schedule was announced on November 10, 2020.   Boston CollegeClemsonDukeFlorida StateGeorgia TechLouisvilleMiamiNorth CarolinaNC StateNotre DamePittsburghSyracuseVirginiaVirginia TechWake Forestvs. Boston College – 0–0 1–0 1–0 0–0 1–0 1–1 0–0 2–0 1–1 0–0 2–0 1–0 0–0 1–0vs. Clemson 0–0 – 1–0 1–1 1–1 0–1 0–2 0–1 0–1 0–0 0–1 1–1 1–0 1–0 0–1vs. Duke 0–1 0–1 – 0–0 1–1 2–0 1–0 2–0 0–1 1–1 1–0 0–1 0–1 1–0 0–2vs. Florida State 0–1 1–1 0–0 – 1–1 0–1 0–2 1–1 0–1 1–0 0–1 0–0 0–1 0–0 0–1vs. Georgia Tech 0–0 1–1 1–1 1–1 – 1–0 0–1 0–1 0–0 0–1 0–1 0–1 2–0 0–1 0–2vs. Louisville 0–1 1–0 0–2 1–0 0–1 – 1–0 1–0 0–0 0–1 0–1 0–0 1–0 0–1 0–1vs. Miami 1–1 2–0 0–1 2–0 1–0 0–1 – 1–0 0–1 2–0 1–0 1–0 1–0 2–0 1–0vs. North Carolina 0–0 1–0 0–2 1–1 1–0 0–1 0–1 – 1–1 0–1 0–1 1–1 1–0 0–0 0–1vs. NC State 0–2 1–0 1–0 1–0 0–0 0–0 1–0 1–1 – 0–1 0–2 2–0 1–1 0–0 0–2vs. Notre Dame 1–1 0–0 1–1 0–1 1–0 1–0 0–2 1–0 1–0 – 0–1 1–0 2–0 2–0 0–1vs. Pittsburgh 0–0 1–0 0–1 1–0 1–0 1–0 0–1 1–0 2–0 1–0 – 0–2 1–0 0–1 1–1vs. Syracuse 0–2 1–1 1–0 0–0 1–0 0–0 0–1 1–1 0–2 0–1 2–0 – 1–0 0–1 0–0vs. Virginia 0–1 0–1 1–0 1–0 0–2 0–1 0–1 0–1 1–1 0–2 0–1 0–1 – 1–0 0–1vs. Virginia Tech 0–0 0–1 0–1 0–0 1–0 1–0 0–2 0–0 0–0 0–2 1–0 1–0 0–1 – 0–2vs. Wake Forest 0–1 1–0 2–0 1–0 2–0 1–0 0–1 1–0 2–0 1–0 1–1 0–0 1–0 2–0 –Total 2–11 10–6 9–9 11–4 11–6 8–5 4–15 10–6 9–8 7–11 6–10 9–7 13–4 9–4 3–15

Player of the week Throughout the conference regular season, the Atlantic Coast Conference offices named one or two Players of the week and one or two Freshmen of the week.

Week Player of the week Freshman of the week Reference Week 1 – Nov. 30 Keve Aluma – Virginia Tech Jalen Johnson – Duke Week 2 – Dec. 7 Moses Wright – Georgia Tech Dre Davis – Louisville Week 3 – Dec. 14 Justin Champagnie – Pittsburgh Scottie Barnes – Florida State Week 4 – Dec. 21 Quincy Guerrier – Syracuse D. J. Steward – Duke Week 5 – Dec. 28 David Johnson – Louisville Shakeel Moore – NC State Week 6 – Jan. 4 Jose Alvarado – Georgia Tech Day'Ron Sharpe – North Carolina Week 7 – Jan. 11 Matthew Hurt – Duke D. J. Steward (2) – Duke Week 8 – Jan. 18 Justin Champagnie (2) – Pittsburgh R. J. Davis – North Carolina Tyrece Radford – Virginia Tech Week 9 – Jan. 25 Justin Champagnie (3) – Pittsburgh Caleb Love – North Carolina Week 10 – Feb. 1 Keve Aluma (2) – Virginia Tech Jalen Johnson (2) – Duke Week 11 – Feb. 8 Sam Hauser – Virginia Caleb Love (2) – North Carolina Week 12 – Feb. 15 RaiQuan Gray – Florida State Scottie Barnes (2) – Florida State Week 13 – Feb. 22 Matthew Hurt (2) – Duke Kerwin Walton – North Carolina Week 14 – Mar. 1 Moses Wright (2) – Georgia Tech Walker Kessler – North Carolina Jae'Lyn Withers – Louisville Week 15 – Mar. 8 Moses Wright (3) – Georgia Tech Dereon Seabron – NC State

Records against other conferences 2020–21 records against non-conference foes as of (Feb. 24, 2021). Records shown for regular season only.

Power 7 ConferencesRecordAmerican1–1Big East3–3Big Ten6–10Big 120–1Pac-121–0SEC7–1Power 7 Total18–16Other NCAA Division I ConferencesRecordAmerican East2–0A-101–1ASUN7–1Big Sky0–0Big South6–0Big West0–0CAA6–0C-USA1–0Horizon League1–0Ivy League0–0MAAC2–0MAC3–0MEAC6–0MVC1–0Mountain West1–0NEC2–1OVC1–0Patriot League0–0Pacific West0–0SoCon1–1Southland0–0SWAC1–0The Summit0–0Sun Belt0–1WAC0–0WCC0–2Other Division I Total42–7NCAA Division I Total60–23

Postseason

ACC tournament

The 2021 Atlantic Coast Conference basketball tournament was originally scheduled to be hosted at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. However, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the tournament was moved to the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, North Carolina, on November 24, 2020. The Capital One Arena will host the tournament in 2024.

NCAA tournament

Seed Region School 1st round 2nd round Sweet 16 Elite Eight Final Four Championship 4 East Florida State W 64–54 vs. #13 UNC Greensboro – (Indianapolis, IN) W 71–53 vs. #5 Colorado – (Indianapolis, IN) L 58–76 vs. #1 Michigan – (Indianapolis, IN) 4 West Virginia L 58–62 vs. #13 Ohio – (Bloomington, IN) 7 Midwest Clemson L 56–60 vs. #10 Rutgers – (Indianapolis, IN) 8 South North Carolina L 62–85 vs. #9 Wisconsin – (West Lafayette, IN) 9 Midwest Georgia Tech L 60–71 vs. #8 Loyola–Chicago – (Indianapolis, IN) 10 South Virginia Tech L 70–75 (OT) vs. #7 Florida – (Indianapolis, IN) 11 Midwest Syracuse W 78–62 vs. #6 San Diego State – (Indianapolis, IN) W 75–72 vs. #3 West Virginia – (Indianapolis, IN) L 46–62 vs. #2 Houston – (Indianapolis, IN)W–L (%): Total:

National Invitation Tournament

Seed Bracket School 1st round Quarterfinals Semifinals Championship 3 Colorado State NC State W 75–61 vs. #2 Davidson – (Denton, TX) L 61–65 vs. #1 Colorado State – (Frisco, TX)W–L (%): Total:

Honors and awards

All-Americans

Consensus All-AmericansFirst TeamSecond Team None None To earn "consensus" status, a player must win honors based on a point system computed from the four different all-America teams. The point system consists of three points for first team, two points for second team and one point for third team. No honorable mention or fourth team or lower are used in the computation. The top five totals plus ties are first team and the next five plus ties are second team. Associated PressNABCSporting NewsUSBWA First Team None None None None Second Team None None None NoneThird Team None None None None

ACC Awards

Source: