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The ACC landed nine teams in the 2017 NCAA Tournament. Which schools have the most difficult navigation to Phoenix? And which schools caught a break with their place in the bracket?

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In the end, the ACC did not best the Big East’s record of 11 bids into the NCAA Tournament, which the conference was able to do in 2011. Still, the ACC was the best league in the country throughout the 2016-17 season, and it boasts a number of national championship contenders in this edition of the Big Dance.

Nine ACC teams claimed bids to the 2017 NCAA Tournament: North Carolina, Duke, Louisville, Florida State, Virginia, Notre Dame, Miami, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest.

Let’s take a look at potentially the most difficult and less strenuous paths to Phoenix that these teams will face in this year’s Big Dance as we kick off daily editions of The (Tobacco) Road To The Final Four.

East (New York, NY region)

No. 9 Virginia Tech: Buzz Williams and the Hokies have a very difficult draw against a Wisconsin team that the selection committee under-seeded. The Badgers stumbled toward the finish line but ended up turning things on and reaching the Big Ten title game, which saw Michigan claim the tournament crown. Greg Gard’s crew will have a significant advantage inside on the Hokies, especially with do-everything forward Chris Clarke lost for the season. However, the Hokies will give the Badgers problems with their strong guard play. Senior Seth Allen and sophomore Ahmed Hill will test the Badgers’ defense with their ability to dribble drive as well as connect from downtown. Allen remains a very underrated player nationally, and he has the clutch gene. He connected on game winners against Georgia Tech, Virginia and Clemson this season. If it can get by Wisconsin, a second round date with Villanova would likely loom for VT, which may finally feel the loss of Clarke.

No. 5 Virginia: Tony Bennett’s Cavaliers do not play a sexy brand of basketball. And that’s okay for the Cavs, who endured a rough stretch before closing the season by playing much better offensively. The Hoos are relying on freshmen Kyle Guy and Ty Jerome at the guard position to help out veteran London Perrantes, and it’s made a difference. Virginia is going to play low-scoring, close games on a fairly consistent basis. Even though the half-court offense has improved, its team-wide defense needs to help create offensive opportunities as well.

No matter how the season ends, Bennett has done a nice coaching job after losing so much veteran talent from last year’s Elite Eight squad. UNC-Wilmington will pose a very difficult challenge in the first round, and we are all familiar with 12-seeds advancing onto the first weekend. Rick Pitino disciple Kevin Keatts has a team that likes to run, press and force turnovers. The Seahawks also know how to take care of the basketball. So before a potential second-round game with Florida, UVA may be in a first-round dogfight.

No. 2 Duke: The Blue Devils are one of the hottest squads in the country after claiming the ACC Tournament title, the first team to win four games en route to an ACC tournament title. Having the No. 2 seed in the East looks favorable for the Blue Devils, with No. 3 Baylor and No. 6 SMU the possible trouble ahead of a potential Duke-Villanova Regional Final clash.

The play of freshman Jayson Tatum has been huge during Duke’s hot streak, as he provides an inside-outside presence that creates mismatches. This isn’t a great defensive squad, but Tatum, Frank Jackson and Harry Giles are producing and helping out Luke Kennard, Grayson Allen and Co. ‘Nova-Duke in New York for the right to go to Phoenix? Yes, please.

West (San Jose, CA region)

No. 5 Notre Dame: The Fighting Irish have made back-to-back Elite Eight appearances under Mike Brey, and the Irish could be poised for another run behind their inside-outside offensive game. Junior Bonzie Colson has been a double-double machine all season, while point guard Matt Farrell is the leader of the offense. Senior forward V.J. Beachem will need to be sharp as a shooter because his ability to connect from downtown can stretch defenses.

Princeton serves as a very dangerous team in the first round, though, as the Tigers are on a 19-game winning streak behind a balanced scoring attack. The Tigers also know how to take care of the basketball. But if the Irish can take care of business on the first weekend, perhaps Gonzaga is the one team standing in their way of another Elite Eight run.

No. 3 Florida State: When the Seminoles went on their 5-1 run in six straight games against Top 25 teams, this looked like a potential Final Four squad. But Leonard Hamilton and Co. have been inconsistent since and face an intriguing Florida Gulf Coast team in the first round. Still, this is a team that has a ton of athleticism, length and depth. If 6-foot-7 sophomore guard Dwayne Bacon and 6-foot-10 freshman forward Jonathan Isaac are hot, this team can get up and down the court and score, making life difficult for the opposition. Arizona would be a very difficult Sweet Sixteen draw if it played out that way, but FSU can beat a lot of teams with its style of play.

Midwest (Kansas City, MO region)

No. 8 Miami: If the Hurricanes get strong guard play from freshman Bruce Brown, who has experienced his ups and downs as a freshman but is capable of carrying the team for a few games, that would make things easier for senior counterpart Davon Reed. The ‘Canes don’t have a strong interior game, so their first-round matchup with Michigan State will be difficult. Kansas would likely loom as a second-round opponent, so it’ll be a difficult path for Jim Larrañaga and Co.

No. 2 Louisville: Rick Pitino’s Cardinals are my pick to win the national championship. This is a team that can be carried offensively by Donovan Mitchell, who is also a dynamite defender. The Cardinals can score and defend, boasting an outside-inside game that makes them a complete team. But free-throw shooting is an area of concern for this team, and it would be heartbreaking to go home from this tournament because of struggles at the charity stripe.

Still, though, Louisville doesn’t have the most daunting path. A second round matchup with Michigan would be tricky, as the Wolverines are hot and can run with the Cardinals. But a Midwest Regional date with Kansas in the Jayhawks’ backyard is indeed a possibility.

South (Memphis, TN region)

No. 1 North Carolina: If the Tar Heels have any chance to get back to the national title game, they need an aggressive Justin Jackson, the kind of player we saw earlier in the season. He has looked passive and hesitant at times, especially in the Tar Heels’ two losses to Duke, which featured him combining to go 12-of-39 from the floor. He needs to better seek his shot and get to the rim because we have seen him at his best when he attacks it to complement his smooth shooting stroke. Joel Berry II is the floor general as well as heart and soul of the team. Everyone benefits when he plays well. Making UNC even more dangerous is its rebounding advantage, which is critical for second-chance points. But the bottom line is that this is the time for Jackson to be a star. The path to the Regional Final in Memphis is there for the taking, which could set up a potential rematch clash with Kentucky.

No. 11 Wake Forest: Danny Manning and the Demon Deacons have some extra work to do in the Big Dance, as they are matched up in a First Four contest with Kansas State. Underappreciated star big man John Collins has been a double-double machine throughout his sophomore season and became the third player in the last 20 years with at least 30 points and 15 rebounds against a Mike Krzyzewski-coached squad in a close loss to Duke. Collins gets scoring help from guards Bryant Crawford and Keyshawn Woods, who need to be at their best against K-State. A possible second game against physical Cincinnati will be tough though. Still, Manning has done a very good job of navigating Wake through a very difficult ACC.

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