Is ACC Basketball the New WCC? Duke Stands Alone in a Struggling Conference

The ACC used to be the superstar of basketball conferences, but now there's Duke, and everyone else, including a struggling Notre Dame program.

Jan 11, 2025; Durham, North Carolina, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish guard Markus Burton (3) loses control of the ball in front of Duke Blue Devils forward Kon Knueppel (7) during the first half at Cameron Indoor Stadium. | Rob Kinnan-Imagn Images

And here's the punchline - Notre Dame couldn't even get close to the NCAA Tournament even with all of the ACC's problems.

The opening weekend of the tournament has come and gone with Duke advancing to the Sweet 16. That's hardly surprising - the Blue Devils ending the season anywhere short of the Final Four would be a massive disappointment.

But the horrible performance by the rest of the conference is the problem.

Duke is the lone ACC men's basketball team still playing with a chance to cut down the nets.

Louisville, Clemson, and North Carolina were the only other ACC teams to make the tournament, and all three were whacked in painful fashion in the first round.

Meanwhile, the SEC has seven teams headed towards the Sweet 16, and the Big Ten and Big 12 both have four each.

Watching the ACC this season, it's hardly surprising that only one team remains entering the Sweet 16.

Duke Feels Like East Coast Gonzaga

Right now, Duke basketball feels like the East coast version of Gonzaga.

At least the West Coast Conference got two teams. into the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

For years, Gonzaga tore through the West Coast Conference with ease. Its biggest rival, Saint Mary's, has fought through many of battles over the years - and won the regular season title this year - but overall the conference lacks any real depth.

That's exactly how Duke feels right now. The Blue Devils are a national force, plenty capable of winning a national championship, but nobody else in the ACC is remotely close.

And with the way NIL is working in the conference, it doesn't appear anyone else outside of North Carolina will make a real run anytime soon.

Dick Vitale took a moment during the ACC Tournament championship game between Duke and Louisville to discuss exactly that.

Dick Vitale calls on the ACC to adapt better to modern college sports.

"This league's gotta do a better job of handling the NIL and the Transfer Portal and get stronger. This conference, for years, was the best. And I'm telling you right now, it has taken a real hit." pic.twitter.com/SLLhJvGNI6

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) March 16, 2025

State of ACC Impact on Notre Dame Basketball

Mar 12, 2025; Charlotte, NC, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish guard Markus Burton (3) with head coach Micah Shrewsberry in the first half at Spectrum Center. | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

The state of ACC basketball is only a further knock on where Notre Dame basketball currently sits. It's one thing to struggle in one of the nation's finest basketball conferences like the ACC has been for the majority of my life.

It's entirely another to struggle as mightily as Notre Dame has in the glorified mid-major the ACC has been trending towards.

I don't have the solution of how to fix Notre Dame basketball or the ACC as a whole, but the more this trend continues the more it feels like Duke is Gonzaga, North Carolina is St. Mary's, Notre Dame is someone like Pepperdine, and the rest of the ACC would be pretty thrilled just by making the field of 68.