Which ACC Teams Underperformed and Which Exceeded Expectations This Season?

With the college basketball regular season in the books and the postseason about to begin, it's time to take a look at which teams underperformed and which exceeded expectations this season. We're going to examine the ACC preseason poll from back in October and compare where each team was projected to finish in the ACC standings to where they actually ended up finishing.

See the ACC men's basketball preseason poll here.

Miami (24-6, 15-5 ACC)

Miami was picked to finish fourth in the ACC and received two first-place votes. Behind ACC Player of the Year Isaiah Wong, the Hurricanes finished tied for first in the ACC, won a share of the ACC regular season title, and are the No. 1 seed in the ACC Tournament this week in Greensboro. Miami slightly exceeded expectations this season.

Virginia (23-6, 15-5 ACC)

Virginia was picked to finish third in the ACC and received six first-place votes. With the conference's top defense anchored by two ACC All-Defensive selections, including the ACC Defensive Player of the Year Reece Beekman, the Cavaliers finished tied for first in the ACC, won a share of the ACC regular season title, and are the No. 2 seed in the ACC Tournament. Virginia slightly exceeded expectations this season.

Clemson (22-9, 14-6 ACC)

Clemson was picked to finish 11th in the ACC preseason poll. First-Team All-ACC selection Hunter Tyson led the Tigers to finish tied for third in the ACC and clinch the No. 3 seed in the ACC Tournament. Clemson vastly exceeded expectations this season.

Duke (23-8, 14-6 ACC)

Duke was picked to finish second and received two first-place votes in the ACC preseason poll. Kyle Filipowski was named the ACC Freshman of the Year and a Second-Team All-ACC selection and the Blue Devils finished tied for third and earned the No. 4 seed in the ACC Tournament. With the highly-touted freshmen class Jon Scheyer had in his first year as head coach, Duke slightly underperformed vs. expectations this season.

Pittsburgh (21-10, 14-6 ACC)

Pittsburgh was picked to finish 14th in the ACC. Instead, the Panthers finished tied for third and are the No. 5 seed in the ACC Tournament. It was a disappointing end to the season, as Pitt had the inside track on the outright regular season title and the No. 1 seed before losing back-to-back games in the final week to drop to the No. 5 seed. But, Pitt still vastly exceeded expectations this season and Jeff Capel deservedly won ACC Coach of the Year.

NC State (22-9, 12-8 ACC)

NC State was picked to finish 10th in the ACC. Terquavion Smith and Jarkel Joiner made the All-ACC Second-Team and the Wolfpack finished sixth in the ACC and are the No. 6 seed in the ACC Tournament. NC State exceeded expectations this season.

North Carolina (19-12, 11-9 ACC)

North Carolina was picked to finish first in the ACC with 90 first-place votes and was also the preseason AP No. 1 team in the nation. The Tar Heels finished seventh in the ACC and are the No. 7 seed in the ACC Tournament. UNC lost 12 games and, barring a deep run in the ACC Tournament, will likely miss out on the NCAA Tournament entirely. North Carolina significantly underperformed this season.

Syracuse (17-14, 10-10 ACC)

Syracuse was picked to finish eighth in the ACC preseason poll. The Orange finished tied for eighth and are the No. 8 seed in the ACC Tournament. Syracuse met expectations this season.

Wake Forest (18-13, 10-10 ACC)

Wake Forest was picked to finish ninth in the ACC preseason poll. The Demon Deacons finished tied for eighth and are the No. 9 seed in the ACC Tournament. Wake Forest met expectations this season.

Boston College (15-16, 9-11 ACC)

Boston College was picked to finish 13th in the ACC. The Eagles finished 10th and are the No. 10 seed in the ACC Tournament. Boston College slightly exceeded expectations this season.

Virginia Tech (18-13, 8-12 ACC)

Virginia Tech was picked to finish seventh and received one first-place vote in the ACC preseason poll. The Hokies finished 11th and are the No. 11 seed in the ACC Tournament. As the defending ACC Tournament Champions, Virginia Tech underperformed this season.

Florida State (9-22, 7-13 ACC)

Florida State was picked to finish fifth in the ACC preseason poll. The Seminoles finished 12th and are the No. 12 seed in the ACC Tournament. Injuries played a factor, but Florida State vastly underperformed vs. expectations this season.

Georgia Tech (14-17, 6-14 ACC)

Georgia Tech was picked to finish 15th in the ACC. The Yellow Jackets finished 13th and are the No. 13 seed in the ACC Tournament. With six ACC wins, Georgia Tech slightly exceeded expectations this season, but was it enough to save Josh Pastner's job?

Notre Dame (11-20, 3-17 ACC)

Notre Dame was picked to finish sixth in the ACC preseason poll. The Fighting Irish finished 14th and are the No. 14 seed in the ACC Tournament. What turned out to be Mike Brey's final season in South Bend was a challenging one, as Notre Dame won just three ACC games and significantly underperformed this season.

Louisville (4-27, 2-18 ACC)

Louisville was picked to finish 12th in the ACC preseason poll. The Cardinals finished 15th and are the No. 15 seed in the ACC Tournament. The bar was set pretty low for Kenny Payne's first season, but Louisville still came in well under that mark after going 2-18 in ACC play and winning just four games in the regular season. Louisville significantly underperformed this season.

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