UVA, UNC, Duke and Notre Dame advance at ACC

GREENSBORO, NC (AP) – Quinn Cook scored 15 points and No. 2 Duke routed North Carolina State 77-53 on Thursday night in an Atlantic Coast Conference quarterfinal.

Backup center Marshall Plumlee added a career-high 12 points on six dunks to help the second-seeded Blue Devils (29-3) win their 12th straight.

They never trailed, scored on 22 of their first 26 possessions, led by 30 and cruised into the semifinals by avenging their first loss this season.

Ralston Turner had 16 points and Abdul-Malik Abu added 10 for the seventh-seeded Wolfpack (20-13).

One night earlier, they beat Pittsburgh in the second round for their third straight win.

But key guard Anthony “Cat” Barber – who had 34 points against Pitt – was scoreless, missed seven shots and never returned after he was shaken up in a collision with Amile Jefferson with 13:26 left.

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GREENSBORO, NC (AP) – Brice Johnson scored 18 of his 22 points after halftime to help No. 19 North Carolina outlast No. 14 Louisville 70-60 in Thursday’s Atlantic Coast Conference tournament quarterfinals.

Marcus Paige added 13 points for the fifth-seeded Tar Heels (23-10), who regrouped from an ugly first half and took control in the final 7 minutes to take the third tough matchup between the teams this season.

UNC used an 8-0 run to finally push ahead for good, with Kennedy Meeks coming up with some key plays despite being limited by a recent illness. The Tar Heels then went 6-for-6 at the line in the final minute to seal it and earn a date with No. 3 Virginia in the semifinals.

Terry Rozier scored 20 to lead the fourth-seeded Cardinals (24-8), who shot just 8-for-36 (22 percent) after halftime – including a 5½ minute drought that tipped a tight contest toward UNC.

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GREENSBORO, NC (AP) – Mike Tobey scored 11 points and No. 3 Virginia held on to beat Florida State 58-44 on Thursday in an Atlantic Coast Conference quarterfinal.

Evan Nolte added 11 points while Malcolm Brodgon scored all 10 of his in the second half for the top-seeded and defending tournament champion Cavaliers (29-2).

They never trailed, led by 17 and shot 47.5 percent in earning a return trip to the semifinals.

They also welcomed back key guard Justin Anderson from injury. Anderson had missed eight games after breaking his finger and then undergoing an appendectomy.

Xavier Rathan-Mayes had 13 points to lead the ninth-seeded Seminoles (17-16). They hit just one field goal during the final 7 minutes and were denied their third semifinal appearance since 2009.

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GREENSBORO, NC (AP) — Steve Vasturia hit the go-ahead 3-pointer with 6:13 left and No. 11 Notre Dame overcame a blown 20-point lead to hold off Miami 70-63 on Thursday night in the quarterfinals of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament.

Vasturia’s 3 helped the Fighting Irish (27-5) survive a disastrous collapse in which the Hurricanes (21-12) came all the way back to take a two-point lead with 6½ minutes left.

He finished with a team-high 16 points on a bizarre night for third-seeded Notre Dame. The Irish couldn’t miss and looked dominant in the first half only to do the exact opposite after the break.

Still, the Irish did just enough to hang on for their first tournament win after a first-day exit from last year’s debut season. They advance to the semifinals to face No. 2 Duke.

(Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)