Duke guard Jon Scheyer (30) passes the ball as Florida State forward Jordan DeMercy (2) protests the basket during the second half of an NCAA championship college basketball game at the Atlantic Coast Conference men's tournament in Atlanta, Sunday, March 15, 2009. |
ATLANTA (AP) -- Duke is back in a familiar position: champion of the Atlantic Coast Conference.
The No. 9 Blue Devils swamped upstart Florida State with a barrage of 3-pointers on the way to a 79-69 victory in the title game Sunday, giving Duke its ninth ACC crown in 12 years.
Jon Scheyer scored 29 points, Gerald Henderson had 27 and the Blue Devils (28-6) turned in one of its most complete performances of the season to keep their Tobacco Road heirloom from heading down to the Sunshine State. It couldn't have come at a better time, with NCAA bids going out later Sunday.
Toney Douglas led the No. 22 Seminoles (25-9) with 28 points but that wasn't nearly enough to give the school its first ACC championship. Florida State will have to be content with knocking off top-ranked North Carolina in the semifinals and earning its first NCAA bid since 1998.