A Sweet Time on Tobacco Road

It figured that the Atlantic Coast Conference would emerge as a big winner in the NCAA tournament’s opening week.

Duke (27-5), North Carolina (29-4) and North Carolina State (21-13) advanced, carrying the flag of the nation’s premier conference to the Sweet 16.

The ACC, however, won’t equal the Big East’s benchmark for tournament supremacy. In 1985, three Big East teams -- Georgetown, St. John’s and Villanova -- reached the Final Four.

Only two ACC teams could reach this season’s Final Four, April 2-4 in St. Louis, because top-seeded North Carolina and 10th-seeded North Carolina State are in the Syracuse Regional at the Carrier Dome.

But the ACC is riding high with the stakes rising. Especially on Tobacco Road.

“For the fans in North Carolina, we should all just say, ‘Thank you,’ for the great college basketball that we have in this region,” Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “It’s evident now. To have three of the final 16 ... what an accomplishment.”

Of course, the ACC didn’t have all the fun.

Many intriguing story lines emerged in the first two rounds of college basketball’s three-week survival test, and things are only getting started.

With the regional semifinals and finals this week, here’s a look at the biggest winners, and losers, to this point in each regional.

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CHICAGO REGIONAL

Biggest winner: Wisconsin Milwaukee.

This is the easiest one.

The 12th-seeded Panthers (26-5) of the Horizon League were busy last week, having taken out fifth-seeded Alabama and fourth-seeded Boston College.

Forward Joah Tucker and guard Ed McCants pushed the Panthers to play harder than their high-profile opponents, and determination provided the difference.

Biggest loser: Boston College.

It would have been a great season for the Eagles if they had played a 20-game schedule. Boston College won its first 20 games but went 5-5 in its last 10.

That’s not how the Eagles had planned to leave the Big East for the ACC.

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ALBUQUERQUE REGIONAL

Biggest winner: West Virginia.

No team has experienced a wilder ride than the seventh-seeded Mountaineers (23-10), who were on the bubble for a tournament berth until their strong run in the Big East tournament.

Then West Virginia rallied for a 63-61 first-round victory over 10th-seeded Creighton on forward Tyrone Sally’s dunk with 2.9 seconds to play.

And as if that wasn’t enough excitement for several tournaments, West Virginia outlasted second-seeded Wake Forest, 111-105, in double overtime at the Cleveland subregional.

West Virginia swingman Mike Gansey, an Ohio native, scored 29 points, including 19 in the overtimes.

Wow.

Biggest loser: Gonzaga.

Wake Forest also received strong consideration.

The Demon Deacons said they, not Washington, deserved the top spot. If you’re going to complain about seeding, don’t get bounced in the second round.

Gonzaga, though, is no longer a scrappy little program that should be satisfied with making the tournament. After all, the Bulldogs received a No. 3 seeding.

One win and one loss is underachieving.

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SYRACUSE REGIONAL

Biggest winner: North Carolina State Coach Herb Sendek.

After an 86-75 loss at Wake Forest on Feb. 10, the Wolfpack was 13-10 overall, 3-7 in the ACC. Not surprisingly, fans were howling for Sendek to be fired.

North Carolina State finished sixth in the regular-season standings at 7-9 but defeated Wake Forest in the conference tournament to secure its NCAA berth.

Swingman Julius Hodge has executed Sendek’s game plan, and the combination has worked well.

Hodge led the way in the victory over seventh-seeded Charlotte, and made the game-clinching plays down the stretch in the upset of second-seeded Connecticut. North Carolina State remained united under Sendek in difficult times, and applause is all that’s heard in Raleigh now.

“The guy I’m really happy for is Herb,” Krzyzewski said. “Talk about a team that has survived, gotten better and grown closer, N.C. State has really done that.”

Biggest loser: Kansas.

A stunning 64-63 loss to 14th-seeded Bucknell capped third-seeded Kansas’ late-season meltdown.

Guard Keith Langford’s ankle injury contributed to the Jayhawks’ problems in the final two weeks, but a first-round loss, their first since 1978, was not expected from a team that started 14-0, had the nation’s highest Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) and was in contention for a top seeding beginning the conference tournaments.

Coach Bill Self apologized to Bucknell because many Kansas players did not remain on the floor after the loss for the teams’ traditional handshake.

Self did not see this coming, and the honeymoon is over in Lawrence.

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AUSTIN REGIONAL

Biggest winner: Utah.

Vermont is a close second.

The 13th-seeded Catamounts upset fourth-seeded Syracuse in overtime, 60-57, winning their first tournament game and giving popular Coach Tom Brennan, who retired after a second-round loss to fifth-seeded Michigan State, a much better send-off gift than a gold watch.

Sixth-seeded Utah (29-5), however, made an even bigger impression nationally in returning to the Sweet 16 in the first season of the Ray Giacoletti era.

Giacoletti (pronounced jack-oh-LET-ee) quickly moved out of former coach Rick Majerus’ large shadow, with the help of All-American center Andrew Bogut, who continued to dazzle NBA scouts while leading the Utes to victories over 11th-seeded Texas El Paso and third-seeded Oklahoma at the Tucson subregional.

For those unfamiliar with Giacoletti, the former Eastern Washington coach is good with Xs and O’s, and even better with people. The 7-foot Bogut, whom many scouts expect to be selected first overall in June’s NBA draft, says he and his teammates enjoy playing for their coach, and that’s something new in Salt Lake City.

Biggest loser: Syracuse.

For Vermont, a tournament victory over Syracuse in a longtime coach’s final season is a great feel-good story.

For the Orangemen, it’s just bad news.

Much more was expected of Coach Jim Boeheim’s team, especially after its Big East tournament championship. If the Orange are a little bored, there’s still action on their home court.