TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida State has accomplished plenty of memorable feats the past four seasons, reaching the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament and recording upsets of top-5 programs like Duke and North Carolina.
The Seminoles (21-9) are destined for a fourth straight NCAA tournament when the selections are made Sunday night.
What's missing for FSU is an ACC tournament championship, a title that so often is reserved for Duke or North Carolina (the schools have claimed all but one trophy since 1997).
The Seminoles have never raised the trophy on a Sunday afternoon, cut down the nets moments later and then enjoyed the selection show on television from the hotel lobby.
FSU has been close. In 2009, FSU defeated top-ranked North Carolina 73-70 in an ACC semifinal in Atlanta to reach the championship game for the first time. The Seminoles lost to Duke 79-69 in the final.
But the past two seasons, FSU felt the other side of the ACC tournament when it was handed first-round exits in Greensboro, N.C.
"It sucks to lose (early)," said FSU senior Deividas Dulkys, who has experienced the highs and lows. "You go there, you plan on the whole weekend, you want to win every game.
"To lose in the first round, to lose to the teams that you know you can beat, it hurts. We have a lot of guys that have been there and have lost those games."
FSU players plan on reversing that beginning at 9 p.m. Friday, when the Seminoles will play the winner of Thursday's game between Miami (18-11) and Georgia Tech (11-19).
If the Seminoles advance, they could potentially play Duke on Saturday in the semifinals and then North Carolina in the final on Sunday.
The Seminoles have beaten both Duke and UNC this season, but doing it on back-to-back days?
"It's a grind, there's no question about that," FSU coach Leonard Hamilton said.
But FSU has also survived a regular season that was a grind.
The Seminoles were 9-6 on Jan. 7 after dropping the ACC opener at Clemson by 20 points. The first two months of the season included losses to Princeton in triple-overtime and Harvard. And there were also losses to top-25 teams like Florida, UConn and Michigan State.
There really was no indication that FSU would turn things around, but the Seminoles rattled off seven straight wins — including upsets of top-5 teams in North Carolina and Duke.
And even despite the head-scratching losses at Boston College and Miami in February, FSU finished the season by winning 12 of 15 games.
FSU is loaded with veteran players, including six seniors. The Seminoles have talented big men like seniors Bernard James and Xavier Gibson, but also two sharpshooters in junior Michael Snaer and sophomore Ian Miller.
The inside-outside combination, as well as FSU's trademark defense, gives the veteran players confidence that this team has the makeup to sustain a run in the ACC Tournament.
"I remember how special it was when they won that game against North Carolina (in 2009) to get to the championship," said Snaer, who watched that game on TV. "I always knew I wanted to be a part of something like that. I had two chances already, but I really feel strongly about this chance that we have now.
"Every team that's in the tournament, we know we're capable of beating, so I just can't wait to get out there and play."
Going into the ACC tournament, FSU is predicted to earn a No. 4 or a No. 5 seed when the NCAA Selection Committee makes its decisions Sunday. A good run in Atlanta could solidify FSU as a 4 seed. A quick loss could place FSU as a 5 or 6 seed.
"It's good knowing that we have sealed our NCAA ticket, but it's also good to know that we're still very hungry," FSU guard Luke Loucks said. "By no means are we happy just getting in the tournament. We want to keep pushing for seed position."
And that's what every ACC team is fighting for at this point. One team will win and raise the trophy, but five teams head to Atlanta with 20 or more wins — UNC (27-4), Duke (26-5), FSU (21-9), Virginia (22-8) and N.C. State (20-11).
Miami would like to strengthen its resume, while Clemson and Maryland each have 16 wins and need a push to get in the NCAA tournament.
"You don't know what's going to happen in the ACC tournament," Hamilton said. "It's a dogfight. That's what makes the ACC tournament so much fun."
