Every March, the Atlantic Coast Conference gives basketball fans a taste of the madness to come. The ACC Men's Basketball Tournament features some of the best teams in college hoops, and the winner earns both an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament and official recognition as the best team in the conference. The ACC Tournament is held in different arenas along the eastern seaboard each year.

ACC Men's Basketball Tournament History

The Atlantic Coast Conference was formed in 1953, when seven schools broke away from the Southern Conference as the SoCon was trying to de-emphasize football. Former SoCon member Virginia joined soon thereafter, and since then the ACC has grown to 15 members, including non-football member Notre Dame. The ACC Tournament began in the conference's inaugural season in 1954, with North Carolina State winning their first of 10 tournaments by defeating Wake Forest 82-80 at Raleigh's Reynolds Coliseum. The presence of the state of North Carolina looms large, with the first 22 tournaments taking place in the Tar Heel State, and 54 out of 69 in total, and with the state's four schools UNC, Duke, NC State and Wake Forest combining for 54 tournament victories.

Some of the greatest names in college basketball have starred in the ACC Men's Basketball Tournament, with UNC's Bob McAdoo and James Worthy, Maryland's Len Bias and Wake Forest's Tim Duncan all winning its MVP award. Seven teams that have won the ACC tournament have gone on to win the Final Four recently the 2017 UNC Tar Heels took this honor. In 2019, Duke won their 21st tournament championship with help from tourney MVP Zion Williamson, as they beat Florida State 73-63 in the final at Charlotte's Spectrum Center. Duke went on to reclaim the championship once again in 2023.