ACC Tournament live updates: SMU handles Syracuse with Carmelo Anthony watching
He hit one 3. Then another. Then intercepted a pass that led to another score. Then scorched another 3.
And no, this wasn’t prime Carmelo Anthony, who was sitting courtside in Spectrum Center in uptown Charlotte, wearing a New York Mets flat-billed hat.
This was Jaron Pierre Jr., the senior SMU guard who — for the game’s most important stretch — simply couldn’t be guarded.
Pierre poured in three 3s in four possessions that extended SMU’s lead over Syracuse into the 20s in the second half and ultimately delivered the Mustangs an 86-69 victory over the Orange in the second game of the ACC Tournament. Pierre finished with 21 points in total — and he wasn’t even the team’s leading scorer. That moniker went to guard Boopie Miller, who finished with 25.
The win does a lot for solidifying SMU’s place at the table for an NCAA Tournament at-large berth. SMU next plays the Pat Kelsey-coached Louisville Cardinals at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday.
Anthony, the Olympic gold medalist and Naismith Memorial Hall of Famer and perhaps the best player in Syracuse basketball history, visited Tuesday’s game because his son, Kiyan, plays for the Orange. Kiyan, however, didn’t play on Tuesday as he was out with an undisclosed injury.
Follow along here for updates throughout the day from Charlotte Observer and Raleigh News & Observer journalists on site at Spectrum Center.
Wake Forest stays alive, burst VT bubble
Virginia Tech needed a win to keep its NCAA Tournament hopes alive but Wake Forest shot its way to a first-round win.
With seven players scoring in double figures, the Demon Deacons toppled Virginia Tech, 95-89, in overtime.
The Deacs shot 50.9% and were led by Myles Colvin’s 18 points.
In the first half, Wake Forest got hot early. Then Virginia Tech answered. Then what ensued for the rest of an entertaining half of basketball was bodies hitting the floor and elbows being thrown and 3s being hit.
Wake Forest ultimately led at halftime, 38-34, with Mekhi Mason leading the way with nine points. VT’s Ben Hammond also has nine points.
It’s pretty remarkable it’s this close, really, when you consider the following stats: Wake Forest leads in field goal percentage (44% to 39%), 3-point field goals (5-of-13 to 3-of-13) and free throws (9-of-10 to 7-of-10).
The place where VT is winning is on the boards — and they’re dominating. The Hokies have 25 total rebounds to Wake Forest’s 11.
A buzzer-beater! Pittsburgh stays alive in ACC Tournament
Pittsburgh forced its way into the ACC Tournament with an overtime win last Saturday and extended its stay with a buzzer-beater on Tuesday.
Damarco Minor tipped in his missed shot with 0.7 of second to play, lifting No 15 seed Pitt to a 64-63 win over No. 10 seed Stanford in the tournament opener at Spectrum Center.
Pitt (13-19) advances to play No. 7 seed N.C. State (19-12) at noon in Wednesday’s second round.
Coached by former Duke assistant and player Jeff Capel, Pittsburgh had to beat Syracuse on Saturday to simply qualify for this week’s league tournament. The Panthers survived, winning 71-69 in overtime, and claimed the final seed. The league’s three worst teams below Pitt, Boston College (11-20, 4-14 ACC), Notre Dame (13-18, 4-14 ACC) and Georgia Tech (11-20, 2-16 ACC), didn’t qualify.
Georgia Tech and Boston College responded by firing their head coaches, Damon Stoudamire and Earl Grant.
The 51-year-old Capel, in his eighth season at Pitt, got to coach his team for one more day and it has now turned into at least two.
“I can’t say enough about these guys, man,” Capel said. “They’ve continued to show up. They’ve continued to fight. They’ve continued to battle. I’m really, really proud of this win.”
Pitt led 31-23 at halftime but that advantage disappeared. Stanford took a 63-62 lead with 26 seconds left when Ebuka Okorie drove for a layin while drawing a foul. His free throw put the Cardinal up by one point. On Pitt’s final possession, Minor missed a 3-pointer with 14 seconds left but the Panthers corralled the rebound after the ball was tipped into the backcourt.
Minor drove into the lane and missed a layup but tipped in the miss.
“Our season is a testament to who we are and how we play,” said Pitt’s Barry Dunning, Jr., who led the team with 16 points. “We’ve just got to stay together. One thing I do say a lot is, man, I just want to get one more team win with these guys. There’s still hope. There’s still life, and there’s still opportunity to fight.”
How many ACC teams will make NCAA field
Every conference wants to bump up its numbers when it comes to the NCAA Tournament’s 68-team field that will be announced on Sunday.
After getting just four teams in last year, the ACC figures to get twice that many, at least, this year. A few of the teams hoping to boost the ACC’s numbers played on Tuesday, actually. SMU, Stanford and Virginia Tech, despite failing to earn any ACC Tournament byes, are on the NCAA Tournament bubble’s fringes.
As our bracket expert Patrick Stevens wrote in his latest projection, the Hokies (19-13) needed to beat Wake Forest (17-15) Tuesday night at the minimum to keep hope alive. Stanford also saw its NCAA hopes dashed by its loss to Pitt.
ACC Tournament schedule
At Spectrum Center, Charlotte
Tuesday’s games
Game 1: Pittsburgh 64, Stanford 63
Game 2: SMU 86, Syracuse 69
Game 3: Wake Forest 95, Virginia Tech 89
Wednesday’s games
Game 4: No. 7 N.C. State vs. No. 15 Pittsburgh, noon (ESPN2)
Game 5: No. 6 Louisville vs. No. 11 SMU, 2:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 6: No. 8 Florida State vs. No. 9 California, 7 p.m. (ESPNU)
Game 7: No. 5 Clemson vs. No. 13 Wake Forest, 9:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
Thursday’s games (quarterfinals)
Game 8: No. 2 Virginia vs. Game 4 winner, noon (ESPN2)
Game 9: No. 3 Miami vs. Game 5 winner, 2:30 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 10: No. 1 Duke vs. Game 6 winner, 7 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 11: No. 4 North Carolina vs. Game 7 winner, 9:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Friday’s games
Semifinals: 7 and 9:30 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN2)
Saturday’s game
Championship: 8:30 p.m. (ESPN)
This story was originally published March 10, 2026 at 1:57 PM with the headline "ACC Tournament live updates: SMU handles Syracuse with Carmelo Anthony watching."
