Winner...By A Nose
Posted March 4, 2007, 11:17 PM ET

Just when I thought the latest meeting between UNC and Duke was lacking some spice....Ka-Bam!

All it took was a perfectly thrown elbow from Duke's Gerald Henderson across the face of UNC's Tyler Hansbrough, and the rest is history. Blood was flowing all over the Smith Center floor and Hansbrough's face, and the tempers were heated to record levels. The game was just about finished, but the intensity between the two hated rivals was back despite the sweep taking place in Chapel Hill.

Was it an intentional elbow? It depends on whom you ask....I'm sure the answer will be based upon which shade of blue you prefer. Personally, I thought it was a perfectly executed elbow to the face. It would have been applauded by the crowd at an Ultimate Fighting Championship, but this was a game involving Duke and UNC in college hoops. It will be the most talked-about elbow drop in these parts since Greg "The Hammer" Valentine laid out the Nature Boy Ric Flair.

You can't spell Duke University without a D-I-R-T-Y. If I were Gerald Henderson, I would hire a good attorney. I wonder if Jay Bilas is still practicing law between his ESPN appearances?

I don't care what Billy Packer said about the play on CBS, the elbow thrown by Henderson was one of the ugliest incidents that I've seen in college hoops in quite some time. It was the last thing Coach K and Roy Williams needed to see as the teams head into the ACC Tourney in Tampa.

Duke will lose the services of Henderson for their opening game of the ACC Tourney, when they hook up with fiesty N.C. State. Without Henderson, the State game will be a tough opener for the Blue Devils. Duke has owned the ACC Tournament in recent memory, but as the 7th-seeded team, their chances of winning four straight games in Florida seem remote. Duke, Coach K and Henderson should be relieved that the suspension is for one game only. Of course, the way Duke is playing, that might be the length of their stay in the Sunshine State this week.

Through all the craziness of the day, the Tar Heels remarkably emerged as the #1 seed of the ACC Tourney, thanks to the amazing collapses compliments of the Commonwealth of Virginia. The old adage that "Virginia is for Lovers" should be changed to "Virginia is for Losers" after the choke jobs by the state's top two institutions over the weekend.

The Wahoos could have wrapped up their first outright ACC regular season title since 1981 on Saturday, but they managed to lose in Switzerland to the Demon Deacons. It was a terrible performance and an awful loss by a team that had so much to play for heading into the finale.

Their cross-state rival then proceeded to one-up the Hoos.....Virginia Tech had a chance to lock up the number one seed by hosting the inept Clemson Tigers on Sunday. Can anybody name the last time Clemson beat a conference member on the road in a big championship game? I didn't think so. The answer is now Virginia Tech in Blacksburg. The loss by Seth Greenberg's squad was brutal...and so was the officiating down the stretch. But Clemson will take the win, and appreciate the significance of their NCAA Tournament hopes still being alive; maybe, just maybe....a win in the ACC Tourney might put them over the top.

On top of all that garbage, Boston College had the chance to join the Heels at the top of the standings, but they were blown out by Georgia Tech in Atlanta. The Jackets, like the Tigers, might have put themselves into position to make the Big Dance by winning some big games in the last week. The Jackets' up and down season has been highlighted with wins over UNC and BC at home this past week. A win over the Deacs in the opening round of the ACC Tournament might be enough to add their name to the NCAA field.

The final weekend of the ACC regular season will be one to remember....from choke jobs by the Commonwealth's best, to flying elbows, to a trip to the worst ACC Tournament site ever....all eyes, some of them black and blue, will turn to Tampa.

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There were other interesting stories in the world of sports....Congrats to Winthrop and Davidson for closing the deals in winning their respective conference tournaments and getting invitations to March Madness. Gregg Marshall's guys in Rock Hill are due to beat somebody in the first round. They were close last year, falling late to Tennessee...but don't be surprised to see them playing on the weekend of the first week of the tourney. It will also be interesting to see where the Eagles are seeded. They were close to cracking the Top 25 last week, before the Big South Tournament started - and I don't think it is a stretch to see them with an 8 or 9 seed in the Big Dance.

The South Carolina Gamecocks had good news and bad news from the weekend....and I'm not talking about their basketball program. Ray Tanner's baseball team is loaded, and they flexed their muscles by sweeping the Clemson Tigers in a two-game weekend series. The Cocks blasted the Tigers 12-0 in Tigertown on Saturday and finished the sweep with a dramatic 3-2 win in the bottom of the ninth in Columbia on Sunday. For the reocrd, the shutout of Clemson on Saturday was the first time that has happened in Clemson since 1974. This might be the year South Carolina wins it all in Omaha.

While the baseball team was taking care of business, a familiar name was back in the news over the weekend. One of Steve Spurrier's prized recruits, quarterback Stephen Garcia, was arrested for the second time in three weeks. This time it was a charge of malicious injury to personal property. At this rate, it looks like the Cincinnati Bengals might be interested in his services right out of high school.

Speaking of the NFL, it looks like the Panthers and Dan Morgan are back together for another year. The former All-Pro linebacker (how many years ago was that?) agreed to a roster bonus of over $950,000 and will try his services again for Carolina in 2007.

I hope it works out for Morgan...he's the only one that can decide what is in his best interests. Personally, I think he's nuts, and maybe he is....but it is his call. Last season, Morgan played in all of 24 plays before being knocked out with another concussion. If it turns out that he's unable to go again due to a concussion at some point in time during the '07 season, then Morgan and the Panthers need to be called out. Like I said earlier, I hope it works out for both parties.