• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Duke takes on North Carolina State in ACC Tournament

Mar 8, 2007 - 4:02 PM NC State (15-14) at No. 21 Duke (22-9) 7:00 pm EST

TAMPA, Florida (Ticker) -- Duke will be without one of its top young players when it embarks on a quest for another Atlantic Coast Conference title.

The 21st-ranked Blue Devils begin a daunting task Thursday when they face North Carolina State in the first round of the ACC tournament.

Duke will not have the services of freshman Gerald Henderson, who was suspended for elbowing North Carolina's Tyler Hansbrough at the end of Saturday's 86-72 loss.

Henderson collected career highs of 16 points and six rebounds before being ejected with 14 seconds left.

Thanks to the consecutive losses to UNC and Maryland, Duke fell to the No. 7 seed, the team's lowest since earning a ninth seed in 1995.

Duke posted a 79-56 triumph over the Wolfpack in the only meeting between the teams this season.

Freshman Jon Scheyer scored 20 points while Josh McRoberts added 13 points and eight rebounds.

N.C. State registered just two wins in its last eight games to finish the season in 10th place in the ACC.

Duke has dominated the series over the last decade, holding a 24-3 record against the Wolfpack since 1996-97. The winner will face second-seeded Virginia in the quarterfinals.