CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) – As the ACC men’s basketball tournament tips off Tuesday in Charlotte, N.C., a number of the league’s teams will look to bonafide stars to carry them into Saturday night’s championship game.

In the history of the tournament, only five players have scored more than 40 points in a game. North Carolina’s Lennie Rosenbluth went for a tournament-record 45 in 1957, Virginia’s Buzzy Wilkinson scored 42 in 1954, South Carolina’s Grady Wallace put in 41 in 1957, North Carolina’s Charlie Scott scored 41 in 1970 and, most recently, Boston College’s Olivier Hanlan tallied 41 in 2013.

All five of those players were their team’s leading scorers that season. And of that list, only Hanlan wasn’t a first-team All-ACC selection.

But history has proven that it’s not always the biggest names that have the big games in key spots in March.

In 2024, Ishmael Leggett was averaging under 12 points a game when the Pittsburgh wing went off for 30 in a tournament win over Wake Forest.

Hunter Cattoor lifted Virginia Tech to its first-ever ACC tournament title in 2022, torching Duke for 31 points and hitting seven 3-pointers in the final. Cattoor went into that championship game averaging 9.4 points per outing.

No one would – or should -be stunned if Duke’s Cameron Boozer, Stanford’s Ebuka Okorie, Wake Forest’s Juke Harris, SMU’s Boopie Miller or Miami’s Malik Reneau has a 20 or 30-point game to carry their club. But they’re not the only players capable of carrying a team.

So, taking all the players who earned first or second-team All-ACC recognition on Monday off the list, here are five more under-the-radar players who could take over a game, or two, in Charlotte this week.

 

Isaiah Evans, Duke

On the list of reasons the ACC’s regular-season champions are the favorite to cut down the nets in Charlotte on Saturday, their defense is probably No. 1. ACC Player of the Year Cameron Boozer is 1A, but don’t sleep on Evans, a slick-shooting guard who has hit four or more 3-pointers in a game 11 times. Evans comes into the week on a hot streak, going 12 for 26 from beyond the arc in his last three outings. He is a candidate to get hot for a game or two for the tournament. He canned 18 3-pointers in the first four games of January.

Darrion Williams, North Carolina State

The Texas Tech transfer hasn’t had the season many projected when he joined the Wolfpack. His coach, Will Wade, notably had a press conference tirade defending Willams play in December, but his production just hasn’t matched the expectations. Still, Williams is capable of lighting at team up. He went for 20 or more in three straight Wolfpack wins, victories over Syracuse, Wake Forest and SMU. There’s no time like March to rewrite your narrative.

Jacari White, Virginia

UVA brought White in as part of Ryan Odom’s shooting upgrades to the roster. White shot 41.2% from 3-point range during his three seasons at North Dakota State. White can take over a game with his outside stroke and he’s already proven this season he can do it in the Spectrum Center. When Virginia played Dayton in a neutral court, non-conference game in Charlotte on Dec. 6, White went a staggering 7-for-7 from 3-point range, scoring 25 points in the Cavaliers’ 86-73 win. UVA is 7-1 this season when he knocks down at least three 3-pointers in a game.

Dai Dai Ames, California

Ames showed toughness and flash in previous stops at Kansas State and Virginia, but never the consistent ability to be a high-level scorer. He did erupt for 27 points against Pitt while playing for the Cavaliers last season. This year? He’s had 11 games with at least 20 points, including going for 29 against Georgia Tech last month and smoking Wake Forest for 31 in the regular-season finale.

Robert McCray, Florida State

McCray started his career in the ACC with Wake Forest, then spent two seasons as the leading scorer at Jacksonville. For his senior season, McCray returned to the ACC with FSU and has exceeded expectations. He leads the Seminoles in points and assists and ranks fourth in rebounds. And McCray has been at his best in big games. He torched Florida for 29 in November, went for 22 against Duke in January and hit 29 again in a road upset of Clemson in February.