Tradition comes to Tampa, Fla.

Pack, Heels bring order to a new venue

TAMPA, FLA. -- You can take the ACC basketball tournament out of North Carolina, but you can't take North Carolina out of the tournament.

That's one way to put it.

Another, in the interest of equal time, is that you can take the tournament out of the state, but you can't take State out of the tournament.

For three straight days opponents have tried. But N.C. State upset Duke, upset Virginia and on Saturday upset Virginia Tech.

And now a team that finished a mere game out of last place in the conference will today play North Carolina for the ACC title.

Each team has a compelling reason to win.

For the Wolfpack, a victory means an NCAA Tournament berth, one of the most unlikely in conference history.

For the Tar Heels, a victory means a 15th ACC championship. Why is that significant?

Duke has 16.

Many of you feel cheated because the game is not in Greensboro.

Scalpers outside the St. Pete Times Forum on Saturday were asking less than face value for a ticket to the North Carolina-N.C. State game, and they were timid as they did.

What would a scalper have received for similar ticket in Greensboro? "One arm and one leg," an ACC official says.

So outside the gym there will be palm trees and folks on towels and benches lying in the sun. If that offends you, focus on what's inside.

Inside, teams from North Carolina will play in the championship game for the 28th time in 54 years.

North Carolina is supposed to be here. The Tar Heels beat Florida State by 15 on Friday and Boston College by 15 on Saturday.

The Tar Heels showed why, when they're on, they're as good as anybody, playing you-can't-breathe defense, giving up 12-foot shots to find a teammate who is open from 10 and rarely being, well, stupid.

They can be breathtaking, and they are superbly suited for a game-a-day tournament such as this. Here's how deep they are. Eight Tar Heels hit at least two field goals Saturday. Two Boston College players did.

The Tar Heels glided into today's game.

N.C. State clawed in.

Tyler Hansbrough has played 60 minutes in Tampa, Fla., which leads the team. Four N.C. State starters have played more than 100, and two -- Gavin Grant and Brandon Costner -- have played 113.

The Wolfpack is as deep as a kiddy pool. Yet as tired and depleted as they are, they have a quality that wasn't there three long days ago when the tournament began.

Around them there is calm, a sense that when the game turns tense, they won't. A scrub will hit a huge shot. The player on the line will make the free throw. The trick defense with which the opponent attacks will have no effect on point guard Engin Atsur.

The result is that, at least for a week, N.C. State is special again, and when N.C. State is special, so is the ACC.

As bizarre as the setting is, the cruise ship Inspiration parked outside the arena in Tampa Bay, the final is about North Carolina and N.C. State and the way things used to be.

And if you love tradition, how can you complain about that?