ACC Commissioner John Swofford has sent a letter to the Division I men's basketball committee requesting that conference strength be added to the list of criteria considered when the NCAA tournament field is selected.

Coaches say they plan to remind the media more often next season about the conference's strength.

Two weeks ago, I mentioned that one of the ACC's biggest offseason stories would be (again) looking into expanding the conference basketball season to 18 games. For the third straight season, the current system of scheduling has been a talking point.

Last year, Virginia won a share of the ACC regular season crown with what was, statistically, the weakest schedule in the conference. This past season, Virginia Tech played UNC, Duke and Clemson just once apiece ... and that may have cost them an NCAA Tournament bid.

Now, the ACC may look into expanding the season from 16 to 18 games.

The Big East, Big Ten and Pac-10 all play the 18-game schedule and it hasn't hurt them come tournament time. The ACC is currently in a tournament funk (getting bids and winning games) and losing those bids to teams from those conferences.

Some say that adding the two extra games actually hurts the conference's RPI because it means those bad teams have to play more games, too. True, but one of the reasons the ACC continues to sit near the top of those RPI standings is because their "bad" teams are usually better than the other league's "bad" teams.

If there is one thing we can count on, it is the Maryland Terrapins stinking up the ACC tournament.

In the Gary Williams era (beginning in 1989-90), the Terps have won exactly one ACC tournament (2004). The only other time they've even got to the finals was in 2000. Taking out the 2004 ACC Championship team, the Terps have won just one game in the tournament since 2003.

The Terps lost their first round game against Boston College today, essentially ending any hopes to get into the NCAA tournament. The loss is their 5th in six games ... and sixth out of eight. Understand that the BC team that beat them had lost six straight games and 12 of 13. Needless to say, this was embarassing.

And unlike previous years where Terps fans can moan about the tournament being in North Carolina (which it is again this year), Maryland lost to Boston College ... a school that is on the outskirts of the ACC and making just their third ACC tournament appearance.

Oh, and you want more? The Terps had a 20-5 lead in this game and led the Eagles come back! This team was the definition of kaput and they let them come back and win the game?

With the ACC regular season over and done, it's time to go back and give a few awards for the season.

Player of the Year: Tyler Hansbrough, North Carolina. Only Antawn Jamison, Tim Duncan and Horace Grant have led the ACC in both scoring and rebounding in the same season over the past 25 years. All three of those guys went on to win the Player of the Year in the ACC (two won the national award).

Coach of the Year: Dino Gaudio, Wake Forest. Va Tech's Seth Greenberg or Miami's Frank Haith may win it (and they would deserve it). But Gaudio came into such a tough situation with a team that hadn't been very good lately. Sure, the magic of the win over Duke was dampered a bit with the ensuing four game losing skid, but this was a big year for

All-ACC Team: Hansbrough, Tyrese Rice (BC), DeMarcus Nelson (Duke), Sean Singletary (UVa) and Greivis Vasquez (UMd). Either this was a great year for guards or a poor year for big men. Either way, Rice and Singletary have been the lone reasons to pay attention to either of their teams. Vasquez, a sophomore, has really stepped into his leadership role at Maryland. Nelson fills the customary senior swingman spot on this team. Just like Vasquez, Nelson's leadership has meant more to Duke than his abilities ... and that is saying quite a bit!

Well, this has been a disappointing ACC season that ended in disappointing fashion. Normally, I use this time to put up an ACC power poll ... but the nine weeks of ACC action has pretty much figured all that out. Instead, I will try to rank the likelihood of each team winning the ACC tournament.

1-North Carolina. The Tar Heels have the coveted top seed, are playing in friendly Charlotte and -- most importantly -- have Duke, Clemson and Maryland in the other bracket. Their only two losses this year were to the Devils and Terps while the Tigers nearly pulled off the feat ... twice. Instead, they sit in a bracket where the best team is Miami. First Game: Fri vs Wake/FSU, noon.

2-Duke. As Coach K tells it, the Blue Devils were a basket or two away from beating Carolina. He's right. The team stunk to start the game and stunk at the end of it. Like UNC, all of the teams that beat Duke during the season (Wake, Miami, UNC) are in the other bracket. The Devils get a favorable first game before getting the Clemson/Maryland/Boston College winner. First game: Fri vs Ga Tech/Virginia, 7pm

The ACC really had a bad weekend. Very bad.

Despite the major run the UNC-Duke game got on Saturday, the rest of the conference was in pain. While those two (and Clemson) seem destined for the tournament, the three teams with the next best shot were busy losing.

Maryland suffered the biggest blow. The Terps were completely spanked at Virginia, 91-76. Sure, the Cavs got a little hot to end the season (winning four of six) but they still were near the bottom of the standings. The bad loss give Maryland 13 losses already (with a 14th almost a certainty in the ACC tournament) and means the Terps have lost five of their last six games. Couple that with their 1-6 record against the RPI top 50 and their tournament hopes are pretty much non-existent.

Virginia Tech lost at Clemson, which isn't that embarrassing. However, it was Tech's last real shot to beat a good team before heading into the ACC tournament. They'll get the winner of Miami/NC State in their first ACC game ... and while Miami is a good team, beating them won't make the Hokies look that much better (it would just make the Canes look worse). If they can do that, they are most likely staring at #1 North Carolina in the semifinals.

Yes, UNC beat Duke last night to win the ACC Championship. Still, there is a lot to play for on the final day of the regular season. There is seeding in the ACC tournament and bubbles to try to fly off of for a few teams.

Maryland at Virginia. The Terps are sitting at 18-12 and squarely on the bubble. The Cavs have been the league's doormat for most of the season, but have suddenly gotten a little hot. This is a must game for Maryland as a loss would be devastating for their NCAA hopes. A win makes them the #5 seed in the ACC tournament and a matchup with the last place NC State Wolfpack (who have lost eight straight).

Virginia Tech at Clemson. The winner of this game will be the #3 seed -- the loser is #4 (the #3 avoids UNC until the title game). This is so important to Virginia Tech's (18-11) tournament hopes. Right now, they are on the outside looking in. The biggest complaint against the Hokies resume is that they haven't beaten anyone important. Winning at Clemson would fulfill that. Of course, there is that little thing about ... winning at Clemson.

It can be done (Charlotte did it), but can Tech do it? Their biggest road win was at Maryland a few weeks ago.

The final weekend of the regular season sees a lot on the line for half of the ACC. Some are locks with bigger fish to fry; others are just trying to get into the ballroom.

LOCKS: Duke, North Carolina, Clemson. Something about a game Saturday night? Clemson, despite their loss to Ga Tech, has officially moved into the lock category. They are playing for seeding now.

LOOKING GOOD: Miami. The Hurricanes really look like a tournament team. Not only do they have a nice RPI (mid-20s) and a big win over Duke, they are also beating teams they should beat. The only thing that could hurt them is a loss at Florida State and a loss in their first ACC tournament game.

ON THE BUBBLE: Virginia Tech, Maryland. Neither team has an outstanding overall record. However, the Hokies are a win over Clemson away from a 10-6 conference mark. How does that not warrant a bid? An interesting thing is that Maryland may want Va Tech to keep winning. See, the Hokies swept the Terps this year and Maryland needs that to look a little better than it did when it happened. In all reality, both teams need to win their finale and get to the semifinals of the ACC tournament to feel like they have a legit shot at getting into the dance.