2020–21 Atlantic Coast Conference women's basketball season explained

The 2020–21 Atlantic Coast Conference women's basketball season began with practices in November 2020, followed by the start of the 2020–21 NCAA Division I women's basketball season in November. Conference play started in December 2020 and will conclude in March with the 2021 ACC women's basketball tournament at the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, NC.

Head coaches

Coaching changes

• On July 2, 2020 Duke announced that head coach Joanne McCallie had retired after thirteen years as head coach.^[2] On July 11, 2020, Kara Lawson was announced as the new head coach.^[3]
• On April 22, 2020 Muffet McGraw announced she would be retiring as head coach at Notre Dame after thirty three years in charge. On the same day, Niele Ivey was announced as her replacement.^[4]

Coaches

Team	Head coach	Previous job	Years at school	Record at school	ACC record	ACC titles	NCAA tournaments	NCAA Final Fours	NCAA Championships
style= width="75"	Boston College	Joanna Bernabei-McNamee	Albany	3	34–28	14–20	0	0	0	0
Clemson	Amanda Butler	Florida	3	28–36	12–22	0	1	0	0
Duke	Kara Lawson	Boston Celtics (Assistant)	1	0–0	0–0	0	0	0	0
style= width="75"	Florida State	Sue Semrau	Wisconsin (Assistant)	24	475–257	207–151	2	15	0	0
Georgia Tech	Nell Fortner	Auburn	2	20–11	10–8	0	0	0	0
Louisville	Jeff Walz	Maryland (Assistant)	14	360–103	161–52	1	5	3	0
Miami	Katie Meier	Charlotte	16	292–187	118–114	1	8	0	0
NC State	Wes Moore	Chattanooga	8	167–61	77–37	1	4	0	0
North Carolina	Courtney Banghart	Princeton	2	16–14	7–11	0	0	0	0
style= width="75"	Notre Dame	Niele Ivey	Memphis Grizzlies (Assistant)	1	0–0	0–0	0	0	0	0
style= width="75"	Pittsburgh	Lance White	Florida State (Assistant)	3	16–46	3–31	0	0	0	0
style= width="75"	Syracuse	Quentin Hillsman	Syracuse (Assistant)	14	158–72	75–49	0	6	1	0
Virginia	Tina Thompson	Texas (Associate Head Coach)	3	25–36	13–21	0	0	0	0
Virginia Tech	Kenny Brooks	James Madison	5	86–49	27–39	0	0	0	0
style= width="75"	Wake Forest	Jennifer Hoover	High Point	9	114–140	37–95	0	0	0	0

Notes:

• Year at school includes 2020–21 season.
• Overall and ACC records are from time at current school and are through the end the 2019–20 season.
• NCAA tournament appearances are from time at current school only.
• NCAA Final Fours and Championship include time at other schools

Preseason

Preseason watch lists

Below is a table of notable preseason watch lists.

Lieberman[5]	Drysdale[6]	Miller[7]	McClain[8]	Leslie[9]	Naismith[10]	Wooden[11]
	Tiana England–Florida State Hailey Van Lith – Louisville Raina Perez – NC State Tiana Mangakahia – Syracuse	Dana Evans – Louisville Jakia Brown-Turner – NC State Kiara Lewis – Syracuse	Taylor Soule – Boston College Elizabeth Balogun – Louisville Ivana Raca – Wake Forest	Sam Brunelle – Notre Dame	Jade Williams – Duke Elissa Cunane – NC State Janelle Bailey – North Carolina Kamilla Cardoso – Syracuse Elizabeth Kitley – Virginia Tech	Sam Brunelle – Notre Dame Elissa Cunane – NC State Dana Evans – Louisville Kiara Lewis – Syracuse Tiana Mangakahia – Syracuse Taylor Soule – Boston College Hailey Van Lith – Louisville	Elissa Cunane – NC State Dana Evans – Louisville Kiara Lewis – Syracuse Tiana Mangakahia – Syracuse

ACC Women's Basketball Tip-off

Prior to the start of the season, the ACC hosted two media days virtually. At the media day, the head coaches voted on the finishing order of the teams, an All-ACC team, a Preseason Player of the Year, and Newcomers to watch. The media day was hosted on November 11&12, 2020. A selected group of student athletes also took questions from the media on this day.^[12]

At the media day, both the head coaches and the Blue Ribbon Panel predicted that Louisville would be league champion.^[13]

ACC preseason polls

First place votes shown in parentheses.

2020 ACC Women's Basketball Preseason Polls
Head coaches	Blue Ribbon Panel
Louisville (13) – 223 NC State (2) – 210 Syracuse – 193 North Carolina – 157 Georgia Tech – 146 Notre Dame – 138 Virginia Tech – 125 Florida State – 124 Boston College – 120 Miami – 99 Duke – 74 Wake Forest – 73 Clemson – 56 Pitt – 37 Virginia – 25	Louisville (45) – 840 NC State (10) – 797 Syracuse (2) – 724 Notre Dame – 555 North Carolina – 547 Florida State – 516 Virginia Tech – 482 Boston College – 468 Georgia Tech – 452 Duke – 385 Miami – 359 Wake Forest – 258 Clemson – 183 Virginia – 149 Pitt – 125

Preseason All-ACC Teams

2020 ACC Women's Basketball Preseason All-ACC Teams
Head coaches	Blue Ribbon Panel
Taylor Soule – Boston College Dana Evans – Louisville Janelle Bailey – North Carolina Jakia Brown-Turner – NC State Elissa Cunane – NC State Kiara Lewis – Syracuse Tiana Mangakahia – Syracuse Elizabeth Kitley – Virginia Tech Aisha Sheppard – Virginia Tech Ivana Raca – Wake Forest	Taylor Soule – Boston College Dana Evans – Louisville Janelle Bailey – North Carolina Elissa Cunane – NC State Sam Brunelle – Notre Dame Kiara Lewis – Syracuse Tiana Mangakahia – Syracuse Elizabeth Kitley – Virginia Tech Aisha Sheppard – Virginia Tech Ivana Raca – Wake Forest

Preseason ACC Player of the Year

2020 ACC Women's Basketball Preseason Player of the Year
Head coaches	Blue Ribbon Panel
Dana Evans – Louisville

Newcomer Watchlist

2020 ACC Women's Basketball Newcomer Watchlists
Head coaches	Blue Ribbon Panel
Hailey Van Lith – Louisville Kianna Smith – Louisville Deja Kelly – North Carolina Maddy Westbeld – Notre Dame Kamilla Cardoso – Syracuse	Tiana England – Florida State Hailey Van Lith – Louisville Deja Kelly – North Carolina Maddy Westbeld – Notre Dame Kamilla Cardoso – Syracuse

Regular season

Records against other conferences

2020–21 records against non-conference foes as of (March 30, 2021):

Regular season

Power 7 Conferences	Record
American	2–2
Big East	2–0
Big Ten	1–1
Big 12	0–0
Pac-12	0–0
SEC	2–2
Power 7 Conferences Total	7–5
Other NCAA Division 1 Conferences	Record
America East	3–0
A-10	5–0
ASUN	5–0
Big Sky	0–0
Big South	5–0
Big West	0–0
CAA	3–2
C-USA	4–0
Horizon	2–0
Ivy League	0–0
MAAC	0–0
MAC	1–1
MEAC	2–0
MVC	1–0
Mountain West	0–0
NEC	0–0
OVC	4–0
Patriot League	0–0
SoCon	4–0
Southland	0–0
SWAC	0–0
Summit	0–0
Sun Belt	3–0
WAC	0–0
WCC	0–0
Other Division I Total	42–3
Division II Total	1–0
NCAA Division I Total	49–8

Post Season

Power 7 Conferences	Record
American	1–0
Big East	1–1
Big Ten	1–1
Big 12	1–2
Pac-12	1–2
SEC	0–2
Power 7 Conferences Total	5–8
Other NCAA Division 1 Conferences	Record
America East	0–0
A-10	0–0
ASUN	0–0
Big Sky	0–0
Big South	0–0
Big West	0–0
CAA	0–1
C-USA	0–0
Horizon	0–0
Ivy League	0–0
MAAC	2–0
MAC	1–0
MEAC	0–0
MVC	0–0
Mountain West	0–0
NEC	0–0
OVC	0–0
Patriot League	0–0
SoCon	0–0
Southland	1–0
SWAC	0–0
Summit	1–0
Sun Belt	0–0
WAC	0–0
WCC	0–0
Other Division I Total	5–1
NCAA Division I Total	10–9

Record against ranked non-conference opponents

This is a list of games against ranked opponents only (rankings from the AP Poll):

Date	Visitor	Home	Site	Significance	Score	Conference record
Nov 27	Wake Forest	No. 14 Arkansas †			L 82–98	0–1
Nov 29	Wake Forest	No. 24 Missouri State †	Alico Arena ● Fort Myers, FL	Gulf Coast Showcase	W 68–59	1–1
Dec 3	No. 8 NC State				W 54–46	2–1
Dec 3		Notre Dame			L 66–78	2–2
Dec 4	No. 5 Louisville	No. 20 DePaul †		Jimmy V Classic	W 116–75	3–2

Team rankings are reflective of AP poll when the game was played, not current or final ranking

† denotes game was played on neutral site

Rankings

Legend

		Increase in ranking
		Decrease in ranking
		Not ranked previous week
		First Place votes shown in

See main article: 2020–21 NCAA Division I women's basketball rankings.

	Pre	Wk 2	Wk 3	Wk 4	Wk 5	Wk 6	Wk 7	Wk 8	Wk 9	Wk 10	Wk 11	Wk 12	Wk 13	Wk 14	Wk 15	Wk 16	Final
Boston College	AP	<	-- AP Preseason --> RV	<	-- AP Week 2 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 3 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 4 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 5 -->	<	-- AP Week 6 -->	<	-- AP Week 7 -->	<	-- AP Week 8 -->	<	-- AP Week 9 -->	<	-- AP Week 10 -->	<	-- AP Week 11 -->	<	-- AP Week 12 -->	<	-- AP Week 13 -->	<	-- AP Week 14 -->	<	-- AP Week 15 -->	<	-- AP Week 16 -->	<	-- AP Final -->
C	<	-- Coaches Preseason -->	<	-- Coaches Week 2 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 3 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 4 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 5 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 6 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 7 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 8 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 9 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 10 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 11 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 12 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 13 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 14 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 15 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 16 -->	<	-- Coaches Final -->
Clemson	AP	<	-- AP Preseason -->	<	-- AP Week 2 -->	<	-- AP Week 3 -->	<	-- AP Week 4 -->	<	-- AP Week 5 -->	<	-- AP Week 6 -->	<	-- AP Week 7 -->	<	-- AP Week 8 -->	<	-- AP Week 9 -->	<	-- AP Week 10 -->	<	-- AP Week 11 -->	<	-- AP Week 12 -->	<	-- AP Week 13 -->	<	-- AP Week 14 -->	<	-- AP Week 15 -->	<	-- AP Week 16 -->	<	-- AP Final -->
C	<	-- Coaches Preseason -->	<	-- Coaches Week 2 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 3 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 4 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 5 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 6 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 7 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 8 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 9 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 10 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 11 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 12 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 13 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 14 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 15 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 16 -->	<	-- Coaches Final -->
Duke	AP	<	-- AP Preseason --> RV	<	-- AP Week 2 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 3 -->	<	-- AP Week 4 -->	<	-- AP Week 5 -->	<	-- AP Week 6 -->	<	-- AP Week 7 -->	<	-- AP Week 8 -->	<	-- AP Week 9 -->	<	-- AP Week 10 -->	<	-- AP Week 11 -->	<	-- AP Week 12 -->	<	-- AP Week 13 -->	<	-- AP Week 14 -->	<	-- AP Week 15 -->	<	-- AP Week 16 -->	<	-- AP Final -->
C	<	-- Coaches Preseason -->	<	-- Coaches Week 2 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 3 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 4 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 5 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 6 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 7 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 8 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 9 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 10 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 11 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 12 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 13 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 14 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 15 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 16 -->	<	-- Coaches Final -->
Florida State	AP	<	-- AP Preseason --> RV	<	-- AP Week 2 -->	<	-- AP Week 3 -->	<	-- AP Week 4 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 5 -->	<	-- AP Week 6 -->	<	-- AP Week 7 -->	<	-- AP Week 8 -->	<	-- AP Week 9 -->	<	-- AP Week 10 -->	<	-- AP Week 11 -->	<	-- AP Week 12 -->	<	-- AP Week 13 -->	<	-- AP Week 14 -->	<	-- AP Week 15 -->	<	-- AP Week 16 -->	<	-- AP Final -->
C	<	-- Coaches Preseason --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 2 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 3 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 4 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 5 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 6 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 7 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 8 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 9 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 10 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 11 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 12 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 13 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 14 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 15 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 16 -->	<	-- Coaches Final -->
Georgia Tech	AP	<	-- AP Preseason -->	<	-- AP Week 2 -->	<	-- AP Week 3 -->	<	-- AP Week 4 -->	<	-- AP Week 5 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 6 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 7 -->	<	-- AP Week 8 -->	<	-- AP Week 9 -->	<	-- AP Week 10 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 11 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 12 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 13 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 14 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 15 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 16 --> RV	<	-- AP Final --> RV
C	<	-- Coaches Preseason -->	<	-- Coaches Week 2 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 3 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 4 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 5 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 6 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 7 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 8 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 9 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 10 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 11 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 12 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 13 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 14 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 15 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 16 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Final --> 22
Louisville	AP	<	-- AP Preseason --> 5	<	-- AP Week 2 --> 5	<	-- AP Week 3 --> 2 (2)	<	-- AP Week 4 --> 2 (1)	<	-- AP Week 5 --> 2 (1)	<	-- AP Week 6 --> 2 (1)	<	-- AP Week 7 --> 2	<	-- AP Week 8 --> 2	<	-- AP Week 9 --> 1 (20)	<	-- AP Week 10 --> 1 (22)	<	-- AP Week 11 --> 1 (26)	<	-- AP Week 12 --> 3	<	-- AP Week 13 --> 3	<	-- AP Week 14 --> 6	<	-- AP Week 15 --> 5	<	-- AP Week 16 --> 7т	<	-- AP Final --> 8
C	<	-- Coaches Preseason --> 5	<	-- Coaches Week 2 --> 2 (6)	<	-- Coaches Week 3 --> 2 (6)	<	-- Coaches Week 4 --> 2 (1)	<	-- Coaches Week 5 --> 2 (1)	<	-- Coaches Week 6 --> 2 (1)	<	-- Coaches Week 7 --> 2 (1)	<	-- Coaches Week 8 --> 1 (30)	<	-- Coaches Week 9 --> 1 (30)	<	-- Coaches Week 10 --> 3 (5)	<	-- Coaches Week 11 --> 2 (11)	<	-- Coaches Week 12 --> 2 (8)	<	-- Coaches Week 13 --> 5	<	-- Coaches Week 14 --> 5	<	-- Coaches Week 15 --> 7	<	-- Coaches Week 16 --> 7	<	-- Coaches Final --> 6
Miami	AP	<	-- AP Preseason -->	<	-- AP Week 2 -->	<	-- AP Week 3 -->	<	-- AP Week 4 -->	<	-- AP Week 5 -->	<	-- AP Week 6 -->	<	-- AP Week 7 -->	<	-- AP Week 8 -->	<	-- AP Week 9 -->	<	-- AP Week 10 -->	<	-- AP Week 11 -->	<	-- AP Week 12 -->	<	-- AP Week 13 -->	<	-- AP Week 14 -->	<	-- AP Week 15 -->	<	-- AP Week 16 -->	<	-- AP Final -->
C	<	-- Coaches Preseason -->	<	-- Coaches Week 2 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 3 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 4 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 5 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 6 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 7 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 8 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 9 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 10 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 11 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 12 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 13 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 14 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 15 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 16 -->	<	-- Coaches Final -->
North Carolina	AP	<	-- AP Preseason --> RV	<	-- AP Week 2 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 3 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 4 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 5 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 6 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 7 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 8 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 9 -->	<	-- AP Week 10 -->	<	-- AP Week 11 -->	<	-- AP Week 12 -->	<	-- AP Week 13 -->	<	-- AP Week 14 -->	<	-- AP Week 15 -->	<	-- AP Week 16 -->	<	-- AP Final -->
C	<	-- Coaches Preseason --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 2 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 3 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 4 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 5 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 6 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 7 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 8 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 9 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 10 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 11 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 12 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 13 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 14 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 15 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 16 -->	<	-- Coaches Final -->
NC State	AP	<	-- AP Preseason --> 8	<	-- AP Week 2 --> 8	<	-- AP Week 3 --> 4 (2)	<	-- AP Week 4 --> 4 (2)	<	-- AP Week 5 --> 4 (2)	<	-- AP Week 6 --> 3 (2)	<	-- AP Week 7 --> 3 (2)т	<	-- AP Week 8 --> 3 (1)	<	-- AP Week 9 --> 2 (5)	<	-- AP Week 10 --> 2 (5)	<	-- AP Week 11 --> 4	<	-- AP Week 12 --> 4 (1)	<	-- AP Week 13 --> 4	<	-- AP Week 14 --> 2	<	-- AP Week 15 --> 3	<	-- AP Week 16 --> 3 (2)	<	-- AP Final --> 3 (2)
C	<	-- Coaches Preseason --> 6	<	-- Coaches Week 2 --> 3 (1)	<	-- Coaches Week 3 --> 3	<	-- Coaches Week 4 --> 3	<	-- Coaches Week 5 --> 3	<	-- Coaches Week 6 --> 3	<	-- Coaches Week 7 --> 3	<	-- Coaches Week 8 --> 2 (1)	<	-- Coaches Week 9 --> 2 (2)	<	-- Coaches Week 10 --> 2 (7)	<	-- Coaches Week 11 --> 6	<	-- Coaches Week 12 --> 6	<	-- Coaches Week 13 --> 4	<	-- Coaches Week 14 --> 4	<	-- Coaches Week 15 --> 3	<	-- Coaches Week 16 --> 3	<	-- Coaches Final --> 7
Notre Dame	AP	<	-- AP Preseason --> 22	<	-- AP Week 2 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 3 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 4 -->	<	-- AP Week 5 -->	<	-- AP Week 6 -->	<	-- AP Week 7 -->	<	-- AP Week 8 -->	<	-- AP Week 9 -->	<	-- AP Week 10 -->	<	-- AP Week 11 -->	<	-- AP Week 12 -->	<	-- AP Week 13 -->	<	-- AP Week 14 -->	<	-- AP Week 15 -->	<	-- AP Week 16 -->	<	-- AP Final -->
C	<	-- Coaches Preseason --> 23	<	-- Coaches Week 2 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 3 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 4 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 5 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 6 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 7 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 8 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 9 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 10 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 11 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 12 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 13 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 14 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 15 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 16 -->	<	-- Coaches Final -->
Pittsburgh	AP	<	-- AP Preseason -->	<	-- AP Week 2 -->	<	-- AP Week 3 -->	<	-- AP Week 4 -->	<	-- AP Week 5 -->	<	-- AP Week 6 -->	<	-- AP Week 7 -->	<	-- AP Week 8 -->	<	-- AP Week 9 -->	<	-- AP Week 10 -->	<	-- AP Week 11 -->	<	-- AP Week 12 -->	<	-- AP Week 13 -->	<	-- AP Week 14 -->	<	-- AP Week 15 -->	<	-- AP Week 16 -->	<	-- AP Final -->
C	<	-- Coaches Preseason -->	<	-- Coaches Week 2 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 3 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 4 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 5 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 6 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 7 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 8 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 9 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 10 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 11 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 12 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 13 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 14 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 15 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 16 -->	<	-- Coaches Final -->
Syracuse	AP	<	-- AP Preseason --> 23	<	-- AP Week 2 --> 22	<	-- AP Week 3 --> 20	<	-- AP Week 4 --> 18	<	-- AP Week 5 --> 22	<	-- AP Week 6 --> 22	<	-- AP Week 7 --> 24	<	-- AP Week 8 --> 24	<	-- AP Week 9 --> 23	<	-- AP Week 10 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 11 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 12 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 13 -->	<	-- AP Week 14 -->	<	-- AP Week 15 -->	<	-- AP Week 16 -->	<	-- AP Final -->
C	<	-- Coaches Preseason --> 21	<	-- Coaches Week 2 --> 18	<	-- Coaches Week 3 --> 16	<	-- Coaches Week 4 --> 20т	<	-- Coaches Week 5 --> 20	<	-- Coaches Week 6 --> 20	<	-- Coaches Week 7 --> 21	<	-- Coaches Week 8 --> 20	<	-- Coaches Week 9 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 10 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 11 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 12 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 13 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 14 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 15 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 16 -->	<	-- Coaches Final --> RV
Virginia	AP	<	-- AP Preseason -->	<	-- AP Week 2 -->	<	-- AP Week 3 -->	<	-- AP Week 4 -->	<	-- AP Week 5 -->	<	-- AP Week 6 -->	<	-- AP Week 7 -->	<	-- AP Week 8 -->	<	-- AP Week 9 -->	<	-- AP Week 10 -->	<	-- AP Week 11 -->	<	-- AP Week 12 -->	<	-- AP Week 13 -->	<	-- AP Week 14 -->	<	-- AP Week 15 -->	<	-- AP Week 16 -->	<	-- AP Final -->
C	<	-- Coaches Preseason -->	<	-- Coaches Week 2 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 3 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 4 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 5 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 6 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 7 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 8 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 9 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 10 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 11 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 12 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 13 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 14 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 15 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 16 -->	<	-- Coaches Final -->
Virginia Tech	AP	<	-- AP Preseason -->	<	-- AP Week 2 -->	<	-- AP Week 3 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 4 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 5 -->	<	-- AP Week 6 -->	<	-- AP Week 7 -->	<	-- AP Week 8 -->	<	-- AP Week 9 -->	<	-- AP Week 10 -->	<	-- AP Week 11 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 12 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 13 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 14 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 15 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 16 --> RV	<	-- AP Final --> RV
C	<	-- Coaches Preseason --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 2 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 3 --> 25т	<	-- Coaches Week 4 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 5 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 6 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 7 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 8 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 9 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 10 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 11 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 12 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 13 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 14 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 15 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 16 -->	<	-- Coaches Final --> RV
Wake Forest	AP	<	-- AP Preseason -->	<	-- AP Week 2 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 3 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 4 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 5 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 6 --> RV	<	-- AP Week 7 -->	<	-- AP Week 8 -->	<	-- AP Week 9 -->	<	-- AP Week 10 -->	<	-- AP Week 11 -->	<	-- AP Week 12 -->	<	-- AP Week 13 -->	<	-- AP Week 14 -->	<	-- AP Week 15 -->	<	-- AP Week 16 -->	<	-- AP Final -->
C	<	-- Coaches Preseason -->	<	-- Coaches Week 2 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 3 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 4 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 5 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 6 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 7 --> RV	<	-- Coaches Week 8 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 9 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 10 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 11 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 12 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 13 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 14 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 15 -->	<	-- Coaches Week 16 -->	<	-- Coaches Final -->

Note: The Coaches Poll releases a final poll after the NCAA tournament, but the AP Poll does not release a poll at this time.

Conference matrix

This table summarizes the head-to-head results between teams in conference play. Each team played 20 conference games, and at least 1 against each opponent. This marked the first year that teams played a twenty-game conference schedule.^[14]

Duke suspended its season on December 25, 2020.^[15]
Virginia suspended its season on January 14, 2021.^[16]

	style= width=75	Boston College	style= width=75	Clemson	style= width=75	Duke	style= width=75	Florida State	style= width=75	Georgia Tech	style= width=75	Louisville	style= width=75	Miami	style= width=75	North Carolina	style= width=75	NC State	style= width=75	Notre Dame	style= width=75	Pittsburgh	style= width=75	Syracuse	style= width=75	Virginia	style= width=75	Virginia Tech	style= width=75	Wake Forest
CLEM	DUKE	FSU	GT	UL	MIAMI	UNC	NCST	ND	PITT	CUSE	UVA	VT	WAKE -->	vs. Boston College	–	–	–	–	86–68 43–49	89–70 97–68	77–60	–	75–69 76–57	61–64 83–73	83–80	83–70 92–75	–	–	68–48
vs. Clemson	–	–	–	69–72 95–88 (2OT)	67–55 71–69	70–45	80–71 68–62	77–64	86–65	55–78	80–71 79–69	77–86 (OT)	55–71	70–64	66–69 72–65
vs. Duke	–	–	–	–	–	73–49	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
vs. Florida State	–	72–69 88–95 (2OT)	–	–	66–58 62–48	84–56 59–68	68–53 59–67	51–61	–	72–64	53–67	52–67	51–69	63–73	73–59 51–59
vs. Georgia Tech	68–86 49–43	55–67 69–71	–	58–66 48–62	–	85–70	56–70 56–67	84–59	84–75	67–82 69–67	60–65	63–76	–	54–56	44–73 61–52
vs. Louisville	70–89 68–97	45–70	49–73	56–84 68–59	70–85	–	76–79	68–79	74–60	65–71 61–78	58–82	54–67	–	67–71	63–65
vs. Miami	60–77	71–80 62–68	–	53–68 67–59	70–56 67–56	79–76	–	63–67 59–69	87–47	71–60	68–72	69–58 99–64	–	75–55	63–60 67–69
vs. North Carolina	–	64–77	–	61–51	59–84	79–68	67–63 69–59	–	69–76 82–63	73–78	72–81	68–92 88–76	–	66–54 73–69 63–68	57–54 74–77 (OT)
vs. NC State	69–75 57–76	65–86	–	–	75–84	60–74	47–78	76–69 63–82	–	–	53–83	61–68	–	87–89 83–71 (OT)	65–79 47–66
vs. Notre Dame	64–61 73–83	78–55	–	64–72	82–67 67–69	71–65 78–61	60–71	78–73	–	–	48–59	81–69	–	78–84 60–65	72–79
vs. Pittsburgh	80–83	71–80 69–79	–	67–53	65–60	82–58	72–68	81–72	83–53	59–48	–	80–57 71–67	–	88–71 74–55	64–61 (OT)
vs. Syracuse	70–83 75–92	86–77 (OT)	–	67–52	76–63	67–54	58–69 64–99	92–68 76–88	68–61	69–81	57–80 67–71	–	–	76–68	78–85
vs. Virginia	–	71–55	–	69–51	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
vs. Virginia Tech	–	64–70	–	73–63	56–54	71–67	55–75	54–66 69–73 68–63	89–87 71–83 (OT)	84–78 65–60	71–88 55–74	68–76	–	–	67–64
vs. Wake Forest	48–68	69–66 65–72	–	59–73 59–51	73–44 52–61	65–63	60–63 69–67	54–57 77–74 (OT)	79–65 66–47	79–72	61–64 (OT)	85–78	–	64–67	–	CLEM	DUKE	FSU	GT	UL	MIAMI	UNC	NCST	ND	PITT	CUSE	UVA	VT	WAKE -->
Total	2–11	5–12	0–1	9–7	12–6	14–2	8–10	8–9	12–2	8–7	3–12	9–7	0–2	8–8	8–10

Player of the week

Throughout the conference regular season, the Atlantic Coast Conference offices named a Player(s) of the week and a Rookie(s) of the week.

Week	Player of the week	Freshman of the week	Reference
Week 1 – Nov 30	Taylor Soule – Boston College	Hailey Van Lith – Louisville	[17]
Week 2 – Dec 7	Kayla Jones – NC State	Maddy Westbeld – Notre Dame	[18]
Week 3 – Dec 14	Lotta-Maj Lahtinen – Georgia Tech	Loyal McQueen – Georgia Tech	[19]
Week 4 – Dec 21	Janelle Bailey – North Carolina	Gabby Elliott – Clemson	[20]
Week 5 – Jan 4	Jada Boyd – NC State	Maddy Westbeld (2) – Notre Dame	[21]
Week 6 – Jan 11	Ivana Raca – Wake Forest	Hailey Van Lith (2) – Louisville	[22]
Week 7 – Jan 18	Elizabeth Kitley – Virginia Tech	Priscilla Williams – Syracuse	[23]
	Gina Conti – Wake Forest
Week 8 – Jan 25	Dana Evans – Louisville	Kamilla Cardoso – Syracuse	[24]
Week 9 – Feb 1	Aisha Sheppard – Virginia Tech	Kamilla Cardoso (2) – Syracuse	[25]
Week 10 – Feb 8	Dana Evans (2) – Louisville	Kamilla Cardoso (3) – Syracuse	[26]
Week 11 – Feb 15	Gina Conti (2) – Wake Forest	Georgia Amoore – Virginia Tech	[27]
Week 12 – Feb 22	Jakia Brown-Turner – NC State	Deja Kelly – North Carolina	[28]
Week 13 – Mar 1	Destiny Harden – Miami	Deja Kelly (2) – North Carolina	[29]

Postseason

ACC tournament

See main article: 2021 ACC women's basketball tournament.

NCAA tournament

See main article: 2021 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament.

Seed	Region	School	1st Round	2nd Round	Sweet 16	Elite Eight	Final Four	Championship
1	Mercado	NC State	W 79–58 vs. #16 – (San Marcos, TX)	W 79–67 vs. #8 South Florida – (San Antonio, TX)	L 70–73 vs. #4 Indiana – (San Antonio, TX)
2	Alamo	Louisville	W 74–43 vs. #15 – (San Antonio, TX)	W 62–53 vs. #7 Northwestern – (San Antonio, TX)	W 60–42 vs. #6 Oregon – (San Antonio, TX)	L 63–78 vs. #1 Stanford – (San Antonio, TX)
5	HemisFair	Georgia Tech	W 54–52 (OT) vs. #12 – (San Antonio, TX)	W 73–56 vs. #4 West Virginia – (San Antonio, TX)	L 65–76 vs. #1 South Carolina – (San Antonio, TX)
7	Riverwalk	Virginia Tech	W 70–63 vs. #10 – (San Marcos, TX)	L 48–90 vs. #2 Baylor – (San Antonio, TX)
8	Riverwalk	Syracuse	W 72–55 vs. #9 South Dakota State – (Austin, TX)	L 47–83 vs. #1 UConn – (San Antonio, TX)
9	HemisFair	Florida State	L 59–83 vs. #8 Oregon State – (San Marcos, TX)
9	Alamo	Wake Forest	L 61–84 vs. #8 – (San Antonio, TX)
10	HemisFair	North Carolina	L 71–80 vs. #7 Alabama – (San Antonio, TX)
		W–L (%):						Total:

National Invitation tournament

See main article: 2021 Women's National Invitation Tournament.

Honors and awards

ACC Awards

The ACC announced its end of season awards on March 2, 2021 ahead of the start of the ACC tournament.^[30]

2020 ACC Women's Basketball Individual Awards
Award	Recipient(s)
Player of the Year	Dana Evans – Louisville
Coach of the Year	Nell Fortner – Georgia Tech (Blue Ribbon) Wes Moore – NC State (Head Coaches)
Defensive Player of the Year	Lorela Cubaj – Georgia Tech Kamilla Cardoso – Syracuse
Freshman of the Year	Kamilla Cardoso – Syracuse (Blue Ribbon) Maddy Westbeld – Notre Dame (Head Coaches)
Sixth Player of the Year	Jada Boyd – NC State Emily Engstler – Syracuse
Most Improved Player	Lotta-Maj Lahtinen – Georgia Tech

2020 ACC Women's Basketball All-Conference Teams (Blue Ribbon Panel)
First Team	Second Team	Honorable Mention	Freshman Team
Lorela Cubaj – Georgia Tech Lotta-Maj Lahtinen – Georgia Tech Dana Evans – Louisville Elissa Cunane – NC State Jakia Brown-Turner – NC State Maddy Westbeld – Notre Dame Kamilla Cardoso – Syracuse Elizabeth Kitley – Virginia Tech Aisha Sheppard – Virginia Tech Ivana Raca – Wake Forest	Taylor Soule – Boston College Delicia Washington – Clemson Morgan Jones – Florida State Kayla Jones – NC State Gina Conti – Wake Forest	Janelle Bailey – North Carolina Raina Perez – NC State Jayla Everett – Pittsburgh Kiara Lewis – Syracuse Tiana Mangakahia – Syracuse	Gabby Elliott – Clemson Hailey Van Lith – Louisville Olivia Cochran – Louisville Deja Kelly – North Carolina Maddy Westbeld – Notre Dame Kamilla Cardoso – Syracuse Georgia Amoore – Virginia Tech Jewel Spear – Wake Forest

2020 ACC Women's Basketball All-Conference Teams (Head Coaches)
First Team	Second Team	Honorable Mention	Freshman Team
Taylor Soule – Boston College Morgan Jones – Florida State Lorela Cubaj – Georgia Tech Dana Evans – Louisville Jakia Brown-Turner – NC State Elissa Cunane – NC State Kayla Jones – NC State Elizabeth Kitley – Virginia Tech Aisha Sheppard – Virginia Tech Ivana Raca – Wake Forest	Delicia Washington – Clemson Lotta-Maj Lahtinen – Georgia Tech Maddy Westbeld – Notre Dame Kamilla Cardoso – Syracuse Gina Conti – Wake Forest	Janelle Bailey – North Carolina Jayla Everett – Pittsburgh Tiana Mangakahia – Syracuse	Gabby Elliott – Clemson Hailey Van Lith – Louisville Olivia Cochran – Louisville Deja Kelly – North Carolina Maddy Westbeld – Notre Dame Kamilla Cardoso – Syracuse Georgia Amoore – Virginia Tech Jewel Spear – Wake Forest

2020 ACC Women's Basketball All-ACC Defensive Team
Player	Team
Marnell Garraud	Boston College
Lorela Cubaj	Georgia Tech
Morgan Jones	Florida State
Mykasa Robinson	Louisville
Kamilla Cardoso	Syracuse

WNBA draft

See main article: 2021 WNBA draft.

The ACC had three players selected in the 2021 WNBA Draft. The ACC has had at least one player selected in sixteen straight WNBA Drafts.^[31]

Player	Team	Round	Pick #	Position	School
		1	10	Guard	North Carolina
		2	13	Guard
		3	28	Guard	Wake Forest

Notes and References

1. Web site: 2020-2021 Women's Basketball Conference Statistics. theacc.com. The Atlantic Coast Conference. March 8, 2021.
2. Web site: Duke's Joanne P. McCallie resigns as women's basketball coach. newsobserver.com. Raleight News & Observer. Steve. Wiseman. July 2, 2020. November 12, 2020.
3. Web site: Kara Lawson accepts head women's basketball coach position at Duke. boston.com. Boston Globe. Brandon. Chase. July 11, 2020. November 12, 2020.
4. Web site: Voepel . Mechelle . Muffet McGraw steps down as women's basketball coach at Notre Dame . 22 April 2020 . . April 22, 2020.
5. Web site: Basketball Hall of Fame, WBCA Name Twenty Point Guards to Watch List for 2021 Nancy Lieberman Award. hoophall.com. Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. November 9, 2020. November 12, 2020.
6. Web site: Basketball Hall of Fame, WBCA Name Twenty Shooting Guards to Watch List for 2021 Ann Meyers Drysdale Award. hoophall.com. Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. November 10, 2020. November 12, 2020.
7. Web site: Basketball Hall of Fame, WBCA Name Twenty Shooting Guards to Watch List for 2021 Cheryl Miller Award. hoophall.com. Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. November 11, 2020. November 12, 2020.
8. Web site: Basketball Hall of Fame, WBCA Name Twenty Power Forwards to Watch List for 2021 Katrina McClain Award. hoophall.com. Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. November 12, 2020. November 13, 2020.
9. Web site: Basketball Hall of Fame, WBCA Name Twenty Centers to Watch List for 2021 Lisa Leslie Award. hoophall.com. Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. November 13, 2020. November 16, 2020.
10. Web site: Women's Basketball's Collier named to Naismith Trophy Watch List. texassports.com. University of Texas Athletics. November 17, 2020. November 17, 2020.
11. Web site: John R. Wooden Award Presented By Wendy's Announces Preseason Top 30 Watch List. woodenaward.com. John R. Wooden Award. December 1, 2020. December 10, 2020.
12. Web site: ACC Announces Student-Athletes for Operation Basketball, Women's Basketball Tipoff. theacc.com. The Atlantic Coast Conference. November 10, 2020. November 12, 2020.
13. Web site: Louisville Chosen as ACC Women's Basketball Preseason Favorite. theacc.com. The Atlantic Coast Conference. November 10, 2020. November 12, 2020.
14. Web site: 2020-21 ACC Women's Basketball Conference Schedule Announced. theacc.com. The Atlantic Coast Conference. November 11, 2020. November 12, 2020.
15. Web site: Duke Blue Devils end women's basketball season amid coronavirus concerns. espn.com. ESPN. December 25, 2020. December 28, 2020.
16. Web site: Virginia women's basketball team cancels rest of season due to coronavirus issues. espn.com. ESPN. Mechelle. Voepel. January 14, 2021. January 19, 2021.
17. Web site: Boston College's Soule, Louisville's Van Lith Earn First ACC Women's Basketball Weekly Honors. theacc.com. The Atlantic Coast Conference. November 30, 2020. November 30, 2020.
18. Web site: NC State's Jones, Notre Dame's Westbeld Claim ACC WBB Weekly Honors. theacc.com. The Atlantic Coast Conference. December 7, 2020. December 7, 2020.
19. Web site: Georgia Tech Sweeps ACC Women's Basketball Weekly Honors. theacc.com. The Atlantic Coast Conference. December 14, 2020. December 14, 2020.
20. Web site: North Carolina's Bailey, Clemson's Elliott Earn ACC WBB Weekly Honors. theacc.com. The Atlantic Coast Conference. December 21, 2020. December 21, 2020.
21. Web site: NC State's Boyd, Notre Dame's Westbeld Earn ACC WBB Weekly Honors. theacc.com. The Atlantic Coast Conference. January 4, 2021. January 5, 2021.
22. Web site: Wake Forest's Raca, Louisville's Van Lith Earn ACC WBB Weekly Honors. theacc.com. The Atlantic Coast Conference. January 11, 2021. January 11, 2021.
23. Web site: Syracuse, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest Earn ACC WBB Weekly Honors. theacc.com. The Atlantic Coast Conference. January 18, 2021. January 19, 2021.
24. Web site: Louisville's Evans, Syracuse's Cardoso Earn ACC WBB Weekly Honors. theacc.com. The Atlantic Coast Conference. January 25, 2021. January 25, 2021.
25. Web site: Virginia Tech's Sheppard, Syracuse's Cardoso Earn ACC WBB Weekly Honors. theacc.com. The Atlantic Coast Conference. February 1, 2021. February 1, 2021.
26. Web site: Louisville's Evans, Syracuse's Cardoso Earn WBB Weekly Honors. theacc.com. The Atlantic Coast Conference. February 8, 2021. February 8, 2021.
27. Web site: Wake Forest's Conti, Virginia Tech's Amoore Earn ACC WBB Weekly Honors. theacc.com. The Atlantic Coast Conference. February 15, 2021. February 15, 2021.
28. Web site: NC State's Brown-Turner, North Carolina's Kelly Earn ACC WBB Weekly Honors. theacc.com. The Atlantic Coast Conference. February 22, 2021. February 22, 2021.
29. Web site: Miami's Harden, North Carolina's Kelly Awarded ACC WBB Weekly Honors. theacc.com. The Atlantic Coast Conference. March 1, 2021. March 2, 2021.
30. Web site: ACC Women's Basketball Announces 2021 Award Winners. theacc.com. The Atlantic Coast Conference. March 2, 2021. March 2, 2021.
31. Web site: Three ACC Student-Athletes Selected in 2021 WNBA Draft. theacc.com. The Atlantic Coast Conference. April 15, 2021. April 16, 2021.