UNC Basketball’s season has reached a pivotal moment. The Heels put up arguably their worst performance of the season last night in Coral Gables as they lost by 28 points to Miami. They are now 0-5 in Quadrant 1 games and have an NCAA Tournament resume filled with mediocre wins.
At the time, UNC’s wins over Michigan and Virginia seemed impressive, but they have since lost much of their significance as the Wolverines and Cavaliers continue to struggle. After that, their best win arguably came on the road over a Georgia Tech team that is 7-9 overall and 1-5 in ACC play. Toss in a 29-point loss to Kentucky, a 28-point loss to Miami, and a 17-point loss to Tennessee, and the Heels’ resume is underwhelming, to say the least.
CBS Sports Bracketology Expert Jerry Palm had North Carolina as an 11-seed in his projected Field of 68 before Tuesday’s game in Coral Gables. It is safe to assume that Palm will slide Carolina into the “Last Four In” or “First Four Out” category at a minimum following Tuesday night’s ugly loss. That seems like a fair assessment of their overall resume considering the lack of quality wins and the nature of their losses.
Despite a disappointing start to the season (by Chapel Hill’s standards), UNC will have at least 15 more games in league play—more than enough opportunities to climb comfortably back into the projected NCAA Tournament field. Those opportunities begin on Saturday with an enormous road game against a much-improved Wake Forest team.
Here are three themes and takeaways from North Carolina’s 28-point loss to Miami as well as their first 17 games as a whole.