So Why is North Carolina playing Northeastern on Wednesday?

Why not?

The Tar Heels need games and they need wins, and they will get the former with the Huskies visiting the Smith Center for a 7 pm tip, and very well could get both. They actually should get both.

But what else will Carolina get by scheduling this game, and if necessary bringing in a couple more similar opponents over the next few weeks?

At 12-7 overall, 7-5 in the ACC and No. 57 in the NET, Carolina needs to build its NCAA Tournament resume. Wins matter and beating the Huskies won’t hurt the Heels’ NET at all because Northeastern comes in at No. 144, which is eight spots ahead of Miami and 25 in front of Boston College. One could say Northeastern is the best college team in the Boston area.

It might be the best team in Massachusetts, and even defeated the Minutemen earlier in the season.

So, on the surface, a win over Northeastern won’t do Carolina any damage at all, and it’s logical to figure the Hurricanes would have been a bigger challenge given how UNC’s game went in Coral Gables last month and Miami has been playing fairly well of late. And there’s that whole ACC athletes as opposed to CAA athletes deal. Yet, this is still a legitimate team coming to Chapel Hill.

But this game is all about North Carolina and what Roy Williams’ team can get out of it. So, let’s look at why, and how it can impact what happens on Selection Sunday.

UNC needs to accumulate as many victories as it can, and if one or all three of its postponed ACC games versus Miami, Virginia Tech and Clemson aren’t going to be made up, the program has no alterative but to go outside the league and find teams that will agree to visit the Smith Center. Northeastern was cool with that, so the Huskies are coming.

Sitting at 12 wins, Carolina would be well served if it can reach 18 victories, especially if that includes winning at Syracuse on March 1, which would give the Heels a much-needed Quad 1 win. Carolina is currently 1-6 in Q1 games, with the triumph coming at Duke.

So, let’s say UNC beats the Huskies, wins Saturday over Louisville and then takes care of Boston College on the road next Tuesday, assuming that game is played – BC postponed Wednesday’s game versus Georgia Tech because of another COVID issue - it will be 15-7 overall and 9-5 in the ACC.

Then, for the sake of discussion and sort of forecasting ahead, let’s say the Tar Heels lose at home to Florida State, which is one of only two Q1 games remaining, win at Syracuse and defeat Duke, that puts the Heels at 17-8 and 11-6.

If they can sprinkle in two more games against Northeastern-like opponents, Carolina could well hit 20 wins by getting one or two in the ACC Tournament, also assuming it’s played. Even if they find a way to host Clemson and/or Virginia Tech, a split there and the Heels are 18-9 and 12-7.

Carolina would help itself in that scenrio. Then, if Stanford (NET No. 56) can get inside the top 50 by selection weekend, it would give the Heels another Q1 win. If Duke (NET No. 66) can stay at 75 or better, and Pitt (NET No. 80) climbs above 75, that will ensure two more Q1 wins for the Tar Heels.

In this scenario, that’s 18 wins and four Q1 victories. Even if the Clemson and Virginia Tech games are swapped out for teams from the leagues like the Mack and Sun Belt Conference, which would somewhat affect UNC’s overall NET, the Heels would be is great shape to land in the field of 68 and perhaps with a better seed than most observers currently anticipate.

Carolina just needs to play games and then win those games. Taking care of Northeastern on Wednesday is a start, and from there who knows what the schedule will look like on various game days, but as long as the Heels play have opponents to pla and wins enough, they should be in solid shape come selection time.