ACC Tournament 2012: Win or Lose, North Carolina Should Earn a No. 1 Seed

While it seems unlikely, there is the possibility that North Carolina could get bumped out of a No. 1 seed if it loses to Florida State in the ACC tournament final, namely if Florida State beats the Tar Heels in convincing fashion.

But North Carolina deserves to keep a No. 1 seed regardless.

At this point, Kentucky and Syracuse are locks for No. 1 seeds, and it seems only fair that the winner of Michigan State vs. Ohio State should get the third, considering both have elite resumes and the winner would be the champion of the best conference in college basketball this year.

That means that the fourth No. 1 seed will come down to two teams: North Carolina and Missouri.

If North Carolina beats Florida State, there is no question they deserve a top seed. But if they lose, they'll open up the door for a comparison with Missouri.

Let's compare the resume of each school in the event of a North Carolina loss:

School	Record	RPI	SOS	RPI Top-50 Wins	RPI Top-50 Losses
North Carolina	29-5	3	6	Michigan State, Wisconsin, Long Beach State, Texas, N.C. State (3), Virginia, Duke	UNLV, Kentucky, Florida State, Duke
Missouri	30-4	10	106	Notre Dame, California, Iowa State (2), Texas (3), Baylor (3), Kansas	Kansas State (2), Kansas

Is it fair to give bonus points to Missouri for winning the Big 12 tournament when North Carolina won the ACC regular-season title?

I don't think so. And if you simply look at the resumes of each team, North Carolina's looks more impressive.

That is why, even if they lose to Florida State, the Tar Heels should earn themselves a No. 1 seed. I feel confident the selection committee will agree.

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