UNC Basketball: Best- and Worst-Case Scenarios for Rest of Tar Heels' Season

Things have been choppy recently for the North Carolina Tar Heels. Prior to cruising to a win at home over Georgia Tech, the Heels had lost four of their past five ballgames.

The final stretch isn't impossible but doesn't do UNC any favors either.

Two of the team's next three games are on the road. After that, the regular season concludes with the Heels hosting Duke. This will, of course, be followed up by the conference and national tournaments to round out Carolina's March (and possibly April).

It is hard for fans to currently think too positively about this team with the way it has played, but there is a feasible best-case scenario waiting in the weeds.

Of course, there is also a worst-case scenario lurking for how Carolina can finish out the year. Fans may not want to hear it, but 19-8 is certainly not rock bottom.

Best-Case Scenario

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For North Carolina, the best-case scenario to finish out the regular season is to win out. With the exception of the game at Duke, UNC will likely be favored in every remaining contest. It's important to remember that even through currently mounting losses, opponents aren't running UNC off the floor. Two of the team's four losses during this stretch came in overtime.

Winning this quartet of matches and beating Duke to close out the season would be a perfect rebound from the team's recent struggles.

It would also, in this best-case scenario, propel it through the ACC tournament. From the third or fourth seed, Carolina could rip through a few victories and claim the Atlantic Coast Conference crown for sure.

With healthy guards, Marcus Paige and company shooting well and continued dominance inside, the sky is the limit for this team.

With such a run to finish out the year, North Carolina would probably be given a No. 2 or No. 3 at worst for the NCAA tournament. With the proper matchups that the Heels can exploit, a run all the way to the Final Four is completely in play.

For all the talk of Roy Williams losing his touch both in-game and on the recruiting trail, a best-case scenario such as this isn't out of the realm of possibility, highlighting the fact that ole Roy has a pretty talented team on his hands.

Worst-Case Scenario

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UNC's worst-case scenario is already poking out from behind the curtain.

The team has lost to all of its opponents of note since early January unless you count a home win over Syracuse. Not since beating Louisville on January 10 has Carolina defeated a ranked foe, and not since December has a win like that come away from home.

With that said, the Tar Heels are still in OK shape for the NCAA tournament. They bagged enough quality wins, especially out-of-conference, early in the season that a falter such as this wouldn't kill them.

However, in the worst-case scenario, UNC could finish the year losing two or three more times, making February and March more of a black hole than a road to a shining moment.

The team would head into ACC tournament play as a higher seed than anyone was hoping and without any momentum to boot. An early exit in the conference tournament could then slide this team all the way to second-round upset range for the NCAA tournament.

As a No. 6 or even No. 7 seed, North Carolina could easily be bounced in its first game in the Big Dance if the opponent is a tough matchup. With a hypothetical record of 20-12, UNC may not even be much of a favorite at all depending on the team it faces.

Such a tailspin to finish out the postseason would be horrific for Coach Williams and company heading into an uneasy offseason where an academic scandal and possible sanctions hang over the university.

If play on the court wasn't bad enough in this scenario, things may get worse once the games end.