The Tar Heels’ ceiling is a seeding ceiling.

Despite a 12-game ACC winning streak and a handful of elite victories this season, there is zero chance they’ll wind up as a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament, and they won’t land a spot on the third seed line, either. The Tar Heels’ tournament resume features too much inconsistency and too many bad losses — three to teams with an RPI of 110 or worse.

There’s a chance North Carolina will wind up as a No. 4 seed, though those hopes were damaged with the loss to Pitt. Most likely, the Tar Heels will be a No. 5 seed, which means they’d be in the always-dangerous 12-5 game. That’s just the reality of their resume.

The Tar Heels, though, have no ceiling when it comes to how far they can advance into the NCAA Tournament. Let’s put it this way: The Tar Heels have a much better chance of being one of the final eight teams standing than they do of being one of the top eight seeds.

“I think we have dreams and goals of making the deep tournament run,” UNC point guard Marcus Paige said, “and I think we’re capable of doing that.”

It’s a different conversation.

Seeding factors in accomplishments and failures and tries to find an appropriate balance to the overall picture, relative to other teams around the country. Games that are lost in November matter to the selection committee, but they have no bearing on what a team can accomplish in the future. It’s all part of the development process, free of anchors.

The Tar Heels, despite falling short in a dramatic comeback attempt against Pittsburgh on Friday, aren’t deterred. “This game just lets us know there’s a whole bunch of things we can work on,” senior Leslie McDonald told Sporting News. “If you told me today my team couldn’t improve from what we did today, I’d be devastated. But we can definitely go back to practice and improve on the mistakes we made today and we can be a much better team.”

Roy Williams’ teams are known for their offensive prowess, but this year’s squad has a defensive mindset. The Tar Heels rank 20th in the kenpom.com defensive efficiency ratings. Teams that have a baseline of a good defense can win games in many ways.

Ugly wins are important wins in the NCAA Tournament. UNC has had its share of ugly wins, even during the 12-game winning streak. “We won them every single way you could possibly think of,” freshman big man Brice Johnson said.

And that ability is why the Tar Heels have no ceiling for the ceiling that matters.