When North Carolina coach Larry Fedora met with his team before the start of preseason practice, he and his players outlined a list of four clear goals, tangible pursuits that contrasted the usual cliché of taking a season one game at a time.
The grandest of the Tar Heels' goals was to win the ACC championship, something that no UNC team has done since 1980. The possibility of achieving that goal ended in the middle of November, along with UNC's goal of repeating as Coastal Division champions.
A loss at Duke on Nov. 10 brought an end to another goal, too: that of winning the mythical state championship.