Heels should look beyond this week

CHAPEL HILL -- North Carolina wrapped up another regular season title and likely another No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament thanks to another win over Duke on Sunday night.

But as Ty Lawson limped off the court with a sore right big toe after beating the Blue Devils, it became pretty apparent that what the Tar Heels don't need is another ACC Tournament title.

Coach Roy Williams has always placed more emphasis on the regular season crown for a reason: it's a sign of what the team has accomplished over a matter of months, not days. And let's face it, with two conference tournament titles but two NCAA tournament meltdowns under their belts over the last two years, the veteran Tar Heels are certainly focused more on the weeks to come than the week.

That's not to say UNC won't hoist another trophy in Atlanta this week, or shouldn't try. But with Lawson obviously needing to heal, and the Heels needing to look at the bigger picture (i.e., getting to, and winning in Detroit), a loss in the semifinals to a team like Florida State wouldn't be a stretch. Or surprising. Or necessarily a bad thing.

The Tar Heels, who own the top seed in the ACC tournament, could use a win over the winner of Thursday's Virginia Tech-Miami game on Friday to keep any fretting in the fan base from setting in. That should also triply solidify a top seed in the NCAAs.

But Williams' teams at Kansas and UNC have only reached the Final Four once after winning the conference title crown -- last season -- proving that returning home early and resting up for another day tends to pay bigger dividends down the road. -- Robbi Pickeral