In the end, a win over Virginia Tech last Saturday would have meant the same in the Atlantic Coast Conference standings as a win over North Carolina tonight, if not to the committee that will hand out bids for the NCAA Tournament.
So technically, Boston College basketball coach Al Skinner isn't bluffing when he insists the missed opportunity against the Hokies isn't devastating to the Eagles' hopes this season, as it might have seemed with a glance at the upcoming schedule.
Because, really, it's the way the players - and Skinner - must think, before setting out on a difficult swing through the Carolinas that could determine the Eagles' fate.
First up, Chapel Hill and the No. 4 Tar Heels tonight at 7.
"For me, a league game is a league game," Skinner said. "They all have the same value. The team that wins the most league games has a chance to be in first place. It doesn't matter who your opponent is at this point in the season.
"We need to get some wins. We want to stay in the mix. We want to finish at the top of the league. These are the people in the league. You've got to be prepared to play them."
But it's not just North Carolina (19-1, 4-1). After BC (12-6, 3-2) plays the Tar Heels, the team heads to Clemson, S.C., to play a team on Saturday night that got Top 25 votes this week despite having a 3-3 conference record. Not an easy task for the Eagles, nor is a home matchup next Wednesday with Maryland, the only team to beat North Carolina this season, or a game against No. 3 Duke (17-1, 5-0) Feb. 9 on the road. It could be a make-or-break stretch for BC.
And toward that end, Skinner is trying to combat the occasional lack of focus that affects his callow team, especially in time for Tyler Hansbrough and the Tar Heels, a team whose strengths are certainly not a mystery to the Eagles. BC has seen what North Carolina has done to the rest of the conference.
"The most important thing about North Carolina is they test your physical ability," Skinner said. "They push the ball up the floor. They make you run. They're going to drive the ball up the floor, be aggressive. Hansbrough is relentless. You've got to be able to contend with that attitude.
"You've just got to go out and fight through it. The answer is simple. The doing it is the hard part. [Hansbrough is] aggressive and that makes their team aggressive and you have to respond to that. If you don't do that, you don't have much chance of competing."
That would be a problem. But so, too, would be making the same mistakes the Eagles made against an inferior Virginia Tech squad. They allowed the Hokies to stay in the game and, ultimately, breeze through the overtime to win, 81-73, by giving them extra chances.
Focus, Skinner said, will be the key to reversing that trend. Not much to do there in terms of preparation, other than bringing the problem to the attention of his players, trying to ensure they concentrate when the game is in reach. Having started the season well, the Eagles have hit a lull, according to their coach. It must be reversed - and soon - for BC to get through this difficult stretch and be in position for a chance at the postseason.
"The biggest problem there were the second chances we gave up," Skinner said of the game against Virginia Tech. "We lost at least 6 points on rebounding on free throws and we missed our free throws. Those are two areas, hopefully, we can resolve rather easily. That's not going to be enough to beat North Carolina, but those are things we can take care of. Hopefully, we'll do that."
Amalie Benjamin can be reached at abenjamin@globe.com.
