RALEIGH, NC – NIT! NIT! NIT!

The chant began with just under 2 minutes remaining at PNC Arena and grew in volume as NC State extended its lead Sunday on North Carolina into double digits.

It was a taunt meant to add a little extra salt to the wound of what would become a 77-69 victory against rival North Carolina. But it could also be considered a sobering reality check for the reeling Tar Heels.

Barring a resurrection even more stunning than the one that propelled them to the national championship game last season, coach Hubert Davis’ team is well on its way to become the first preseason No. 1 to miss out on the NCAA Tournament since the event expanded to 64 teams in 1985.

Sunday’s loss, which followed an increasingly familiar pattern of late-game collapses, was UNC’s 5th in its past 6 games. It dropped the Tar Heels to 16-11 overall and into 9th place in the ACC at a middling 8-8.

I’m not a believer in “bracketology,” so it doesn’t matter who Lunardi or Palm has as the last 4 in and the last 4 out. But based on the raw numbers, it can safely be said that the best thing UNC has going for it right now is the words “North” and “Carolina” stitched onto the front of their powder blue jerseys.

The Tar Heels were No. 44 in the NCAA’s NET rankings going into Sunday’s game. 

Although that number won’t drop much, if at all, because of the Wolfpack’s higher ranking, the more troubling statistic for UNC is its unsightly 0-9 record against Quad 1 opponents.

There are still more opportunities remaining, including upcoming Quad 1 dates against Virginia and Duke before the ACC Tournament in Greensboro with its automatic NCAA bid to the winner.

But while it’s still too soon to write the Tar Heels off, the clock is ticking.

Rapidly.

No matter what their 2nd-year coach seems to think, at least publicly.

“After the game, I told the team that I’ve been there before, being in the NBA,” Davis said. “I’ve been in situations where you feel like your back is against the wall. I told them that there’s a long season ahead of us and that we didn’t play well enough here to win.”

It’s admirable that Davis is remaining calm while others around him have already begun shifting into full panic mode. In this situation, however, a touch of urgency might be more helpful.

Davis’ comments make him sound like a crewman on the deck of the Titanic telling passengers to remain calm as the ship slowly sinks into the ocean.

This isn’t the NBA with an 82-game schedule and a playoff qualification process devoid of subjectivity. The Tar Heels’ NCAA Tournament fate will ultimately be held in the hands of a committee whose selection criteria isn’t exactly transparent and tends to change from year-to-year depending on its makeup.

At this point, with their resume nearly complete, their postseason chances are rapidly dwindling to a hope and a prayer.

Which, by coincidence, is what Davis offered up in the aftermath of his team’s latest loss.

“It says in Hebrews 11:1, ‘Faith is being sure of what you hope for and certain of what you don’t see.’ That’s what I have in this team,” he said. “I have a faith that I’m being sure of what I hoped for and certain what I don’t see. 

“Even though I am disappointed that we didn’t win tonight and that we have four games left in the regular season, I’m very confident and very hopeful that we’ll continue to get better and good things will happen to this team.”

Rather than hoping for Divine intervention, Davis might consider addressing the flesh and blood issues that are helping to bring his team down.

Starting with its inability to close out games. Sunday’s loss is the latest example.

The Tar Heels led 54-48 with 10:22 remaining and had 3 straight possessions with an opportunity to extend their advantage. Instead, they turned it over twice and missed a layup. The Wolfpack responded with a 7-0 run that gave them the lead. 

UNC never completely recovered.

It marked the 6th time this season that the Tar Heels have lost a game they led by 6 or more points with fewer than 13 minutes remaining.

Davis continues to talk to his players about the importance of getting back up when they get knocked down. He did it again Sunday.

The problem is that every time the team dusts itself off and gets back up, it gets knocked right back down again. And yet the message, not to mention the recurring problems that can’t be solved by a spirited players’ only meeting or wearing weighted jackets at practice, remains unchanged.

“Sometimes it doesn’t come when you want it, where you want it, how you want it, in a manner in which you want it, at the time that you want it. That’s life,” Davis said. “The key is to understand and to continue to get back up and continue to fight. That’s what Carolina has always been about. That’s what this team has always been about. It’s not even a choice. That’s the only direction that you can go.”

Unless something drastic changes soon, though, that direction isn’t the 1 the Tar Heels had in mind when the season began.

It’s one that’s heading straight to the NIT … NIT … NIT.