Boston College Basketball: Updated ACC Playoff Picture

For 2016, the normally-reserved-for-North-Carolina ACC Basketball Tournament will change venues to the nation's capital when it descends on the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C.

But with Louisville's self-imposed postseason ban, the league will be forced to adapt its tournament format for a second straight season. After Syracuse's sanctioning kept them out of the conference tournament last season, the league will change things up in 2016 to include two, not three, first round games.

The 2016 ACC Basketball season slate's been one of pack mentalities, with only three games separating first place North Carolina from seventh place Syracuse. That means a slip up here or there could result in the loss of a coveted double bye or, worse, a second round matchup against a team that also receives a bye.

Some of you might be wondering what, exactly, the double bye is. The top four teams in the league receive byes automatically to the quarterfinals round, while teams seeded sixth through tenth receive a single bye into the second round. The bottom four teams in the league have the longest and toughest road to championship glory, playing first round play-in games on the tournament's first day.

As of Sunday morning, this is what the ACC standings look like:

For BC, a team looking up at the rest of the conference, here's what they're in for in terms of clinching scenarios. The Eagles obviously cannot seal up any positioning since they're in last place, but they can be eliminated from finishing as high as certain spots, including some areas where they won't hold their own destiny.

Thanks to a top-heavy league, though, the Eagles still have a chance to finish pull up to at least 11th. While that means they're likely to play on the first day of the tournament, they still have an outside change, if Virginia Tech's season falls apart, to finish 10th with a miracle.

Entering this weekend, BC is already eliminated from finishing with a double bye and have been eliminated from finishing as high as fifth place. They can be eliminated from finishing as high as sixth if Pittsburgh beats North Carolina or if Florida State beats Miami.

Ironically, enough, that has no bearing on whether or not the Eagles were eliminated from finishing as high as seventh. BC is eliminated from finishing as high as seventh if Clemson beats Georgia Tech in an unrelated game.

In looking at the remaining seeds, BC can lose the eighth seed if they lose to the Orange or if Clemson, Pittsburgh, and Florida State all win. They are eliminated from finishing ninth if Syracuse beats them and Pittsburgh and Florida State win, with no bearing on the Clemson game.

From there, the Eagles still have a mathematical shot to still finish anywhere from dead last to 10th.

Here's what can be clinched this weekend. Places where BC has an impact have been bolded:

North Carolina:
Clinches at least the #10 seed (First round bye):
-Beats Pittsburgh and a victory by any of the following: Clemson, Virginia, and Miami
-Wake Forest beats NC State and Clemson beats Georgia Tech

Clinches at least the #11 seed:
-Beats Pittsburgh
-Wake Forest beats NC State

Virginia:
Clinches at least the #10 seed (First Round bye):
-Beats Duke and Clemson beats Virginia Tech

Clinches at least the #11 seed:
-Virginia beats Duke
-Wake Forest beats NC State

Miami:
Clinches at least the #10 seed (First Round bye):
-Beats FSU and Wake Forest beats NC State and Clemson beats GT

Clinches at least the #11 seed:
-Beats FSU and Wake Forest beats NC State

Notre Dame:
Clinches at least the #11 seed:
-Beats Louisville and Wake Forest beats NC STate

Duke:
Clinches at least the #11 seed:
-Beats Virginia and Wake Forest beats NC State and Notre Dame beats Louisville and Syracuse beats BC

Clinches at least the #12 seed:
-Beats Virginia
-NC State beats Wake Forest and Clemson beats Georgia Tech
-NC State beats Wake Forest and Syracuse beats BC

Clemson:
Clinches at least the #12 seed:
-Beats Georgia Tech
-NC State beats Wake Forest and Syracuse beats BC

Syracuse:
Clinches at least the #12 seed:
-Beats BC

Pittsburgh:
Clinches at least the #12 seed:
-Beats UNC and NC State beats Wake Forest and Syracuse beats BC

Clinches at least the #13 seed:
-Beats UNC
-NC State beats Wake Forest and Syracuse beats BC

Florida State:
Clinches at least the #12 seed:
-Beats Miami and NC State beats Wake Forest and Syracuse beats BC

Clinches at least the #13 seed:
-Beats Miami
-NC State beats Wake Forest
-Syracuse beats BC

Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech, Wake Forest, and BC do not have clinching scenarios.

So there's a lot on the line come Sunday for the Eagles and potential downstream impacts that could hit the ACC race as the end of the season starts to draw near.

Playoff scenarios courtesy playoffstatus.com