I'll put another spin on it. Per the bracket matrix, our "as of now" record is right near the line right now. We are in on 7 of 42.
So we are pretty close. 8-5 to close the season even in a modest ACC is sort of what bubble teams do... they go about .500 if they are in a better conference.. So going 8-5 we shouldn't really lose any ground,,, if anything we hold steady. So we might be right there if we go 8-5 entering conference tourney week.
With lots of teams around the bubble line in the ACC still plenty of ability to accumulate Q1 and Q2 wins. (we are going to need to get some on the road). They are going to end up getting 4 or 5 once it works its way out.
But as you suggest we are going to be inhibited by not having a marquee Q1 win. It's not a must but its very nice to have. That could be our biggest problem - but it really depends on what is going on around us That is why I have 8-5 as the squarely on the bubble number -- it's going to get us in the discussion at least.
Some dialogue as to whether there is a "Q1A" category used by the committee -- my understanding is there is, and its basically just splitting the Q1 quadrant in half. We could get some Q1 wins, but unless we take UNC at home, or take Clemson on the road (Maybe), we will not get a Q1A win.