How UNC basketball lost to Clemson in Chapel Hill for 2nd time in nearly 100 years

CHAPEL HILL – For just the second time in nearly 100 years, Clemson came to Chapel Hill and left with a victory against UNC basketball.

Hungry for a signature win to boost their NCAA Tournament resume, the Tigers played like it in an 80-76 win against the third-ranked Tar Heels to snag their second win at the Smith Center in four years.

Clemson (15-7, 5-6 ACC), which lost its first 59 games in Chapel Hill before getting over the hump in 2020, dominated the first half and fended off UNC (18-5, 10-2) in the second half to hand the Tar Heels their second loss in three games.

UNC tied it at 70 with four minutes left, but the Tigers scored the next seven points to take control and close the game. Armando Bacot led UNC with 24 points and 13 rebounds.

Here's what stood out in the Tar Heels' loss.

Clemson’s offensive rebounding buries UNC basketball

The difference in the second half? Clemson had 12 second-chance points, including the go-ahead points by PJ Hall. The Tigers had two offensive rebounds and didn’t have any second-chance points in the first half before pulling down nine offensive rebounds in the second half. Hall (25 points, nine rebounds) and Ian Schieffelin (14 points, 11 rebounds) did most of the damage.

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Tough shooting night for RJ Davis, Cormac Ryan

RJ Davis, the ACC’s leading scorer at more than 20 points per game, finished with 22 points but wasn’t as efficient as he had been in previous games. Davis was 7-for-22 shooting and even missed two free throws. Fellow guard Cormac Ryan had an even rougher night from the perimeter, missing 9 of 10 shots and each of his six attempts from long range to finish with two points.

Sleepy start for UNC as Clemson builds big lead

The Tar Heels got off to their worst start of the season as Clemson scored 15 of the first 17 points in the first four minutes and led by as many as 16 points in the first half. UNC trimmed its deficit to 43-34 at halftime, but the Tar Heels shot 31%. After watching the Tigers miss 17 of their first 18 3-point attempts in the first meeting, UNC saw Clemson hit six in the first half.

Staff writer Rodd Baxley can be reached at @rbaxley@fayobserver.com or @RoddBaxley on X/Twitter.

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: UNC basketball vs. Clemson: Tar Heels lose to Tigers in Chapel Hill