Tag: Clemson vs. North Carolina

Clemson takes down No. 3 North Carolina in Chapel Hill

Clemson built a 16-point lead over ACC rival and No. 3-ranked North Carolina on Tuesday and held on for an 80-76 victory at the Dean Smith Center.

Clemson built a 16-point lead over ACC rival and No. 3-ranked North Carolina on Tuesday night and held on for an 80-76 victory at the Dean Smith Center.

The win was just the second in program history by a Tigers team visiting Chapel Hill.

Clemson (15-7 overall, 5-6 conference) put North Carolina and its home crowd on notice early by jumping out to a 15-2 lead.

The Tigers hit their first six shots of the game, including a pair of 3-pointers from PJ Hall and another from Joe Girard. The hot start forced North Carolina coach Hubert Davis to take a timeout before the first media stoppage.

North Carolina (18-5, 10-2) ended the half on a 9-2 run to cut the lead to 43-34 at intermission. As expected, the Tar Heels would make a run in the second half and evened the score at 70-all when Harrison Ingram drained a 3-pointer with 4:19 to play in regulation.

But unlike other late-game efforts this season, Clemson withstood the charge.

Girard sank the last of his five 3-pointers with just over two minutes to play to extend the Clemson lead to 75-70. By that point, North Carolina had gone over 2:30 without a basket. Jack Clark went to the foul line on the Tigers’ next possession with 1:42 to play and sank both baskets to increase the lead to 77-70.

North Carolina threatened a late run after Clark missed a 3-pointer that would have extended the Clemson lead to nine, and after a bizarre turnover from Hall, who would later sink two foul shots to close out the victory.

Hall finished with 25 points in just 27 minutes to lead the Tigers in scoring. Girard added 21 points, including his five 3-pointers. Ian Schieffelin had 14 points — 12 of which came in the second half — to go with 11 rebounds.

Unlike four years ago, when Clemson snapped an 0-59 lifetime winless streak on Carolina’s home court, the Tigers never even trailed Tuesday.

“The start to the game was huge,” Clemson coach Brad Brownell said afterwards. “I think we shocked them early. For the last 30 minutes, it got loud in here and I thought our guys handled it very well and made some big plays down the stretch. It’s a big win for us.”

Armando Bacot’s 24 points led North Carolina, and RJ Davis scored 22 to pass Michael Jordan for 15th on the list of all-time leading scorers in UNC history.

Clemson built its largest of the night at 41-25 in the first half after Clark cut to the basket and sank a shot off the glass with 2:33 to play until halftime.

The Tigers shot 48.5 percent in the first half on 16 of 33 attempts. By contrast, Carolina shot just 31 percent in the opening half and missed on 11 of 15 attempts from 3-point range.

UP NEXT: Clemson travels to Syracuse for a noon tipoff Saturday at the JMA Wireless Dome (or Carrier Dome). The game will be televised by ESPN2.

Clemson vs. North Carolina: How to Watch/Stream/Listen

A look at how and where Clemson fans can watch, listen, and stream Tuesday’s game vs. North Carolina.

Clemson’s fortunes have soured considerably since a promising 11-1 start to the season.

The Tigers suffered a heartbreaking 66-65 home loss to Virginia over the weekend that would have given them a much-needed victory and morality boost.

Instead, when Jack Clark missed a good-look 3-point attempt from the top of the key just a split second before the buzzer sounded on Saturday, Clemson had dropped its sixth game in nine tries since the start of the year.

A trip to Chapel Hill to face the ACC’s top-ranked team in No. 3 North Carolina will be the furthest thing from a soft landing spot that coach Brad Brownell’s squad can get.

NORTH CAROLINA

Talk about no rest for the purple-and-orange clad weary. The Tar Heels (18-4 overall, 10-1 conference) started 9-0 in ACC play, their best mark in 23 years, before falling a week ago to Georgia Tech in Atlanta to snap a 10-game overall winning streak.

Coach Hubert Davis’ team quickly rebounded for a convincing 93-84 victory over No. 7 Duke at the Dean Smith Center last Saturday.

6-foot-11 senior Armando Bacot has led North Carolina all season and did so again vs. Duke when he scored a game-high 25 points to go with 10 rebounds. Harrison Ingram also posted a double-double with 21 points and 13 boards.

CLEMSON

After its latest setback to a streaking Virginia team that’s won seven straight contests, Clemson (14-7, 4-6) had its third loss in the past month that was decided on the final play of the game; the Tigers had previously suffered similar heartbreaking defeats to Duke and Georgia Tech.

“We’ve gotten knocked back a little bit. I think we have a good group of guys and we’ll continue to rally and gain traction. Eventually, the worm will turn and we’ll win a couple of these games that have gotten away from us and be back in a good place,” Brownell maintained after Saturday’s loss.

PJ Hall led Clemson with 19 points against Virginia to match his team-best season average.

Series Notes and Recent History

Tuesday’s game marks the 147th meeting between Clemson and North Carolina. The Tar Heels hold a commanding 124-22 advantage in the all-time head to head series. In the last meeting between the two schools a month ago on January 6, Bacot tallied 14 points and 16 rebounds in a 65-55 North Carolina victory at Littlejohn Coliseum.

Clemson’s last win over Carolina was three years ago in February 2021 at Littlejohn. The Tigers have won only once all-time in Chapel Hill. That was on January 11, 2020 in a historic 79-76 overtime thriller that snapped a 59-game consecutive losing streak on the Tar Heels’ home court. It was longest such streak vs. a single opponent in NCAA Division I men’s basketball history — one that had dated back to 1926. The Tigers lost 91-71 in their most recent visit to Chapel Hill last season.

How To Watch

Here’s a look at how and where Clemson fans can watch, listen, and stream Tuesday’s game vs. North Carolina.

Date: Tuesday, Feb. 6

Time: 7 p.m. EST

Where: Dean Smith Center

TV Channel: ESPN

Live Stream: ESPN+

Radio: Clemson Athletic Network | TuneIn App | SiriusXM (Channel 389)

Broadcast Teams

ESPN: Rece Davis, Jay Williams

Clemson Radio: Don Munson, Tim Bourret

Clemson Drops Second Straight Contest, 65-55 to North Carolina

A look at Clemson’s 65-55 loss to No. 8 North Carolina Saturday.

Despite a sellout crowd that included Dabo Swinney, who was seen sporting a noticeable black eye, No. 16 Clemson fell to No. 8 North Carolina, 65-55, in ACC play Saturday at Littlejohn Coliseum.

The Tigers (11-3 overall, 1-2 conference) have now dropped each of their first two contests since resuming play after the holiday break. Clemson had a dismal showing from three-point range, making just 1-of-18 shots from beyond the arc. All told, the Tigers shot just 36 percent from field goal range.

“It was a tough night for us shooting,” Clemson coach Brad Brownell said afterwards.

North Carolina’s Armando Bacot and RJ Davis, meanwhile, proved why they’re two of the best players in the ACC. Despite a better defensive effort from Clemson, Davis still managed 14 points, as did Bacot, who passed Al Wood to move into fifth place all-time in UNC scoring history.

After playing to a 34-34 tie at halftime, Clemson took its biggest lead of the afternoon when Chase Hunter made a layup to give the Tigers a 38-34 advantage early in the second period.

Chauncey Wiggins hit the Tigers’ only 3-pointer of the contest to put Clemson ahead, 41-39, with 13:22 to play. Unfortunately for the Tigers, Carolina came right back down the floor with a 3-pointer from Harrison Ingram on the Tar Heels’ next possession.

Things started to gradually slip away from there.

Davis made a 3-pointer with 10:32 to play to give North Carolina a 45-41 advantage, and Clemson never led again.

North Carolina (11-3 overall, 3-0 conference) would close the game on a 7-0 run as Clemson went the final five-plus minutes without a basket.

Hunter led the Tigers with 17 points. Ian Schieffelin added 16, including a second-half dunk that got the crowd on its feet. Schieffelin also had three steals in the first half and five total in the game to go with 11 rebounds.

“I’m proud of our team. Quick turnaround, I thought we really guarded hard and expended a tremendous amount of energy physically. Guarding their guys and keeping them off the glass as well as we did, we did an unbelievable job in the first half. They did a little better job in the second half against us,” Brownell said.

The Tigers return to action Wednesday when they travel to Blacksburg to take on Virginia Tech (9-4 overall, 1-1 conference). Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. EST. The game can be seen on ESPN.

Social media reacts: Dabo Swinney shown at Clemson vs. UNC with a black eye

Dabo Swinney is at Clemson’s big matchup against North Carolina… with a black eye?

OK, this one is a bit weird.

Brad Brownell and the No. 16 Clemson men’s basketball team are taking on No. 8 North Carolina in Littlejohn Coliseum on Saturday. It’s a huge game for the Tigers, but the game isn’t what many people are talking about. Right now, it’s Clemson football head coach Dabo Swinney.

Swinney was shown at the game sporting a black eye, and it has sent social media into a frenzy. According to reports, the black eye came from a pickup basketball game Swinney was a part of. It didn’t take much time for that one to get cleared up, but it still has people talking.

Here is a look at how X (Twitter) has reacted to Dabo Swinney’s black eye.

Gallery: The best photos from Clemson’s stellar win over North Carolina

Here is a look at the best photos from Clemson’s win over North Carolina.

Dabo Swinney and the Tigers extended their impressive streak on Saturday, securing a 31-20 victory over former 20th-ranked North Carolina in Death Valley.

As the 2023 college football season unfolded, the Tigers faced a challenging start that neither the program nor the fan base desired. However, they are now finding their rhythm in the latter part of the season. This marks another significant win against strong opponents, now defeating UNC and Notre Dame.

The win over the Tar Heels was great and delivered some great photos. Here is a look at the best photos from the Tigers’ win over the Tar Heels.

Dabo Swinney on Clemson’s questionable fake punt against North Carolina

For the second straight week, Clemson attempted a questionable fake punt.

Dabo Swinney and the Tigers picked up a big win over North Carolina Saturday, taking down the Tar Heels 31-20 in front of their home crowd for Senior Day. 

Early in the game, Swinney and his staff opted to do another fake punt, this time with fifth-year senior defensive tackle Tyler Davis taking a direct snap and attempting to pick up the first down on a run. Like Aidan Swanson’s fake against Georgia Tech, it was a brutally poor fake that allowed North Carolina an excellent chance to score and set the tone. 

After the game, Swinney explained the decision. 

“We went into the game, if we had fourth and a long 1, maybe a 1 and a half, in between, or 2, we were gonna call it,” Swinney said. “And I gotta look at it on tape. They didn’t replay it, so I never got a chance to see it. I’m not sure if they ran a guy through the A gap and we didn’t cut him off or what, but we thought we had it.

“So, Senior Day, we dialed up one for Tyler Davis and it didn’t work. But we went into the game, if we got in that situation, we were gonna hundred percent call it. I think it was a long 1, and so we were like, ‘Well, OK, here we go.’ So, didn’t work.”

I get the idea behind it, but that is two games where a poor decision to fake a punt led to scores from the opposition. It’s tough to condone a decision like this following the result we saw from it against the Yellow Jackets, but credit to Swinney for sticking to his guns there. 

Sometimes, bad situations turn out good, and while that wasn’t one of them, Swinney believes Cade Klubnik’s touchdown run where he barely crossed the plane is one of them.

“That’s the worst play that turned out good ever,” Swinney said of Klubnik’s rushing touchdown. “Man, I mean, holy cow. We had timeout. We talked about it, like, ‘You cannot run this ball, we gotta throw the ball, we gotta get the points here,’ and he made it by… I don’t even know if you could put a piece of paper between how close it was.

“But hey, we caught a break. He made a play, and that field goal was huge, right. A three point-game was huge. We needed the one, and obviously the touchdown was big. It’s good to be able to coach that with success. The only worse play was the fake punt. That was the only worse play of the game.”

Social media reacts: Will Shipley shines in possibly his final game in Death Valley

Will Shipley had his best game of the season in what may have been his final game in Death Valley.

Clemson took down No.20 North Carolina on Senior Day in front of their home crowd in Clemson Memorial Stadium as junior running back Will Shipley put together a magnificent and possible final performance at Death Valley.

While Shipley has not announced whether he will return to Clemson for another season, he did participate in Senior Day festivities. There are no guarantees, but signs point to a departure for the NFL right now.

In the game, Shipley took 18 carries for 126 yards and a touchdown, adding two catches for 53 yards. He looked as explosive as ever and showed NFL scouts once again what he is capable of. 

It was a strong performance from the star running back, and it had people talking. Here is a look at how Twitter/X reacted to Shipley’s big day.

Social media reacts: Nate Wiggins makes an incredible effort play to stop a North Carolina touchdown

Nate Wiggins made one of the best-effort plays you’ll ever see.

Clemson star cornerback Nate Wiggins had an outstanding performance in the Tigers’ 31-20 win over North Carolina, making one of the best effort plays you’ll ever see on a football field. 

At the end of the first quarter, North Carolina was in a position where they could have taken a 14-0 lead over Clemson on the road, with momentum fully on their side. That is until Wiggins made the play of the game. 

Tar Heels running back Omarion Hampton broke off a 64-yard run, with Wiggins running the near length of the field to strip the ball from Hampton right before he could get into the end zone. In a moment when the Tigers’ needed someone to step up, Wiggins did it and then some. He even added a game-sealing interception in the fourth quarter to cap off the game. 

Here is a look at how Twitter/X reacted to Wiggins’ phenomenal effort play.

Dabo Swinney shares an injury update on wide receiver Beaux Collins

Dabo Swinney shared an injury update on Beaux Collins following Clemson’s win over North Carolina.

Following Clemson’s 31-20 win over North Carolina, Dabo Swinney met with the media and updated the injury status of starting wide receiver Beaux Collins. 

According to Swinney, Collins tore his plantar fascia in the matchup. There is no timetable for the injury, and Swinney did not rule him out for next week’s matchup against South Carolina. 

“We’ll see what the status with him is,” Swinney said.

It is another injury at wide receiver for the Tigers; hopefully, Collins’ injury isn’t as severe as it sounds. Swinney also noted that it is unlikely that star wide receiver Antonio Williams will be ready for the game against the Gamecocks. 

Clemson could be thin at wide receiver for their rivalry game.

Will Shipley shines in his possible final game in Death Valley

It may have been Shipley’s final game in Death Valley, and he put on a show for Clemson fans.

Clemson star running back Will Shipley may have played his final game in Death Valley Saturday in the Tigers’ 31-20 win over North Carolina, and he put on a show for the home crowd. 

Shipley is a junior but was a part of Clemson’s Senior Day activities. While the young running back has made it clear that he hasn’t made a decision on what his plan is, participating in Senior Day as a junior, more often than not, means the player is moving on to the NFL. 

If this was Shipley’s final performance in Death Valley, it would be one to remember. On the day, Shipley took 18 carries for 126 yards and a touchdown, adding two catches for 53 yards. 

Shipley was once again the focal point of this Clemson offense, and it was awesome to see. The Tigers still have South Carolina and a bowl game to go, and we will keep close attention to what Shipley has to say down the line.