North Carolina’s ACC Tournament ended with an 80-79 loss to Clemson in the quarterfinals. The fourth-seeded Tar Heels fell short despite a late comeback, losing to the fifth-seeded Tigers. North Carolina coach Hubert Davis had emphasised the importance of playing with ‘hunger and thirst’ entering the tournament.
Tar Heels’ Urgency Lacking Early On
For much of the game, the Tar Heels did not play with the urgency Davis demanded. North Carolina trailed by 18 in the second half, prompting some fans to leave early. Henri Veesaar set career-highs with 28 points and 17 rebounds as North Carolina pulled within 1 point in the final seconds.
Despite the comeback, the Tar Heels struggled with Clemson’s physicality for most of the game. Davis noted the ‘inability to respond to physicality’, echoing similar issues from their previous loss to Duke.
Clemson’s Strong Performance
Nick Davison led Clemson with 17 points and 11 rebounds, making all four of his 3-point attempts. Clemson’s bench outscored North Carolina 29-5. The Tigers shot 49.1% from the field, despite being without Carter Welling, who suffered a torn ACL in the previous game.
Clemson closed the first half on a 6-0 run to take a 39-31 lead. They extended that lead to 18 points with 11:36 remaining in the second half. North Carolina did not cut the deficit to under 10 points until the 2:28 mark.
Desperation Mode and NCAA Tournament Outlook
The Tar Heels made five consecutive shots late in the game, but Jarin Stevenson’s last-second shot missed. Veesaar stated that they ‘play good when we’re desperate’ and intend to maintain that mindset. North Carolina (24-8) enter the NCAA Tournament on a two-game losing streak.
Caleb Wilson had been nearing a return from a left hand injury. However, he then broke his right thumb in practice. UNC then lost to Duke to end the regular season and then fell in their first game in the ACC Tournament.
Now the Tar Heels have a few days to find that ‘hunger and thirst’ Davis was so desperately seeking out of his team.