The North Carolina Tar Heels traveled to Clemson, South Carolina for a matchup against the Clemson Tigers. Both teams entered needing a win to get their year back on track. The Tigers took the Tar Heels to the wire, as Clemson had the lead with under two minutes to go. A late basket by North Carolina’s Brady Manek proved to be the difference-maker, as North Carolina left with a two-point win.
North Carolina Basketball Hangs on to Win
Clemson opened the game on an 8-0 run, aided by three-pointers from David Collins and Al-Amir Dawes. North Carolina eventually worked their way back in the game, taking a 30-25 lead into halftime. The Tar Heels eventually built a nine-point lead in the second half. Clemson’s PJ Hall scored the team’s final nine points to help lead the comeback. Hall was also part of the reason that Armando Bacot fouled out of the game late.
Caleb Love hit a three to give the Tar Heels a two-point lead. Hall responded, scoring the last two of his nine points to tie the game back up.
With the game tied up with 16 seconds left, Love penetrated the lane and found Manek for a late layup to give North Carolina a 79-77 lead with three seconds left. Without the presence of Bacot, due to fouling out, Carolina spread to a five-out offense. This gave Love enough space to take his defender off of the dribble. After a timeout, Clemson went the length of the court where David Collins missed an open three-point shot, to give North Carolina the win.
North Carolina basketball’s Armando Bacot finished the game with 24 points and 10 rebounds. Caleb Love finished with 10 points, while RJ Davis added another 16. Manek and Leaky Black contributed another 11 each.
