After a gritty win over Pittsburgh on Saturday, it’s a quick turnaround for the Tar Heels, as they hit the road to Clemson, South Carolina to take on the Tigers, who are fresh off a win over #2 Duke last Saturday. Carolina took down Pittsburgh 67-66 in a defacto elimination game for the NCAA Tournament, in a game that moved UNC from Joe Lunardi’s “Next Four Out” to the “First Four Out”, meaning a win over Clemson, which would qualify as a Quad 1 win, would have UNC in the projected tournament field. RJ Davis continued his strong play as of late in the win over Pitt, scoring 18 points, on 6-12 shooting, including going 3-5 from behind the arc. He hit the go-ahead shot with less than a minute left, which should only further boost his confidence. If Carolina is going to go on another late-season surge, Davis has to be at the forefront of that, and it appears that the super senior is ready to charge.
Had Clemson not lost to Georgia Tech earlier in the week, they would be the top team in the ACC, nonetheless, they enter tonight’s game coming off the biggest win of the season, and in the process, solidified themselves as the second-best team in the league. The win over Duke, gives them two wins over blue blood programs this season, to go with the win over Kentucky back in the non-conference season. Both wins have come at home, where they are 11-2 this season, and with Carolina coming to town tonight, you know that Littlejohn will be ready to rock starting at 7 PM. They are led in scoring by Chase Hunter, who averages over 17 points per game while shooting nearly 49% from the field. He is one of four Clemson Tigers to average double figures scoring, on a team that scores the basketball as efficiently as any team Carolina will play down the stretch.
This game is the last in a defining stretch for UNC, which is looking to win its way into the NCAA Tournament. Carolina is currently 1-2 in this all-important stretch and has gone from being in the projected field to outside of it. Hubert Davis is hoping that the sense of emergency his team played with on Saturday, carries over onto the road, and into tonight’s game because Carolina has not only to match but exceed the will and the want to, of the Tigers. Last season, Carolina lost at home to Clemson, 48 hours after a win over Duke in February. This time, it’s Clemson that’s coming off a big win over Duke, but they have to deal with the quick turnaround and move on from the emotional win over the best team in the conference.
Carolina won at Clemson last year, and it was a sign for that particular team ultimately becoming a team that would win the ACC regular season title, and earn a #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. The scenario is different this time around, but nonetheless a win would go a long for this team’s confidence, let alone their NCAA Tournament credentials. Here’s how Carolina can earn their most significant win of ACC play so far, and begin to build legitimate momentum for the first time this season:
RJ Davis: With this game have the feeling of a big game in March, Carolina needs its best player, RJ Davis, to be the best player on the floor. In the last handful of games, Davis is averaging over 18 points per game, but more importantly is shooting nearly 50% from the field, and 40% from behind the arc. Coming off the win over Pittsburgh, where Davis hit the go-ahead shot, his confidence should be as high as it’s been all season long. He’ll need to outplay Chase Hunter tonight, and that won’t be an easy task, considering how good he’s been this season, but that’s what Hubert Davis needs from his All-American, and reigning ACC Player of the Year, who returned to school for a fifth season for moments like this.
Compete on the Interior: Clemson plays two “bigs” at the same time in Ian Schieffelin and Viktor Lahkin, and they are going to pose problems for a small Carolina team. The two were able to withstand the size and the length of Duke in their win over the Blue Devils, and that spells problems for UNC tonight. Hubert Davis has been committed to starting the four-guard lineup, but he’s been playing Drake Powell more minutes than Ian Jackson. On Saturday, Powell played 29 minutes, as compared to 22 minutes for Jackson. Powell will need to be on the floor for extensive minutes to help Carolina compete on the glass. It’s asking too much to as UNC to win the rebounding battle, but they need to hold their own, especially on the offensive glass, and not give up too many second-chance points. If Carolina can limit the rebounding damage, it’ll go a long way to keeping the game close deep into the second half.
Special Teams: It’s a road game in the ACC, and that means that Carolina needs to be ready to protect the basketball as they did at home on Saturday, where they committed just 6 turnovers. They’ll also need to make their foul shots, something they didn’t do against Pittsburgh, as they went 8-15. In games like this, the little things will play a major role in the outcome, one way or another. If Carolina can limit the live-ball turnovers, get to the foul line, and capitalize, it’ll give them the best chance to come away with the win.
Series History:
Carolina is 136-24 all-time against Clemson, and are 42-18 on the road, and 31-15 in Littlejohn Coliseum. The two programs have split the last six contests.
KenPom:
North Carolina - 41st overall. Adjusted Offensive Efficiency: 116.5 (45th) Adjusted Defensive Efficiency: 99.8 (51st)
Clemson - 29th overall. Adjusted Offensive Efficiency: 119.3 (21st) Adjusted Defensive Efficiency: 98.2 (41st)
NET:
North Carolina - 46th.
Clemson - 30th.
TV Info:
Today’s game will tip at 7 PM, on ESPN.
The Four Corners Podcast:
Comments