CLEMSON, S.C. — North Carolina (14-11, 7-6 ACC) continued its four-game road losing streak with an 85-65 loss to No. 23 Clemson (20-5, 12-2 ACC) on Monday night at Littlejohn Coliseum.
The Tar Heels allowed 12 made threes while surrendering the largest rebound margin of the season 41-28 in favor of the Tigers.
UNC began the game 5-6 from the field with five players scoring a basket just past the under-16 timeout. But a 13-4 scoring run by Clemson, including a trio of 3-pointers, paced the Tigers for an early first-half lead.
6-foot-11 Clemson center Viktor Lakhin scored on all levels and North Carolina had no answers. The big man was the Tigers’ best perimeter shooter, nailing four threes in the first 13 minutes and finishing with 20 points at halftime.
Without an answer for Lakhin in the paint or around the perimeter, UNC fell behind 35-25 at the 6:30 mark in the first. Graduate guard RJ Davis kept UNC in it offensively, making four shots including two step-back midranges and a 3-pointer to notch nine points.
But a four-minute dry spell to close out the first half plagued the Tar Heels as they trailed 49-33 at the break. It was the rebounding margin that North Carolina struggled to close, surrendering eight offensive rebounds, while only grabbing nine in total. Clemson recorded 20 boards.
To start the second, Davis muscled his way to the rim for a pair of layups and North Carolina found sophomore guard Elliot Cadeau for a 3-pointer on the next possession. As the Tar Heels fostered momentum, four straight misses at the free throw line and an untimely three by Clemson extended the Tigers’ lead instead.
A pair of Tiger threes — which rolled around every part of the rim before dropping in — extended Clemson’s lead to 21 at the arrival of the under-12 timeout.
Another UNC scoring drought lasting nearly four minutes was enough for Clemson to pull away for good. And despite only scoring one basket in the second half, Lakhin was the game’s leading scorer with 22 points. Clemson’s Chase Hunter also added 19.
