UNC basketball vs Clemson: Score prediction, scouting report for ACC game

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UNC basketball has an NCAA Tournament-like turnaround for a game that could determine if the Tar Heels are going to make the NCAA Tournament.

The Tar Heels (14-10, 7-5 ACC), who earned a one-point win against Pitt over the weekend at the Smith Center, will face Clemson (19-5, 11-2) on Monday (7 p.m., ESPN) at Littlejohn Coliseum.

Like UNC, the Tigers are coming off a Saturday game. Clemson handed Duke its first loss since Thanksgiving week in a victory that’ll look good come Selection Sunday. But the Tar Heels are hoping to continue a troubling trend for the Tigers, who followed Duke wins at Littlejohn in 2020 and 2023 with losses to Tobacco Road teams.

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UNC is 31-15 against Clemson at Littlejohn Coliseum, including wins in seven of its last 10 trips to South Carolina. The Tar Heels earned a 10-point road win against the Tigers last season before Clemson beat UNC in Chapel Hill for the second time in series history.

Here are some other things to know and a score prediction for UNC at Clemson.

Clemson’s Viktor Lakhin, Ian Schieffelin could carve up Tar Heels

The Tigers are 15th nationally in 3-point shooting percentage (38.4%), but Clemson’s frontcourt is what UNC should be worried about Monday. The Tigers dominated Duke on the interior, scoring 40 points in the paint against a Blue Devil 2-point defense that was the best in the nation. The Tar Heels are 90th in 2-point defense rate, which is on track to be the worst mark in the Hubert Davis era.

UNC allowed 50 points in the paint in losses to Kansas and Michigan State, and 44 points in the paint against Alabama. Clemson 6-foot-11 center Viktor Lakhin had 22 points against Duke on 9 of 12 shooting inside the arc. All-ACC forward Ian Schieffelin averaged 15 points and 11 rebounds against the Tar Heels last season. If UNC wants any shot…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/unc-basketball-vs-clemson-score-165724030.html

Author : The Fayetteville Observer

Publish date : 2025-02-09 16:57:00

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