UNC-Clemson Preview: Tar Heels Open ACC Tournament with Rematch Against Tigers

No. 19 North Carolina (24-7, 12-6 ACC) vs. Clemson (22-9, 12-6 ACC)
Charlotte, N.C. — Spectrum Center
Thursday, March 12 — 9:30 p.m.
ESPN (Dave O’Brien, Cory Alexander and Molly McGrath)

Quotables 
“The ACC, this year, which I feel like it’s every year, just the competition is great. And so it doesn’t matter who you play, you’re going to have to play really well in order have a chance to advance and to win.” — UNC coach Hubert Davis on Monday

“It was a heck of a game the first time. I thought we played very well. Give North Carolina credit; they found ways to make plays down the stretch, made some big threes against us. But it was a heck of a matchup. Our guys competed our tails off. They did, as well. It was a great college game. Hopefully tomorrow is the same.” — Clemson coach Brad Brownell on facing UNC again

Pregame Notes

Tar Heels Bested by Blue Devils in Durham: North Carolina fell to No. 1 Duke, 76-61, in its season finale at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Saturday night. After trailing by only five in the first half, a 24-2 Blue Devils run midway through the second broke the game open and ended the hopes of a Tar Heel upset on the road. It was a season-worst 14 turnovers that plagued the Tar Heels and helped Duke record 24 points off turnovers. 

North Carolina’s Caleb Wilson (First Team), Henri Veesaar (Second Team) and Seth Trimble (Honorable Mention) collected All-ACC honors. 

The Tar Heels are still projected to be a No. 5 seed in the NCAA tournament per Bracket Matrix.

Looking at Clemson: UNC’s win over Clemson in its final home game clinched the No. 4 ACC Tournament seed for the Tar Heels and kept the fifth-seeded Tigers from a double-bye, where they defeated No. 13 Wake Forest, 71-62, on Wednesday night in the second round. 

After picking up its fifth loss in six games by losing to North Carolina last Tuesday, Clemson defeated Georgia Tech, 79-76, in its regular-season finale to end its late-season skid. The Tigers are now ranked No. 39 in KenPom and No. 36 in the NET, with Bracket Matrix projecting Clemson as an 8-seed. 

Brad Brownell is in his 16th season as head coach of the Tigers and looks to lead the program to its third consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance. Last year, Clemson was upset in the first round by McNeese State, but went on a run to the Elite Eight before falling to Alabama in 2024. 

Tigers Defense Still Sharp, Godfrey Remains Key Defensive Assignment for UNC: Clemson’s 20th-ranked defense per KenPom lived up to its hype when it held North Carolina to its second-worst shooting performance of the season at 37.9 percent (22-for-58) from the floor. Seth Trimble particularly had trouble against the Tiger defense, which overhelped on virtually every drive by the Tar Heel guard, making for a difficult shooting performance for him as he finished 2-for-10 from the field on his Senior Night. 

However, Clemson’s game plan of containing Trimble off the dribble led to many chances for UNC shooters from deep. North Carolina shot 12-for-27 (44.4%) from beyond the arc, including Luka Bogavac’s breakout performance where he drilled six 3-pointers on his way to a season-high 20 points. If the Tigers continue their strategy of packing the paint to stop Trimble’s rim attack and Henri Veesaar’s post spacing, Bogavac and other Tar Heel shooters should be ready for another night of big opportunity from three. 

Despite North Carolina’s rebounding troubles, the Tar Heels held up against Clemson — outrebounding the Tigers 37-36. This came with only six boards by Henri Veesaar, but a season-high 10 from Jarin Stevenson. However, if UNC wants to secure success on the glass in its second go-round, they’ll need better production from Veesaar, and some help from Zayden High as well. 

Though Clemson’s offense continues to be slow-tempo, wear ‘em down style, the Tigers particularly found success against the shorthanded Tar Heels in the paint against Veesaar and High. It was RJ Godfrey who Clemson fed early and often to tally a season-high 22 points — his only performance of 20 or more this season — leading Clemson’s 34 points in the paint as a team. 

Veesaar fouling out in the final minute was indicative of the Tar Heel center’s troubles guarding Godfrey in the post, as he was an efficient 10-for-13 from the floor. And with Carter Welling leaving the game with a knee injury against Wake Forest on Wednesday night, placing him as unlikely for Thurdsay’s matchup with UNC, the priority of limiting Godfrey in the post becomes even more paramount. 

Series History: Less than two weeks ago, UNC defeated Clemson 67-63 to secure a perfect home record in the Smith Center to improve the Tar Heels’ record to 137-25 all-time against the Tigers. The last UNC game vs. Clemson in the ACC Tournament was in 2011, an overtime semifinal win. The Tar Heels are 50-14 in the ACC quarterfinals, but 4-6 as a No. 4 seed in the tournament.

Projected UNC Starters: 
3 Derek Dixon (Fr., 6-5, 200) — 6.1 ppg, 2.2 rpg, 2.6 apg
7 Seth Trimble (Sr., 6-3, 200) — 14 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 2.6 apg
13 Henri Veesaar (Jr., 7-0, 225) — 16.3 ppg, 8.4 rpg, 41.5% 3pt
15 Jarin Stevenson (Jr., 6-10, 215) — 7.8 ppg, 4.3 rpg, .9 apg
44 Luka Bogavac (Jr., 6-6, 215) — 10 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 2.2 apg

Top UNC Reserves: 
0 Kyan Evans (Jr., 6-2, 175) — 4.2 ppg, 1.3 rpg, 2.6 apg
1 Zayden High (So., 6-10, 230) — 3.5 ppg, 2.8 rpg
4 Jaydon Young (Jr., 6-4, 200) — 1.9 ppg, 1 rpg
11 Jonathan Powell (So., 6-6, 190) — 4.9 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 38.5% 3pt

Projected Clemson Starters:
2 Dillon Hunter (Sr., 6-3, 192) — 7.4 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 3 apg, 35.3% 3pt
1 Jestin Porter (Sr., 6-1, 180) — 9.7 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 1.4 apg
4 Butta Johnson (Sr., 6-4, 180) — 5.9 ppg, 2.2 rpg, 85 % FT
0 RJ Godfrey (Sr., 6-7, 240) — 11.7 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 63.6% FG
11 Nick Davidson (Sr., 6-10, 235) — 9.1 ppg, 3.7 rpg

Top Tiger Reserves:
OUT – 22 Carter Welling (Jr., 6-10, 240) — 10.4 ppg, 5.5 rpg
21 Ace Buckner (Fr., 6-3, 180) — 8.3 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 1.7 apg
10 Jake Wahlin (Jr., 6-10, 210) — 5.7 ppg, 4.0 rpg

UNC Info:
Schedule/Results
Roster & Bios
Stats

Clemson Info:
Schedule/Results
Roster & Bios
Stats