CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – Clemson University Men’s Basketball fell 67-63 to #17 North Carolina on Tuesday night at the Dean E. Smith Center.
RJ Godfrey (Suwanee, Ga./North Gwinnett/Georgia) reached a new career-high of 22 points, along with nine rebounds. The performance marked Godfrey’s 22nd double-digit scoring game of the season.
The Tigers (21-9, 11-6 ACC) trailed early on but put together a 14-6 run over the course of 15:19 to 7:24 in the first half to secure a 21-17 lead.
Clemson shot 41.9 percent from the field in the first half and closed the opening stanza on a 7-0 run, capped by a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from Butta Johnson (Huntsville, Ala./Grissom/UAB), who finished with eight points on a team-leading 100.0 percent field goal percentage from beyond the arc.
Clemson relied on its defense to limit the Tar Heels to 35.7 percent in the first half. The Tigers scored 34 of their total 63 points inside the paint.
Carter Welling (Draper, Utah/Corner Canyon/Utah Valley) commanded a strong front-court charge in the second half, amassing 13 points and eight rebounds in 30 minutes of play. Dillon Hunter (Atlanta, Ga./Westlake) led the team in the assist column with four.
The game featured six lead changes in the final ten minutes. The Tar Heels used an 8-0 run with Clemson leading 55-53 and 5:38 remaining to take a six-point advantage that they wouldn’t relinquish.
Clemson had multiple opportunities to narrow the deficit in the final seconds, but could not overcome.
The Tigers return to the court on Saturday, March 7 when they host Georgia Tech at 12 p.m. in their final home game of the season on ACCN. It will serve as Clemson’s Senior Day.
