Seeding, survival at stake when No. 5 UNC visits Clemson
Two teams in disparate positions will battle Saturday evening when No. 5 North Carolina plays at Clemson in an Atlantic Coast Conference game.
With three regular-season games remaining, the Tar Heels (23-5, 13-2) have clinched one of the top three seeds in the upcoming ACC Tournament, which means they'll have a double-bye in the event that tips off in Charlotte on March 12.
Coach Roy Williams' team is red-hot, having won 11 of its last 12 games -- the program's best stretch in ACC play since winning 13 of 14 during the 2013-14 season -- and shares the top spot in the league standings with Virginia.
Clemson, on the other hand, is fighting for its postseason life. The Tigers (17-11, 7-8) are ninth in the ACC standings but have won two straight games to fan their flames of optimism about reaching the NCAA Tournament for a second consecutive season.
Coach Brad Brownell's team, which has lost three ACC games by two points or less this season, won 25 games a season ago and advanced to the Sweet 16, so the Tigers' four elder statesmen -- guards Marcquise Reed and Shelton Mitchell and forwards Elijah Thomas and David Skara -- know what it takes to attain postseason success.
"I certainly think they know where we stand, and the significance of all these games," Brownell said. "We would like to have won a couple more and be in a better position, but we weren't able to get that done and this is where we are. We still have an opportunity and there are some teams that don't, so there's a lot to play for."
Despite losing at Clemson Littlejohn Coliseum 82-78 last season, North Carolina has a long history of dominance against the Tigers, having won 10 of 11 and 20 of the last 22 games in the series (albeit having to work overtime for four of those victories).
Saturday's game will pit one of the nation's most prolific offenses against one of the country's top defenses, so something will have to give. The Tar Heels average 87.3 points per game, which ranks third nationally, while the Tigers limit their opponents to 63.8 points, which is 19th-best in the country.
Clemson will have to muster its best defensive effort of the season to maintain contact with the Tar Heels, who are the only team in the league to have three players averaging 14.9 points or more in Cameron Johnson, Coby White and Luke Maye.
White is coming off a career-high 34 points in a win against Syracuse on Tuesday, making him the first freshman in the program's storied history to score 30 points or more three times.
"I've said it before, he's the best-scoring point guard that I have coached," Williams said. "Ty Lawson got to that stage later when he could score. Coby is a scorer, and I have never minded a scoring point guard."
Maye, meanwhile, knows that the Tar Heels can clinch at least a tie for the top spot in the ACC by rounding out the regular season with victories at Clemson, at Boston College and home against Duke.
"Every game in the ACC is tough, and we've got to get ready for Saturday," Maye said. "It's just one game at a time for us. We've just got to play and make sure everything is taken care of and battle and fight."
--Field Level Media
