3 takeaways from No. 8 North Carolina’s big win at No. 16 Clemson

Fans were treated to an exciting matchup in Clemson with ACC conference play under way on Saturday.

No. 8 North Carolina (11-3, 3-0 ACC) and No. 16 Clemson (11-3, 1-2) faced off at Littlejohn Coliseum. The last 4 matchups in the North Carolina-Clemson series have been split down the middle at 2-2.

North Carolina eventually distanced itself from Clemson to earn its 12th win of the year after a thrilling 65-55 game.

Here’s 3 takeaways from the ACC action:

Both teams struggle from beyond arc out the gate

The game went into halftime tied at 34, but most of those points were not from 3-point range. North Carolina went into the 2nd half shooting 3-of-11 from beyond the arc. Clemson was even worse, going 0-8 on 3-pointers. This was surprising for 2 teams who rank in the top 5 in terms of 3-point field goal percentage in the ACC.

Foul trouble for the Tar Heels

Clemson went to the charity stripe plenty in Saturday’s game and made North Carolina pay for it. The Tigers ended hitting 80% of their free throws even though it didn’t lead to a win. On the other side, North Carolina didn’t go to the free throw line as much, but still hit 58.3%. The constant fouls that North Carolina committed allowed Clemson to stick around and make things interesting for the Tar Heels.

Armando Bacot’s 75th career double-double

It has been quite the career at North Carolina for Armando Bacot. On Saturday, he reached another milestone with his 75th career double-double. It was also the 2nd game in a row that Bacot finished with at least 10 points and 10 rebounds. He registered 14 points and 16 rebounds in the win.

North Carolina needed the play of one of its stars to eventually pull away from Clemson and earn the win and Bacot showed up when it mattered. North Carolina fans were treated to another solid outing from Bacot. These are kinds of games the Tar Heels will need from Bacot during the rest of conference play.