CHAPEL HILL, N.C. --- North Carolina ran its all-time record at home versus Clemson to 56-0 on Saturday with a 74-52 victory over the visiting Tigers.
The streak has spanned 15 U.S. presidents and more than 13,000 days. Harrison Barnes and Kendall Marshall were excellent for the Tar Heels, who defended, played with enough grit, and maintained pace in the ACC.
UNC improved to 23-4 overall and 10-2 in the league, while Clemson dropped to 13-13 and 5-7.
Here are both teams' grades for their performances Saturday:
Clemson offense: The Tigers aren't super talented, so if sets don't work they have a tough time creating scoring looks. That said, they really struggled in stretches, but also had some success attacking. A couple of back doors helped, and a few threes gave the look a semblance of balance. But Clemson missed way too many shots (37.5 percent the floor, including 35.3 from 3-point range). The Tigers had 10 assists and 15 turnovers. Grade: D+.
UNC offense: Carolina was not real sharp in the first half but really came on in the second. Kendall Marshall (13 assists) was sensational again finding his mates and Harrison Barnes (24 points) and Reggie Bullock each hit three 3-pointers. UNC hit 49.2 percent of its shots, including 42.9 percent from 3-point range. Grade: C+.
Clemson defense: Brad Brownell is one of the best defensive teachers and coaches in the country, and his team did a really nice job for more time elapsed in the game than not. It's just that when UNC rolls, it can be quite productive in a very short period of time. The Tigers forced 12 turnovers, which is a bit more than UNC had been committing in most of its recent contests, and got 14 points off of those turnovers. Grade: C+.
UNC defense: Carolina is much better defensively than too many pundits care to either admit or recognize. The Tar Heels held Clemson to 37.5 percent shooting from the floor, blocked seven shots, registered seven steals, and allowed Clemson to rebound just five of its 30 missed shots. Grade: A.
Clemson intangibles: The score was 47-41 with just under 12 minutes to go, so Clemson fought hard and came into the game not worrying about the streak, which now reads UNC 56, Clemson 0 all-time in Chapel Hill. The Tigers did plenty right, they just aren't as gifted as the Tar Heels. Grade: B.
UNC intangibles: For the fourth time in UNC's last four victories, it closed a game strong by putting its foot on the opponent's throat. This is one of the last two ingredients in reaching that fifth and final gear, the one that embraces national champions. The Tar Heels were a bit sluggish at times, but they were sharp most of the day and did a really nice job pulling away, outscoring Clemson 27-13 to close the game. Grade: B+.
