No. 13 North Carolina Outlasts Clemson, 53-51
CLEMSON, S.C. – The Clemson Women’s Basketball team (11-13, 4-9 ACC) fell to No. 13 North Carolina (21-4, 9-3 ACC), 53-51, in a game that featured 10 ties and 12 lead changes on Sunday afternoon in Littlejohn Coliseum. Loyal McQueen led the team in scoring with 17 points, followed by Hannah Kohn, who notched 12 points with three three-pointers. Maddi Cluse also finished the game with 10 points and a team-high five rebounds.
Clemson held North Carolina to a season-low 53 points, 20.0 points per game below their season average, and just a .370 shooting percentage. Neither team led by more than five points in the contest.
Clemson led 15-12 after the first quarter as Kohn and Cluse led the way with two three-pointers apiece, and UNC shot just 4-18 (.222) in the frame. The game stayed tied at 16-16 for nearly five minutes before Raven Thompson gave the Tigers the edge. McQueen finished on three layups inside the final three minutes as the Tigers took a 25-22 lead into the locker room.
UNC took a 31-28 advantage midway through the third quarter, but Clemson fought to take the lead back on Anya Poole’s first basket against her former team. Clemson held the Tar Heels without a field goal for more than five minutes during the run. The lead changed six times during the quarter, with UNC clinging to a 37-36 lead after three.
North Carolina opened up a 43-38 lead, tying the largest margin of the game to that point before Kohn knocked in her third three-pointer with 7:02 left, and Cluse tied the game on the next possession with a layup on a baseline out-of-bounds play out of a Poppie timeout with 6:19 left.
Trailing 49-45 with 3:24 to play, Kohn was fouled shooting a three-pointer and hit all three free throws, and Madi Ott buried a right-wing triple on the next possession to give Clemson a 51-49 lead with 2:24 to play. UNC would score on its next two possessions. Kohn had a three-point attempt rim out with 29 seconds to play. UNC turned it over in the backcourt on the ensuing possession, giving the ball back to the Tigers with 23.5 seconds left.
Poppie called Clemson’s final timeout with 8.5 seconds remaining to draw up a final play. McQueen drove but was fouled on the floor with 2.8 seconds left. Clemson’s inbounds pass was tipped, with the final seconds ticking off after the deflection.
UP NEXT: Clemson vs. Georgia Tech • Feb. 13, 2025 • 7 p.m. • Littlejohn Coliseum
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