Hall says Tigers expected to win in Chapel Hill, wanted to dominate

Hall looks to drive against UNC's Armanda Bacot (Photo by Merrell Mann).

by David Hood - Senior Writer - Wed Feb 07 07:00:02 GMT-04:00 2024

Even though Clemson had just lost to Virginia last Saturday, Clemson’s PJ Hall sat in the hallway outside of the media room with an angry look on his face and set the scene for Tuesday night’s victory in Chapel Hill.

Hall hit a go-ahead basket with just over three minutes remaining and finished with 25 points as Clemson overcame a squandered 16-point lead and beat No. 3 North Carolina 80-76 on Tuesday night in a marquee win to improve its NCAA Tournament chances.

It was just the second victory ever for the Tigers in Chapel Hill. Not only was it just the second victory (against 60 losses), but the Tigers had also lost 37 straight in Chapel Hill to Top 25 North Carolina teams. Clemson held a 16-point lead at one point in the first half (41-25), led by nine at the break, and saw the Tar Heels tie it late in the second half but still managed to pull away for the win.

Joseph Girard III added 21 points for the Tigers (15-7, 5-6 Atlantic Coast Conference), including a timely 3-pointer at the 2:09 mark that followed Hall’s basket. That was part of a 7-0 run that gave the Tigers just enough to get past the Tar Heels (18-5, 10-2), who were coming off an emotional rivalry win against No. 9 Duke three days earlier. Hall hit two free throws with 4.6 seconds left, sealing the win. Ian Schieffelin added 14 points and 11 rebounds.

Clemson lost a heartbreaker to Virginia last Saturday in Littlejohn, another in a string of heartbreaking and close losses, and Hall and point guard Chase Hunter sat in the hallway waiting for postgame interviews to start, and both looked like players who had just lost a close game. An observer told the duo that the best way to get over the loss to Virginia and turn the season around was to do something that’s been hard to do for the Tigers: beat North Carolina in Chapel Hill.

“That’s the plan,” Hall said. “I’ve already told the guys that.”

Hall and “the guys” delivered in a big way, and he told TigerNet after the game that he told his teammates to expect to win.

“It's just great to get a win in the column and build on this. It was awesome,” Hall said. “What I've really been preaching to the guys leading into this game is we don't want to get out of here with (just) a win. We want to get out with a dominating win. From the jump, trying to come out here, set the tone early, have some offensive flow. Don't go out there scared. If you don't expect to win, you're not going to win.”

The Tigers looked like a team that expected to win, jumping out to a quick 15-2 lead. The lead eventually reached 16 at 41-25, and The Tigers led by nine at the half. The Tar Heels wouldn’t go away, and the Tigers couldn’t pull away. Clemson would make a run, and then UNC would make a run.

When UNC’s Harrison Ingram drained a 3-pointer with just over four minutes remaining, it tied the score at 70-70, the first time the score had been tied since it was 2-2. The Dean Smith Center crowd went nuts, and it felt like all of the momentum was wearing baby blue.

But Hall muscled inside for a layup, and Girard drained a 3-pointer to put the Tigers back ahead by five, and UNC could never close the gap. Hall said the Tigers never gave up, even when it looked like the Heels would make a run.

“Just keep playing, man. Keep playing,” Hall said. “Believe in ourselves, believe we're a good team, and know that the guy beside you wants to win just as much as you. We have a coaching staff and a head coach that would die for all of us. So, we went out there and played our tails off.”

Hall is hopeful the win gives the Tigers momentum heading into the final stretch, which starts Saturday when the Tigers head to Syracuse (noon/ESPN2).

“It's huge. Continue to build and know that we can get wins like this on the road,” Hall said. “This is an incredible environment. Tough to play. When they get rolling and hit a couple of threes, it gets loud. It's hard to get it going for us. So that's for anybody. So, getting a win like this is incredible.”