THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, January 27, 1997 TAG: 9701270153
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C6 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY FRANK VEHORN, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHAPEL HILL, N.C. LENGTH: 76 lines
The current North Carolina team may not uphold all of the school's proud traditions, but it won't be the first to lose to Clemson in Chapel Hill.
The Tar Heels took care of that on Super Sunday in a jubilant Dean Dome.
Showing more heart and defensive ability than they have all year, the 19th-ranked Tar Heels (12-4, 3-4 ACC) handed No. 2 Clemson (16-3, 5-2) its second straight league loss, 61-48.
It marked the 43rd time, over 71 years, that Clemson had come to the Hill and had gone home the loser.
However, it may have been the first time in the lopsided series that North Carolina fans tried to storm the court after beating Clemson, the only team in the league without a win in Chapel Hill.
``I am glad our students were excited,'' North Carolina coach Dean Smith said, ``but they usually don't react like that unless we come from behind to win. But if it works, maybe we'll do it again.''
The win was more special than just the streak, though. It was North Carolina's first victory over a ranked team since last January, and it had not beaten a team with such a high ranking since upsetting No. 2 Kentucky in the 1995 NCAA tournament.
Although Clemson was enjoying its highest national ranking and North Carolina has been struggling in conference play, the Tar Heels were two-point favorites.
The oddsmakers were more confident than most Tar Heels fans, however.
When two old friends from the rival schools shook hands before the game, the North Carolina man muttered, ``So you came up for the kill, uh?''
It was only the second time in the series the Tigers held the higher ranking in a game at Chapel Hill. Clemson was ranked 12th and North Carolina 13th for the 1980 game, which UNC won 73-70.
Clemson, coming off its first league loss of the season, to Wake Forest last Sunday, played like it was still nursing a hangover. The Tigers made only 27.3 percent of their shots, the worst offensive performance in the conference this season, and their defensive effort wasn't much better.
``We had the shots but couldn't convert,'' Clemson coach Rick Barnes said. ``No team in the league gives up easy shots.''
Still, prior to Sunday, North Carolina ranked last in the league in field-goal defense.
Each team made only 18 field goals, but Carolina got its on 32 shots while Clemson got its on 66. North Carolina's 56.3 shooting percentage was the best anyone has done against the Tigers this year.
``We are improving but there is no letup in sight,'' Smith said. ``We have have to play Duke on Wednesday in Durham, and we'll have to play even better or it's lights out over there.''
It was with that same sense of survival that North Carolina greeted the Tigers.
Clemson never led after the opening minutes. North Carolina led 23-16 at intermission and built a 15-point cushion with 8:37 remaining.
North Carolina's Antawn Jamison had a game-high 22 points. He made 7 of 8 field-goal attempts, collected another seven points from the free-throw line and snared eight rebounds.
While Smith and most other players downplayed the home winning streak over Clemson, Jamison acknowledged that it was something he thought about.
``We take pride in this program and its traditions,'' he said. ``There had been a lot of talk that this was the year Clemson was going to break the streak, and we saw it as a challenge.''
Clemson's Vincent Whitt said there was virtually no talk about breaking the streak from his teammates.
``We just wanted to play well and let the streak take care of itself,'' he said. ``We didn't shoot well, but Carolina didn't have a lot to do with that. The shots were just not falling.''
Greg Buckner (19) and Merl Code (12) were the only Tigers scoring in double figures.
Terrell McIntyre, averaging 13.3 points, made only 3 of 13 attempts and missed eight of his nine 3-pointers. The 5-foot-9 McIntyre was guarded by Vince Carter, who had a 6-inch height advantage. ILLUSTRATION: ASSOCIATED PRESS
North Carolina's Antawn Jamison gets the ball but loses his balance
in a bid to pick the pocket of Clemson's Andrius Jurkunas.