The North Carolina Tar Heels begin their 2026 ACC Tournament as the No. 4 seed on Thursday night, facing off against Clemson. It will be the second time the two teams have met in under two weeks, with UNC holding off the Tigers in the Dean Dome.
While both teams are in the projected NCAA Tournament field, the chance to improve their stock and get to the ACC Tournament semifinals on Friday night is right there.
Clemson will play their second game in as many days after beating Wake Forest on Wednesday. But it may have come at a price. Carter Welling was hurt in the game and did not return. He was spotted on crutches during the win over Wake Forest, and it looks like he won't play on Thursday.
For North Carolina, it's another game without Caleb Wilson who is done for the year. The biggest question for the Tar Heels to answer is how they respond after getting hit in the mouth in the loss at Duke. With it being tournament time, the Tar Heels need to play their best from here on out.
Let's get into our game preview for the ACC Tournament quarterfinal.
Something to Watch
Defense. Clemson got off to a good start against Wake Forest, shooting the ball really well in their ACC Tournament opener on Wednesday. They can be a streaky team at times so playing good defense is going to be important for the Tar Heels.
That includes on the perimeter.
UNC needs to be good defensively and set the tone early on. They can't let Clemson get hot or get out to a lead and instead, they need to clamp down on defense.
Key to Victory
Rebounding. The Tar Heels have really struggled to rebound lately and that was very evident in the loss to Duke on Saturday night in Durham. They allowed too many second-chance opportunities and the Blue Devils made them pay.
If they want to make a deep run in this ACC Tournament, rebounding will be key. That's not just Henri Veesaar either but it's the rest of the post players. Someone has to step up.
Statistical leaders
Points
UNC: Caleb Wilson 19.8 ppg
Clemson: RJ Godfrey 11.7 ppg
Rebounds
UNC: Caleb Wilson 9.4 rpg
Clemson: Carter Welling 5.5 rpg
Assists
UNC: Caleb Wilson 2.7 apg
Clemson: Dillon Hnter 3.0 apg
What you need to know
WHAT? Clemson Tigers (23-9, 12-6 ACC) vs. North Carolina Tar Heels (24-7, 12-6 ACC)
WHEN? Thursday, March 12 at 9:30 p.m. ET
WHERE? Spectrum Center in Charlotte, N.C.
TV? ESPN
RADIO? SiriusXM (Channel 193)
LINE? N/A
LAST MEETING? North Carolina 67, Clemson 63 on March 3, 2026
ALL-TIME SERIES: North Carolina leads all-time series 137-25
2025-26 UNC Basketball schedule
October 4: Blue-White Scrimmage (White 55, Blue 50)
Oct. 24: at BYU (preseason, L 78-76)
Oct. 29: vs. Winston-Salem State (preseason, W 95-53)
Nov. 3: vs. Central Arkansas (W, 94-54)
Nov. 7: vs. Kansas (W, 87-74)
Nov. 11: vs. Radford (W, 89-74)
Nov. 14: vs. NC Central (W, 97-53)
Nov. 18: vs. Navy (W, 73-61)
Nov. 25: vs. St. Bonaventure in Fort Myers (Fla.) Tip-Off (W, 85-70)
Nov. 27: vs. Michigan State in Fort Myers (Fla.) Tip-Off (L, 74-58)
December 2: at Kentucky (W, 67-64)
Dec. 7: vs. Georgetown (W, 81-61)
Dec. 13: vs. USC Upstate (W, 80-62)
Dec. 16: vs. ETSU (W, 77-58)
Dec. 20: vs. Ohio State in CBS Sports Classic (W, 71-70)
Dec. 22: vs. East Carolina (W, 99-51)
Dec. 30: vs. Florida State (W 79-66)
January 3, 2026: at SMU (L 97-83)
Jan. 10, 2026: vs. Wake Forest (W 87-84)
Jan. 14, 2026: at Stanford (L 95-90)
Jan. 17, 2026: at California (L 84-78)
Jan. 21, 2026: vs. Notre Dame (W 90-69)
Jan. 24, 2026: at Virginia (W 85-80)
Jan. 31, 2026: at Georgia Tech (W 91-75.)
Feb. 2, 2026: vs. Syracuse (87-77)
Feb. 7, 2026: vs. Duke (W 71-68)
Feb. 10, 2026: at Miami (FL) (L 75-66)
Feb. 14, 2026: vs. Pitt (W 79-65)
Feb. 17, 2026: at NC State (L 82-58)
Feb. 21, 2026: at Syracuse (W 77-64)
Feb. 23, 2026: vs. Louisville (W 77-74)
Feb. 28, 2026: vs. Virginia Tech (W 89-82)
March 3, 2026: vs. Clemson (W 67-64)
March 7, 2026: at Duke (L, 76-61)
March 12, 2026: vs. Clemson
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This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire: UNC Basketball: Game preview vs. Clemson in ACC Tournament