It took another rally and some overtime, but North Carolina will play in the 2011 ACC Tournament Final after defeating upstart No. 4 seed Clemson 92-87. Harrison Barnes was unbelievable, pouring in 40 points, as the Tar Heels scored 16 points in a row over the end of regulation and into overtime to get the win.
The Tar Heels will face the winner of the second semifinal game between Duke and Virginia Tech. Clemson falls to 21-11 and must sweat out the NCAA Tournament bubble on Selection Sunday.
Barnes' point total is the most for a freshman in ACC Tournament history and the most anyone has scored since Randolph Childress dropped 40 in 1995. He scored 11 of those points in overtime to push the Tar Heels to the win.
Clemson led 38-28 at halftime, but North Carolina rallied to eventually take the lead with 10 minutes left. Clemson pushed back ahead by eight, but North Carolina rallied again and tied the score when Barnes hit a three and Tyler Zeller followed with a jump hook with 32 seconds left. Demontez Stitt missed a fadeaway jumper at the buzzer, and the two teams went into overtime.
Barnes and Marshall gave North Carolina the lead for good with consecutive threes, and the Tigers couldn't get anything going offensively in the end. Barnes then grabbed a rebound and stuck it back in while drawing the foul to complete North Carolina's 19-0 run that began in regulation.