Tarred and feathered

After suggesting two posts ago that Clemson has to feel unlucky it doesn’t get the chance to end its dubious 54-game losing streak at UNC this year, here’s thinking I probably oughtta ride into the blog sunset on top.

Even then, though, can’t say I saw Wednesday night’s 83-64 thrashing coming, at least to that degree.

Adding insult to injury, the Anderson airport didn’t have the capability of de-icing UNC’s plane after the game, so the Tar Heels had to scramble for a charter bus ride back.

The amazing context:

• Clemson’s 19-point triumph was its second-largest victory against the Tar Heels, just missing a 93-73 rout in January 1977.

• It was UNC’s worst loss under Roy Williams, trumping an 18-point defeat to Kansas in the 2008 NCAA Final Four.

• None the least, the Tigers snapped 10-game series losing streak that dated to an 81-72 Clemson triumph in Littlejohn Coliseum during coach Oliver Purnell’s initial season in 2003-04.

So that’s back-to-back years in which Clemson has kinda gotten a monkey off its back with one of these type wins. It was rather reminiscent of last year’s 74-47 scathing of Duke.

Leads me to this question: What do you think has been the signature victory of Purnell’s seven-year tenure so far? One of those two games? The upset of Duke in the 2008 ACC tournament? Or other?

(I’d still vote for the ACC tourney game.)

Furthermore, just how crazy does the league race figure to be this season? A week ago, the question seemed to be which team would emerge as the No. 2 behind Duke.

Now the only unbeaten after THREE ACC contests maximum is, gulp, Virginia, cough, cough.

Sure looks like the league lacks an elite, championship-caliber team this year, but we knew that going into the year, right?

Tommy Bowden would have a field day with this potential parity.

Few other thoughts:

• The Duke debacle raised questions about how much the team missed having offensive weapons like Terrence Oglesby and K.C. Rivers. This game provided evidence for Purnell’s point that the team would compensate by being more disruptive defensively and playing more like a team. Think Oglesby and Rivers would have forced that many turnovers?

• After writing senior F David Potter off for dead, Potter set the tone early by nabbing a few steals (five total) while challenging the pass from top to wing that initiated UNC’s offense. That threw the Tar Heels into a tailspin, and they probably only comfortably fed bigs Deon Thompson and Ed Davis a post entry pass a handful of times the entire game.

• So that’s what happens when Trevor Booker stays active an entire game and doesn’t idle on the low block.

• Best job Clemson has done this season in terms of spacing the floor around Booker. Went frigid from 3-point range in the second half, but they got open shots.

• Stat that I overlooked in my game story, but was maybe more remarkable than the margin of victory, statistically speaking: the Tigers shot 18-for-20 from the foul line.

• You can bet quasi-point guards Jon Scheyer of Duke and Greivis Vasquez of Maryland have spots on the ACC squad locked up. But Demontez Stitt is playing like the third best point in the league right now, and he makes all the difference in the world for this team when he hits jumpers, finishes at the rim and pushes tempo.