CLEMSON, S.C. _ For about 30 minutes of game action, it appeared North Carolina did not have it.
UNC, which had been playing its best basketball of the season in February after finishing the month 7-1, trailed Clemson at Littlejohn Coliseum for most of the game.
But the Tar Heels found momentum and won a tight one, 81-79.
They did it without their head coach, Roy Williams, who had to be escorted off the floor with about 54 seconds left in the first half after suffering from a vertigo spell, which he has dealt with over the course of his career.
No. 5 UNC (24-5, 14-2 ACC) has now won 12 of its last 13 games and remains tied atop the ACC standings with Virginia.
UNC freshman Coby White followed up his 34-point performance on Tuesday against Syracuse, with 28 points and five assists against Clemson. He led all scorers.
UNC senior forward Luke Maye, who hit some clutch shots down the stretch, had 13 points and 10 rebounds. Graduate senior Cam Johnson added 19 points.
It wasn't the prettiest performance for the Tar Heels. They shot 35 percent from the floor in the first half, and had eight turnovers. They trailed by as many as six points in the second half.
Clemson jumped out to a 54-48 lead in the first nine minutes after halftime. But the Tar Heels soon rallied.
Senior forward Luke Maye knocked down a 3-pointer from the top of the key to cut Clemson's lead to one point. After a Clemson miss, Maye scored a layup while being fouled to give the Tar Heels a two-point lead with 8:43 left in the game. Clemson sophomore forward Aamir Simms answered with a 3-pointer to take one-point lead, but it was brief.
UNC senior Kenny Williams hit a jump shot, Seventh Woods took a charge, and White nailed a 3-pointer to give the Tar Heels a four-point lead with 7:31 remaining.
They never trailed again. Clemson (17-12, 7-9) twice cut the lead to one point, once with 18 seconds left and the other with nine seconds left. Clemson guard Marcquise Reed, who came into the game averaging 19 points per game, almost helped lead his team to victory. He finished with 24 points.
But the Tar Heels held on.
UNC will play at Boston College Tuesday.
