Bob Sutton

Hendersonville Times-News

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Now this sacred piece of history is gone.

North Carolina couldn’t even beat Clemson at home.

The 79-76 overtime loss came with a stunning collapse in regulation for the Tar Heels, who until Saturday had won all 59 previous meetings with the Tigers in Chapel Hill.

“I felt we had this one in the bag,” North Carolina senior Brandon Robinson said. “We let it get away from us. ... We hurt after every loss. Games like these hurt more than others. We were right there.”

North Carolina’s home streak in the series was the longest such string in NCAA history.

Tar Heels coach Roy Williams took the blame for forgetting to order his team to foul with a three-point lead in the waning seconds of regulation after the game’s course had changed in dizzying fashion.

Clemson was down 10 points with two minutes remaining.

“I just kept trying to convince our players to hang in there,” Clemson coach Brad Brownell said. “North Carolina, they really played well for 38 minutes.”

More:Clemson snaps 0-59 run in Chapel Hill with overtime victory over North Carolina

More:Baylor beats Kansas for first victory at Allen Fieldhouse in 18 attempts

But when Aamir Simms drained a 3-pointer from near the top of the key with 3.5 seconds left to tie the game, the Tigers were even for the first time since 2-2.

"Had some great moments as a coach, right now this is my lowest one," Williams said. "Losing this game was my fault. If I die tomorrow or 20 years from now, that’ll be my biggest regret I have in 32 years as a coach. These kids really needed a win, and their coach let them down today."

“I’d tell (UNC athletics director Bubba Cunningham) he should probably fire me, it probably wouldn’t be a bad idea,” Williams later added, folding up a stat sheet to put in his jacket pocket. “The coach is supposed to help his kids. I didn’t help them very much.”

Freshman forward Armando Bacot of the Tar Heels said the loss was devastating.

“Coach was really apologetic,” he said.

North Carolina (8-8 overall, 1-4 Atlantic Coast Conference) never trailed until overtime, when Clemson scored the first four points and led for all except 13 seconds — when it was tied — the rest of the way. Garrison Brooks and Robinson missed 3-pointers on the game’s last possession.

“We didn’t do anything out of the ordinary,” said Clemson guard John Newman II, a former Greensboro Day School player. “We decided we wanted to win, so that’s what we did.”

North Carolina had 10 turnovers, with three in the last 96 seconds of regulation.

“I didn’t lead,” Robinson said. “It’s my fault. I didn’t keep us composed.”

Contributing: Associated Press