CLEMSON – Clemson basketball dropped a heartbreaker to NC State, losing 78-77 on Saturday night at Littlejohn Coliseum. DJ Horner scored the game winner with 9 seconds left in the game.

The Tigers' win streak ended, while the Wolfpack snapped their losing skid .

With a week of rest, NC State came out energized, building an early five-point lead that became a 10-point one. The Wolfpack got to the free-throw line, getting 12 attempts at the line, and relied on Horner, their leading scorer.

But, Clemson (17-8, 7-7 ACC) battled back against the Wolfpack (16-9, 8-6), thanks to contributions from its bench and Joseph Girard III and Chase Hunter scoring back-to-back 3-pointers to cut the lead to four at halftime.

Clemson tied the game at 41 with 18:34 in the second half after a PJ Hall layup and took the lead with a Chase Hunter fastbreak corner 3-pointer. The Tigers built a 12-point lead, but the Wolfpack fought back to tie the game with 3:32 remaining in the game.

Both teams battled back and forth, and Clemson took the lead after Jack Clark, an NC State transfer, stole a pass and scored a layup to break a tie. Girard extended the lead with a turnaround fadeaway jumper. But a a layup and a free throw from NC State's Michael O'Connell and Mohamed Diarra cut the deficit to one that set up Horne's game-winning floater.

Girard scored 23 points, Hall finished with 18 points and RJ Godfrey scored 10 points off the bench.

Here are two takeaways from this tight game and what lies ahead for the Tigers.

Girard came out firing in second half

The graduate student could not get going in the first half against NC State. The Wolfpack made it an emphasis to guard Girard and communicate effectively on off-ball screens. Girard did not attempt a shot in the first 13 minutes of the game but finished the half with six points.

Yet, Girard came out firing in the second half. He scored 17 points, making two 3-pointers. Coach Brad Brownell designed plays to get him open, so he could return to his usual 3-point draining self. He also attacked the interior of the Wolfpack defense to put up a mid-range jumper and get to the basket.

Clemson's bench production continued

The unsung hero of the first half was Clemson’s bench. When its offense was stagnant, the contributions of Dillon Hunter, Josh Beadle and RJ Godfrey kept the Tigers afloat. Dillon knocked down two jumpers, Beadle scored a reverse layup and Godfrey made a contested and-one layup.

Clemson’s bench finished with 16 points. It was the third straight game that its bench scored double-digit points.

What's next?

Clemson will have to lick its wounds and travel to Atlanta to face Georgia Tech (11-15, 4-11) on Wednesday at the McCamish Pavilion. The Yellow Jackets defeated the Tigers 93-90 in double overtime at Littlejohn Coliseum on Jan. 16.

Derrian Carter covers Clemson athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email him at dcarter@gannett.com and follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @DerrianCarter00

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Clemson basketball drops heartbreaker to NC State with 9 seconds left