GREENSBORO - North Carolina senior Erlana Larkins had everything working in the Tar Heels' 97-77 victory over Clemson on Friday in the quarterfinals of the ACC Women's Basketball Tournament.

Jump hook. Spin move. Whirly-bird.

The last of the three post moves came with nine minutes remaining in the first half, the Tar Heels ahead 26-17 and Larkins trapped under the basket with Clemson defenders pushing her ever so close to the out-of-bounds line.

So she took a half-step, squeezed through and flicked the ball at the rim.

"That one was crazy," Larkins said. "I said, 'Let me throw something in.' I had nowhere to go. I couldn't see. Let me throw some whirly-bird up. And it went in."

It crawled in, and the top-seeded Heels (28-2) moved on to today's semifinal game against No. 4 Virginia (23-8).

In collecting their 10th consecutive ACC Tournament victory, dating over three consecutive tournament titles, the Tar Heels were efficient, post-oriented and precise from the field.

Larkins and LaToya Pringle combined to shoot 11-for-11 from the field in the first half, propelling the Heels to a 52-35 halftime lead.

Pringle finished with a tournament career-high 16 points and five rebounds, and Larkins scored a game-high 25 points -- one point shy of her tournament career high.

Larkins added 10 rebounds, eighth on the ACC's career list with 1,109.

Playing before a crowd of 7,201 at the Greensboro Coliseum, the Heels relied on what coach Sylvia Hatchell called their "bread-and-butter" post game. Passing the ball around the perimeter, they were able to find post players in optimal position on the blocks.

"Our half-court offense is the best it's ever been since I've been here," UNC junior Rashanda McCants said. "We have two of the greatest post players in the nation, and it's kind of hard to stop them, especially when they're hot like they were today."

Also, McCants said, the Heels have guards such as junior Heather Claytor, who also poise a threat.

Claytor, who recently moved into the school's top 10 in career 3-pointers, went 4-for-6 from beyond the arc to score 12 points.

She made the fourth 3-pointer with 1:28 remaining, giving UNC a comfortable 21-point lead.

"After the first one," Claytor said, "I said to myself, 'If you're open, you're going to shoot.' "

The tone of the game changed for UNC in the second half when at the 6:15 mark freshman Rebecca Gray took an elbow to the face and hit the floor hard.

Gray, who was playing defense when she was struck, remained on the floor for 10 minutes until she was carried off the floor on a board by medical staff, her neck supported with a brace.

Hatchell said Gray was taken to Moses Cone Hospital as a precaution. After her CT examine came back negative, she was released. Her status is day-to-day.

"She appeared she was going to be OK," said Larkins, who along with her teammates gathered around Gray as she was taken off the floor.

In support of UNC student leader Eve Marie Carson, who was shot to death early Wednesday, the Heels wore Carolina blue ribbons, with coaches fastening them to lapels and players tying them on their shoestrings.

Players also wrote messages of support on their shoes.

"It's just tragic that this has happened," Hatchell said. "We're a very tight community just like any college or university, and, you know, one of our comrades goes down, we all feel that."