Story by
How Clemson basketball's upset of Duke is signaling what it can do in NCAA tournament
- Story by
- How Clemson basketball's upset of Duke is signaling what it can do in NCAA tournament
CLEMSON — Clemson basketball has become a big-game hunter program.
The No. 21 Tigers upset No. 2 Duke 77-71 at Littlejohn Coliseum on Saturday.. It was their fifth straight win against an AP top-five team and second this season after beating Kentucky in December.
Advertisement
Still, Saturday's win was more special. It was against Duke (20-3, 12-1 ACC), a historic powerhouse that entered on a 16-game winning streak and was undefeated in ACC play. The Blue Devils have Cooper Flagg , the projected No. 1 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, and are seen as an automatic qualifier for the NCAA tournament, with the second-best odds to win the national championship, according to FanDuel.
"I would say this is the No. 1 (win at home in my career) just with everything that's been going on," Clemson guard Chase Hunter said. " Dickie V's here , different things like that. I would say this is No. 1, just as far as atmosphere and the way we won and the way this team played today."
Clemson's trend of knocking off premier teams could bode well for an NCAA tournament run . Its ability to raise its performance against the top programs has allowed it to become dangerous under coach Brad Brownell .
The Tigers (19-5, 11-2) suffered an upset loss in three overtimes to Georgia Tech on Tuesday, where they were outrebounded 56-46 and gave up 16 more second-chance points. After a three-day break, they returned motivated against the No. 2 team in the country, outrebounding the Blue Devils 36-23 and outscoring them 40-22 in paint points.
Advertisement
A key reason was Clemson center Viktor Lakhin. He fouled out against Georgia Tech after playing only 16 minutes and scoring five points. He was dominant against Duke, however, scoring a team-high 22 points and shooting 75%. He was a matchup nightmare for Duke in the paint, drawing fouls and making tough layups.
"He's just a valuable player. He's got to temper his emotions. Sometimes he's a very emotional guy, cares, wants to win, and do well," Brownell said. "He was terrific. He was as good as anybody on the floor tonight."
MORE: How Clemson basketball reacted to Dick Vitale returning to call game vs Duke
What makes Clemson a threat is Hunter, who embraces late-game situations. He was held to four points in the first half but had 10 in the second half. He went toe-to-toe with Flagg in the final minutes, making a jumper with 3:46 left and scoring the go-ahead layup against Flagg with 38 seconds left. Hunter put the game out of reach in the final seconds, making four free throws.
Advertisement
Despite not leading until midway in the second half, Clemson's physicality rattled Duke. The Tigers went after nearly every loose ball, relentlessly attacked the boards and played with more energy despite coming off a three-overtime game.
"We're going to look back in the 50-50 balls, which we've won I think the whole year," Duke coach Jon Scheyer. "I know we didn't win those tonight."
The Tigers limited Flagg to four points on 2-for-5 shooting in the first half, before he went off in the second half and finished with 18. Still, they held Duke to 71 points, its fewest since Nov. 29.
Students camped out from 9 a.m. ET to enter Littlejohn Coliseum for the 6 p.m. game and were rewarded with their second court-storming this season.
Now the Tigers will get a taste of the NCAA tournament schedule as they will face North Carolina (14-10, 7-5) on Monday (7 p.m. ET, ESPN). They will have less than 48 hours to prepare for the Tar Heels, which resembles the March Madness format.
Advertisement
"I told our team it's like an NCAA tournament weekend. You win a good game, and now you got a second one 48 hours later," Brownell said.
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: Showcase March Madness potential in upset of Duke
