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The 10th-ranked Clemson Tigers escaped with a 57-54 victory over the SMU Mustangs to avoid an upset in the quarterfinal round of the ACC Tournament Thursday night at Spectrum Center in Charlotte.
Chase Hunter had a game-high 21 points for Clemson (27-5 overall), Jaeden Zackery had 11, and Ian Schieffelin added nine points to go with 12 rebounds for the third-seeded Tigers. Here are some instant reactions and takeaways from Clemson's win over SMU (23-10).
To say the least, Thursday's game left a lot to be desired from the standpoint of high-scoring drama. The Tigers started 0-for-4 from behind the arc and went over five minutes without a field goal in the first half. SMU went six minutes without a basket as both teams struggled to shoot the ball -- a trend that would continue the rest of the night.
Hunter gave Clemson an eight-point lead at 22-14 with six minutes to play until halftime. Unfortunately for Brad Brownell's team, the Tigers would go the rest of the half without a field goal while SMU made six of its last eight shots to cut the Tigers' lead to 28-27 at halftime. Clemson was shooting just 34.8 percent (8-of-23) by intermission, including a 2-of-10 showing from behind the arc. SMU was 0-for-8 from downtown in the first half.
The Mustangs took their first lead on a layup by Chuck Harris coming out of the break as the Tigers started 2-of-7 from the field in the first six minutes of the second half. It was a stretch of just two made field goals in a span of 10 minutes of game time dating back to the first half. SMU pulled ahead by five at 39-34.
Hunter began to put the Tigers on his back with a 3-pointer from the corner for Clemson's first lead since halftime, 41-39 with 11:50 to play. Hunter had nine straight points for the Tigers before Schieffelin made a hook shot and added a free throw with around seven minutes to play.
Clemson went to the final media timeout up by one after retaking the lead on a jumper from Viktor Lakhin with 4:48 to play. With the Tigers' bench and pro-Clemson crowd in Charlotte spurring them on, Hunter made a spin move and stepped back for an open jumper with 1:45 left for a 56-52 lead.
SMU would go the final 6:14 without a field goal. That included a missed go-ahead 3-pointer by Harris with 2.5 seconds to play. Officials initially ruled that a loose ball was last touched by Hunter, but the call was overturned by referee Roger Ayers on review when Cross was determined to have last made contact when he made a diving attempt at a rebound.
Schieffelin inbounded cleanly to Hunter, who went to the free-throw line and sank one of two foul shots with 2.1 seconds left to cap the scoring. Of Hunter's 21 points, 15 came in the second half.
Clemson finished the night shooting 38.3 percent (18-of-47) and made 4-of-21 from 3-point range. SMU shot 40 percent (22-of-55) and was 1-of-14 from behind the arc.
Clemson guard Dillon Hunter played only eight minutes and left the game in the first half with what officials initially described as a finger injury. He was seen from the bench sporting a heavy bandage over his right hand and did not return.
After the game, Brownell called Hunter's status "not good" and said that Hunter had "probably broke his hand."
An interesting storyline in this game was that both Lakhin and SMU forward Matt Cross picked up their fourth fouls in the second half. Both checked into the game for the final four-plus minutes and managed to avoid fouling out. Lakhin finished with seven points and two rebounds on an off-night for the 6'11" center. Cross had 13 points to lead the Mustangs in scoring.
Clemson will face the second-seeded Louisville Cardinals (26-6) in the semifinals Friday night. Louisville staved off an upset bid by Stanford for a 75-73 victory on a game-winning put-back from Chucky Hepburn at the buzzer.
Tipoff for Clemson vs. Louisville is scheduled for 9:30 p.m. ET. The game will be televised on ESPN. The Cardinals won the regular-season matchup, 74-64, on Jan. 7 in Louisville.
Contact us @Clemson_Wire on X, and like our page on Facebook for ongoing coverage of Clemson Tigers news and notes, plus opinions. Follow Steve Holley on Twitter/X at @BySteveHolley.
This article originally appeared on Clemson Wire: Clemson basketball takeaways from Tigers' comeback win over SMU
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Chase Hunter had a game-high 21 points for Clemson (27-5 overall), Jaeden Zackery had 11, and Ian Schieffelin added nine points to go with 12 rebounds for the third-seeded Tigers. Here are some instant reactions and takeaways from Clemson's win over SMU (23-10).
Woeful first half finish, second half start nearly costs Clemson
To say the least, Thursday's game left a lot to be desired from the standpoint of high-scoring drama. The Tigers started 0-for-4 from behind the arc and went over five minutes without a field goal in the first half. SMU went six minutes without a basket as both teams struggled to shoot the ball -- a trend that would continue the rest of the night.
Hunter gave Clemson an eight-point lead at 22-14 with six minutes to play until halftime. Unfortunately for Brad Brownell's team, the Tigers would go the rest of the half without a field goal while SMU made six of its last eight shots to cut the Tigers' lead to 28-27 at halftime. Clemson was shooting just 34.8 percent (8-of-23) by intermission, including a 2-of-10 showing from behind the arc. SMU was 0-for-8 from downtown in the first half.
The Mustangs took their first lead on a layup by Chuck Harris coming out of the break as the Tigers started 2-of-7 from the field in the first six minutes of the second half. It was a stretch of just two made field goals in a span of 10 minutes of game time dating back to the first half. SMU pulled ahead by five at 39-34.
Chase Hunter puts Clemson comeback on his back
Hunter began to put the Tigers on his back with a 3-pointer from the corner for Clemson's first lead since halftime, 41-39 with 11:50 to play. Hunter had nine straight points for the Tigers before Schieffelin made a hook shot and added a free throw with around seven minutes to play.
Clemson went to the final media timeout up by one after retaking the lead on a jumper from Viktor Lakhin with 4:48 to play. With the Tigers' bench and pro-Clemson crowd in Charlotte spurring them on, Hunter made a spin move and stepped back for an open jumper with 1:45 left for a 56-52 lead.
SMU would go the final 6:14 without a field goal. That included a missed go-ahead 3-pointer by Harris with 2.5 seconds to play. Officials initially ruled that a loose ball was last touched by Hunter, but the call was overturned by referee Roger Ayers on review when Cross was determined to have last made contact when he made a diving attempt at a rebound.
Schieffelin inbounded cleanly to Hunter, who went to the free-throw line and sank one of two foul shots with 2.1 seconds left to cap the scoring. Of Hunter's 21 points, 15 came in the second half.
Clemson finished the night shooting 38.3 percent (18-of-47) and made 4-of-21 from 3-point range. SMU shot 40 percent (22-of-55) and was 1-of-14 from behind the arc.
Dillon Hunter leaves game with significant injury
Clemson guard Dillon Hunter played only eight minutes and left the game in the first half with what officials initially described as a finger injury. He was seen from the bench sporting a heavy bandage over his right hand and did not return.
After the game, Brownell called Hunter's status "not good" and said that Hunter had "probably broke his hand."
Viktor Lakhin has off night but avoids costly fifth foul
An interesting storyline in this game was that both Lakhin and SMU forward Matt Cross picked up their fourth fouls in the second half. Both checked into the game for the final four-plus minutes and managed to avoid fouling out. Lakhin finished with seven points and two rebounds on an off-night for the 6'11" center. Cross had 13 points to lead the Mustangs in scoring.
Clemson basketball schedule: Who do Tigers play next in ACC Tournament?
Clemson will face the second-seeded Louisville Cardinals (26-6) in the semifinals Friday night. Louisville staved off an upset bid by Stanford for a 75-73 victory on a game-winning put-back from Chucky Hepburn at the buzzer.
Tipoff for Clemson vs. Louisville is scheduled for 9:30 p.m. ET. The game will be televised on ESPN. The Cardinals won the regular-season matchup, 74-64, on Jan. 7 in Louisville.
Contact us @Clemson_Wire on X, and like our page on Facebook for ongoing coverage of Clemson Tigers news and notes, plus opinions. Follow Steve Holley on Twitter/X at @BySteveHolley.
This article originally appeared on Clemson Wire: Clemson basketball takeaways from Tigers' comeback win over SMU
Continue reading...
