Girard Shines in Return to Syracuse; Nets 18 Points in Tiger Victory

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Joseph Girard III (Glens Falls, N.Y./Glens Falls) made his return to Syracuse on Saturday afternoon, where he spent all four of his previous seasons in his playing career. He finished with a game-high 18 points in Clemson University men’s basketball’s 77-68 win.

The Tigers (16-7, 6-6 ACC) were led by Girard’s 18. He finished 5-for-6 from the floor, including 4-of-5 from three a perfect 4-for-4 at the foul line. Girard came into the game exactly 18 points shy of 2,000 for his career and he achieved the milestone while helping ice the game at the free throw line.

PJ Hall (Spartanburg, S.C./Dorman) totaled his sixth double-double of the season and 13th of his career with 15 points and 10 rebounds. He also added three blocked shots and three assists, finishing 7-of-9 from the field.

Additionally, Chase Hunter (Atlanta, Ga./Westlake) and Ian Schieffelin (Loganville, Ga./Grayson) both netted double-figures with 14 and 13, respectively. Hunter finished 6-of-9 from the floor with a game-high and season-high-tying seven assists.

Clemson jumped out to an early lead midway through the opening stanza. Leading 13-12, the Tigers engineered a 14-0 run and would lead by a game-high 15 points twice, including later at 31-16 with 3:08 remaining in the first half.

While Clemson led by 13 at halftime, it didn’t take Syracuse long to get its crowd of over 23,000 into the game. The Orange closed the gap, but the Tigers were able to hold them at bay until a J.J. Starling jumper with 3:37 to go tied the game at 60-60.

A driving layup by Hall ignited a 7-0 run from the Tigers that included a bucket from Hunter and a 3-pointer from Schieffelin. That cushion was all Clemson needed to seal its second road victory in the same week.

Clemson scored 48 of its 77 points in the paint and finished 42.9 percent from three (6-for-14). The Tigers turned it over 21 times and that led to 15 points for the Orange. Jack Clark (Cheltenham, Pa./Cheltenham) gave the Tigers five points and a season-high 10 rebounds in the effort.

The Tigers return to the floor on Wednesday, Feb. 14 when they host Miami (Fla.) at 7 p.m.

Notes:

• Clemson improved to 16-7 overall and 6-6 in ACC play...the Tigers won their second road game of the week after winning at No. 3 North Carolina on Feb. 6 … it marked the first time Clemson has won two road conference games in the same week since Jan. 4-7, 2023 … the Tigers won at Virginia Tech (68-65) on Jan. 4 and at Pittsburgh on Jan. 7 (75-74) … Joseph Girard III reached the 2,000-point plateau with a game-high 18 points … he now has 366 career 3-pointers (third all-time in the ACC) … PJ Hall netted his sixth double-double of the season and 13th of his career … with 15 points against Syracuse, Hall reached the 1,500-point plateau and still sits 12th on Clemson’s all-time scoring list … Chase Hunter scored 14 points and now has 1,038 career points, passing KJ McDaniels for 42nd on Clemson’s all-time scoring list.