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Photo by © Ken Ruinard / staff / USA TODAY NETWORK
Clemson Basketball

Clemson Topples No. 4 Kentucky 70-66

December 4, 2024
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CLEMSON, S.C. – Clemson University men’s basketball defeated No. 4 Kentucky 70-66 on Tuesday night in Littlejohn Coliseum. Clemson earned its highest ranked non-conference home victory in program history.

The Tigers (8-1) have won their last four games against AP Top 5 opponents while being unranked. Clemson was led by Ian Schieffelin (Atlanta, Ga./Grayson) and his career-best 20 rebounds. Schieffelin totaled his 16th double-double of his career and the fourth of the season with 11 points. The last Tiger to grab at least 20 rebounds in a game was Harold Jamison against Florida State on March 4, 1999.

Jaeden Zackery (Salem, Wis./Westosha Central/Boston College) added a team-best 13 points, while Chauncey Wiggins (Grayson, Ga./Grayson) (12) and Chase Hunter (Atlanta, Ga./Westlake) (10) rounded out the double-digit scorers.

© Ken Ruinard / staff / USA TODAY NETWORK
Clemson fans stream onto the court after Clemson’s 70-66 win over No. 4 Kentucky. 

Viktor Lakhin (Anapa, Russia/CSKA-2/Cincinnati) totaled a season-best four blocks, while Zackery tied a season-high with four steals. That, combined with Schieffelin’s 12 defensive rebounds, help lead the Tiger defense. Dillon Hunter (Atlanta, Ga./Westlake) was strong defensively off the bench in a career-high 26 minutes.

A back-and-forth first half ended with Clemson going on a 9-2 run to end the opening stanza and lead 37-30 at the break.

The Wildcats closed the gap quickly to begin the second half, regaining the lead 43-42 at the 15:28 mark. The lead see-sawed until Clemson opened its largest lead of the game following a Zackery 3-point play, 66-58, with 4:20 left in regulation.

The win marked the highest non-conference AP ranked win at home in program history. The previous high was when the Tigers beat the No. 6/6 South Carolina Gamecocks 62-57 on Dec. 17, 1997.

The Tigers return to the court on Saturday, Dec. 7 when they travel to Coral Gables for their first ACC contest of the season at Miami (Fla.). Tipoff is slated for 12 p.m. on ESPN2.


Notes: Clemson moves to 8-1 this season … Clemson moved to 5-12 all-time against Kentucky… Head Coach Brad Brownell moved to 1-0 against Kentucky …  it was Clemson’s second win over a ranked Kentucky team in three tries … it was the Tigers’ highest AP ranked non-conference home win in program history … it was Clemson’s fourth Top 10 AP Poll non-conference victory (vs. Arizona, 3-28-24; South Carolina, 12-17-97; vs. Kentucky, 11-15-96) … Coach Brownell won his 440th game of his career and his 273rd while at Clemson … as a team, Clemson posted nine blocks for a new season-best … Ian Schieffelin totaled his fourth consecutive game with at least 13 rebounds (20) and sixth of the campaign … the 20 rebounds for Schieffelin were a career high … the last Tiger to grab at least 20 rebounds in a game was Harold Jamison against Florida State on March 4, 1999 … Schieffelin moved into 17th all-time in Clemson history in rebounding with 20 rebounds (678) … Viktor Lakhin tied a season-high with four blocks … Dillon Hunter set a new career mark with 26 minutes … Jaeden Zackery tied a season-best with four steals.

 
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