Lakhin Double-Double; Chase 20-Piece Leads to 86-72 Tiger Victory
CLEMSON, S.C. – Chase Hunter (Atlanta, Ga./Westlake) turned in his sixth 20-point game of the season with a team-high 23 points, while Viktor Lakhin (Anapa, Russia/CSKA-2/Cincinnati) collected his third double-double of the campaign in Clemson University men’s basketball’s 86-72 win over Syracuse on Wednesday night in Littlejohn Coliseum.
The Tigers (16-4, 8-1 ACC) tied its season-high for scoring in the first half with 48 points in the opening stanza. Clemson finished a blistering 57.6 percent shooting from the field and got 18 first half points from Hunter.
Clemson led by as many as 24 in the second half before coasting to the 14-point victory.
Lakhin totaled 16 points and 10 rebounds, including two blocks and two assists.
Jaeden Zackery (Salem, Wis./Westosha Central/Boston College) aided the Tiger effort with 14 points, five assists and two steals, while Ian Schieffelin (Atlanta, Ga./Grayson) rounded out the double-figure scorers with 11 and added five rebounds and four assists.
Nine of Clemson’s 15 bench points came from Del Jones (Landover, Md./Arizona Compass Prep) in the absence of Dillon Hunter (Atlanta, Ga./Westlake) who did not play due to flu-like symptoms.
The Tigers scored 40 of its 86 points in the paint, doubling the Orange’s total of 20. Clemson finished 9-for-20 (45.0 percent) from three.
Clemson returns to the court on Saturday, Jan. 25 at Virginia Tech. Tipoff is set for 5 p.m. on ACCN.
Notes: Clemson moves to 16-4 this season and 8-1 in the ACC … it extends the Tigers’ second-best start to ACC play in school history (10-1 in 2022-23) … the win is Clemson’s fourth consecutive victory over Syracuse … Head Coach Brad Brownell won his 448th game of his career and his 281st while at Clemson … Clemson is fourth in the ACC since 2017-18 with 80 league victories … the Tigers finished 45.0 percent from three and are now 9-1 this season when shooting 40.0 percent or better from three as a team … Chase Hunter scored 23 points, his sixth 20-point game of the season and 15th of his career … Hunter now has 1,585 career points and is 11th on Clemson’s scoring list … with three steals, Hunter now has 100 for his career … the win was Hunter’s 99th in a Clemson uniform – extending his program record of victories … Viktor Lakhin collected his third double-double of the season with 16 points and 10 rebounds.