Seniors Lift Tigers into ACC Semifinal
CHARLOTTE, N.C. –Chase Hunter (Atlanta, Ga./Westlake) scored 21 points, including 15 in the second half, to lift No. 10/10 Clemson University Men’s Basketball (27-5) to a 57-54 win over sixth-seeded SMU (23-10) in the quarterfinal round of the T. Rowe Price ACC Men’s Basketball Tournament at the Spectrum Center. Clemson’s seniors combined for 47 of the 57 points in the victory, which pushes the third-seeded Tigers into the ACC Tournament semifinals for the 15th time in program history and fourth under Head Coach Brad Brownell.
SMU’s Chuck Harris had a three-point attempt with 6.8 seconds left to take the lead, but missed and the ball fell out of bounds to the Tigers after review. Hunter hit a free throw with 3.2 seconds left, and SMU missed its desperation attempt as time expired. Clemson held the Mustangs to a 1-for-14 mark behind the arc in the game, and did not allow a field goal in the final 6:14 of gameplay.
Clemson moves on to play No. 2 seed Louisville at 9:30 p.m. Friday night at the Spectrum Center. The Cardinals are ranked 13th nationally, and enter with a 26-6 overall record and a 10-game winning streak, having gone 20-1 in its past 21 games.
Hunter, who won his 110th game in a Clemson record, scored his 21 points on an efficient 7-for-13 from the floor and 5-8 from the free throw line. Jaeden Zackery (Salem, Wis./Westosha Central/Boston College) had 11 points and three steals, Ian Schieffelin (Atlanta, Ga./Grayson)
Added nine points and 12 rebounds and Viktor Lakhin (Anapa, Russia/CSKA-2/Cincinnati) added seven in limited minutes due to foul trouble.
In the first half, neither team was able to put together an extended run, though Clemson never trailed after Schieffelin’s jumper 32 seconds into the contest. Hunter gave the Tigers a 22-14 lead on a left-wing three-pointer, the 198th of his career, with 6:00 to play in the frame, and followed it with a big blocked shot at the other end.
SMU got back into it, pulling to within one, 28-27, just before the halftime buzzer. Clemson hit just eight of its 23 attempts from the floor, and went the final 6:00 minutes without a field goal, though it only attempted four shots in that span. The Tigers forced ten turnovers and hit 10-of-14 free throw attempts to hold onto the edge.
After scoring the final four points of the first half, SMU took its first lead on its first possession of the second half and opened up a 39-34 lead 4:32 into the second half. Del Jones (Landover, Md./Arizona Compass Prep) hit a driving layup to half the run, and after hitting a layup, Hunter drilled a left-corner three-pointer out of a timeout to grab a 41-39 lead with 11:50 to play.
SMU again pushed back, but Hunter kept the Tigers within striking distance at 47-45, scoring nine in a row for the Tigers at one point. Clemson held SMU just two points over a four-minute stretch in taking the lead back on a 9-2 run and a 54-51 lead with just over three minutes to play.
With 1:46 to play, Hunter hit a tough fadeaway to give the Tigers a 56-52 lead, and the Tigers would hold on from there.
GAME NOTES:
Per STATS Perform, Chase Hunter has now played in 165 games coached by Brad Brownell, tied for the ninth-most games by a player-coach duo in NCAA history … Chase Hunter has now played 4,504 minutes, extending his program record and moving him into 17th in ACC history, passing Tim Duncan who played 4,496 from 1994-97… Jaeden Zackery had three steals, giving him 64 on the season and moving him past Greg Buckner (1994-95) and into a tie for 8th with KC Rivers (2007-08) on the Clemson single-season list … Ian Schieffelin had 12 rebounds, giving him double-figures for the 15th time this season and 344th time in his career…Chase Hunter extended his program record of wins by a player (110)... Clemson’s 57 points were its fewest in a win in the ACC Tournament since a 57-49 win over Virginia in 1980…Clemson’s 56 points allowed were its fewest in the ACC tournament since allowing 49 to Virginia in 1980… The Tigers set a school record for wins in a season (27) … Clemson advanced to its 15th ACC Tournament semifinal … Brad Brownell extended his program-record ACC Tournament win total to eight - no other Clemson coach won more than three ACC Tournament games… Brad Brownell won his 292nd game at Clemson, the 10th-most wins in ACC history… Brad Brownell won the 459th game of his career … Clemson is ranked No. 10 nationally, its highest ranking entering the postseason in team history.