CLEMSON, S.C. – Carter Welling’s (Draper, Utah/Corner Canyon/Utah Valley) season-high 18 points helped Clemson University men’s basketball defeat Miami (Fla.) 69-59 on Saturday afternoon in Littlejohn Coliseum.
The Tigers (16-3, 6-0 ACC) extended their win streak six in ACC play and nine overall and remain undefeated both at home and in ACC play this season.
Clemson was led by a trio of double-digit scorers. Welling had 18, Jestin Porter (Houston, Texas/Cypress Ridge/Middle Tennessee State) finished with 11 and RJ Godfrey (Suwanee, Ga./North Gwinnett/Georgia) totaled 10.
Dillon Hunter (Atlanta, Ga./Westlake) tied his career-high with seven assists and added five rebounds and seven points. He also totaled a season-best four steals.
Clemson got off to an 8-0 lead to open the game and would push its lead to as many as 11 points toward the end of the opening stanza, but a Tru Washington bucket cut the halftime deficit to just eight at 35-26.
Clemson opened the second half with another run, this time outscoring the Hurricanes 17-12 in the first ten minutes of the half. Jake Wahlin (Provo, Utah/Timpview/Utah) had a strong stretch in the second half to score five of his eight points and finished a perfect 3-for-3 from the field to provide a spark for the Tiger offense, emphasized by a thunderous dunk midway through the second period.
The Tigers led by as many as 17 in the second half, but the Hurricanes didn’t go away, closing the deficit to eight but not any further.
The Tigers recorded a season-high 12 steals and held the Hurricanes to only 21-for-54 from the floor and 6-for-24 from three in the contest. In total, the Tigers forced 16 Miami turnovers. The 59 points scored was a season-low for the Hurricanes.
In the paint, the Tigers once again displayed their dominance as the unit scored 34 of their 69 from inside.
Clemson will stay at home and host NC State when it returns to the court on Tuesday, January 20 at 7 p.m. in Littlejohn Coliseum. The game will air on ACCN.
Notes: Clemson improved to 16-3 with the win and 20-17 against Miami all time … Head Coach Brad Brownell won his 308th game at Clemson and the 475th of his career … the Tigers have started ACC play 6-0 for just the second time in program history (2022-23, 7-0) … Carter Welling scored a season-high 18 points and totaled nine rebounds in the effort … RJ Godfrey totaled his 15th double-digit scoring game of the season with 10 points … Dillon Hunter tied his career-high with seven assists and set a season-high with four steals.
