The Clemson Men’s Basketball team’s season ended on Friday night in Omaha, Nebraska after the Tigers fell to the Kansas Jayhawks in the Sweet Sixteen. The Tigers lost by a score of 80-76 and will end the season with a 25-9 record overall.
In a matchup of David and Goliath, the Tigers, who have played the role of David all season long, were unable to conquer the Jayhawks on Friday night. The Jayhawks were the number one team in the Midwest region and are making their 46th NCAA tournament appearance. The Tigers on the other hand were the 5th ranked team in the region making their 12th tournament appearance. The Tigers were a popular upset pick in the matchup after tearing apart New Mexico State and Auburn in the previous two rounds.
The Tigers fell to the Jayhawks despite a career night from senior Gabe DeVoe as the guard racked up 31 points and 9 rebounds. DeVoe has carried Clemson at several points this season including the first two games of the NCAA tournament when he combined for 44 points. Clemson converted on a mediocre 30% of their three pointers on Friday night which was not enough to down a team of Kansas’ caliber.
The difference in the game was Kansas’ ability to spread the ball and attack Clemson using several different players. Going into the game, the matchup to watch was the 29th ranked Kansas offense squaring up against Clemson’s 29th ranked defense. The Jayhawks came out on top by allowing six different players to score nine or more points. Kansas was lead by senior Donte Graham and Sophomore Malik Newman who scored 16 and 17 points respectively.
After trailing by 13 at the half and 20 early in the second, Clemson lead a valiant comeback effort late in the second half. Hope seemed to be lost after Graham’s corner three pointer put the Jayhawks up 49-29 with 18:15 remaining in the game. Shelton Mitchell electrified the crown and brought Clemson to within six after a loose ball resulted in a monstrous drive and dunk with just over two minutes to play. The next two possessions for Clemson consisted of missed three point attempts from Mitchell and DeVoe, and the Tigers were running out of opportunities to tie the game. Clemson failed to come any closer than four points back as the Jayhawks made their free throws down the stretch.
The Jayhawks will move on the the Elite Eight where they will face the Duke Blue Devils on Sunday evening at 5:05 p.m. Duke is one of two remaining ACC teams in the tournament along with the Florida State Seminoles who have made a surprising run into the Elite Eight.
While the loss was disappointing for Clemson, the 2018 season was one for the record books. The Tigers made their first tournament appearance since 2011 and they doubled the amount if tournament victories they have had in the past two decades. The Tigers’ underdog mentality allowed them to finish third in the ACC during the regular season, but unfortunately on Friday night, their season of surprising play came to a close.
