The Clemson men’s basketball team suffered a heartbreaking 77-74 loss against the Wolfpack of NC State on Saturday.
At this point in the season, every game is critical, especially for a Clemson team that had a 16-10 record prior to the game and was on the bubble regarding the NCAA tournament.
To make it into the Tournament, Clemson not only needed to beat NC State, but they would have needed wins against Georgia Tech, Virginia and Boston College to finish out the regular season.
Nonetheless, the ACC Tournament is right around the corner, and a top finish in that would give the Tigers an automatic bid into the NCAA tournament. So all hope is not lost.
With the remainder of Clemson’s season in perspective, let’s take a look at what happened in Raleigh over the weekend.
Even though the final score may not have been what Tiger fans wished for, people wanting to watch a hard-fought, nerve-wracking basketball game on a Saturday afternoon certainly had their desires fulfilled.
This game was a nail-biter from beginning to end. Clemson scored 34 points in the first half, while NC State took a one-point lead into halftime with 35 points.
In the second half, NC State eventually extended their lead to eight points. The Tigers scratched and clawed their way to a lead, but fell short by three points when the final buzzer sounded.
Clemson’s dynamic scorer, Jaron Blossomgame, posted a career-high scoring effort as he attempted to carry his team to their 17th win. Blossomgame finished with 33 points and was 6-7 from the free throw line.
Sidy Djitte also had a solid performance, finishing two rebounds shy of a double-double with eight rebounds and 12 points.
Although Blossomgame and Djitte both ended up with a stellar stat sheet, they were the only Tigers that scored in double digits.
For NC State, Anthony Barber, the ACC’s leading scorer, was held to only eight points by a stellar defense by Avry Holmes. However, Abdul-Malik Abu more than made up for Barber’s underperformance. Abu worked hard for 17 points and 16 rebounds and was a huge reason the Wolfpack was able to attain victory.
Next up, the Tigers will travel to Georgia Tech on Tuesday to play one of their few remaining regular season games. Be sure to cheer for your Tigers as they
look to build momentum heading into the ACC Tournament.
