Basketball
VIKTOR GOES OFF AGAIN WITH 4 THREE-POINTERS AND 20 POINTS IN FIRST HALF AS NO.19 CLEMSON BEATS THE TAR OUT OF UNC
- 2025-02-10 23:11:13
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CLEMSON, SC - Wow, what an encore! No 48-hour hangover here. Many teams would have been emotionally drained so soon after a heavyweight fight and monumental win like the Tigers had over No.2 Duke on Saturday night, but they put on an absolute clinic against a dangerous and desperate UNC team that sorely needed a quad one road win over a ranked team to keep their hopes of making the NCAA Tournament alive. The Heels were also coming off a thrilling win over Pitt. In front of another packed house, Viktor Lakhin and the Tigers' offense were unstoppable in the first half, scoring 49 points. Viktor, who played his best game as a Tiger against Duke with 22 points, took it to another level against the Heels, making all four of his 3-point attempts in the first half, including the opening possession of the game. He scored 20 in the first half alone and finished with 22 points again. The game was close for the first 10 minutes or so, but the Tigers took a 16-point lead to halftime and led by as many as 26 in the second half. After going 4-10 from the arc against Duke, the Tigers were 12-25 against the Heels, proving that they can win in multiple ways.
Coach Cliff Ellis, Elden Campbell and the Tigers' 1990 ACC Champions were honored at halftime, which is perhaps a good omen for this team because it has a legitimate chance to be the only other Clemson team to win a regular season ACC title. At 12-2 in conference play, they are tied with Louisville for second place and just one game behind Duke, against whom they hold the tiebreaker. Cliff Ellis knelt down and kissed the Paw logo on the court. The video is below!
Most people assumed that last year's historic Elite Eight run by the Tigers would be a high watermark for Brad Brownell and weren't expecting much from this team with the loss of All-ACC First Teamer PJ Hall. After all, it was just the second Elite Eight trip in program history and first since 1980, but they were wrong! The Tigers are now 20-5 overall with 3 of those losses coming in overtime, and they have a great shot to win the ACC regular season title and/or be the first to win an ACC Tournament. They have beaten Duke and UNC in back-to-back games (a feat that the 1990 team also accomplished) are 4-0 against the Tobacco Road schools and swept "blue bloods" Kentucky, Duke and UNC this season! Brownell just continues to set new standards for the basketball program and do the unimaginable at this football school.
The Tigers go on the road next at FSU on Saturday, as Brownell will face future Hall of Famer Leonard Hamilton for the last time in Tallahassee. Post-game interviews and highlights are below!
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