Clemson spent the first half digging out of a hole, and the second half trying to finish the climb.
Georgetown handed the Tigers an 85-78 loss Friday night in Littlejohn Coliseum, building a 47-32 halftime cushion after a 22-2 burst helped stretch the margin to as many as 19 points. Clemson answered with a much sharper second half, but the comeback ran out of steam late.
Ace Buckner paced Clemson with 20 points and five assists, giving him his third 20-point outing of the season. He scored 11 of those points after halftime, continuing a trend that has shown up before this season.
Cole Certa gave the Tigers a needed lift, finishing with a season-high 14 points and a team-best five rebounds. Eleven of his points came in the second half, and he knocked down a season-best three triples while helping fuel Clemson’s rally.
Liutauras Lelevicius added 10 points and four rebounds, while Dallas Thomas matched his career high with nine points off the bench. Dylan Faulkner also chipped in nine points and four rebounds.
Clemson’s response after the break was real. The Tigers trimmed the deficit with an 8-0 run that cut Georgetown’s lead to four with 13:18 remaining, then to three with 11:15 left. Certa then buried a three-pointer to give Clemson its second lead of the night at 62-61 with 8:01 to play.
The Tigers shot 55.2% from the field in the second half and hit six threes, but Georgetown had the edge on the glass, 33-27, over the full game. Clemson stayed within striking distance and was down three with 3:18 left before the Hoyas answered with an 11-4 run to close it out.
Clemson is now 3-1 and returns to Littlejohn Coliseum on Monday, November 16, to face The Citadel at 7 p.m. The game will air on ACCN.
The loss also snapped a notable comeback effort for Clemson, which erased a 19-point deficit, its largest since overcoming an 18-point hole against Davidson on Nov. 12, 2023. The Tigers are now 292-101 in games in which they shoot 40.0 percent or better from three, and under Brownell they are 127-28 in those games and 45-3 over the last four-plus seasons when reaching that mark.
In Other News...
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Clemsons QB Situation Just Got More Concerning After Vizzinas Exit
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Dabo Swinney said the injury was more serious than the ankle issue Vizzina entered the game with, a development that only adds to the uncertainty around Clemsons quarterback room. Swinney also pointed to Vizzinas effort in a tough spot, noting that he kept competing despite having already dealt with multiple injuries, but the bigger question now is how long the Tigers may be without him. [Read more 🡒]