Tigers top No. 21 Duke, strengthen grip on top spot in ACC

Clemson extends its ACC edge to two games by grabbing its first ranked win of the season, taking down the Blue Devils. (Clemson photo)

by Nikki Hood - Staff Writer - Sat Jan 14 19:22:08 GMT-04:00 2023

CLEMSON – With just over six minutes to play, Clemson took a 56-54 lead over No. 21 Duke, and the Tigers never looked back on its way to a 72-64 win over the Blue Devils at Littlejohn Coliseum Saturday evening.

Brevin Galloway hit a three in front of the Clemson bench to give the Tigers their first lead since midway through the first half and Clemson went on to out-score the Blue Devils 16-10 over the final 6:24 of the game. The Tigers hit seven free throws in the final minute of the game.

Clemson improved to 15-3 overall and 7-0 in the ACC with the win. Duke fell to 13-5 and 4-3.

It was Clemson's first win over Duke since January 14, 2020, and it was head coach Brad Brownell's 400th career win.

The Tigers were led by PJ Hall, who scored 26 points. Brevin Galloway was the other Tiger in double digits with 17 points.

Kyle Filipowski led Duke scorers with 18 points on his way to his eighth double-double of the season. Tyrese Proctor added 17 points for the Blue Devils.

It was a back-and-forth affair for most of the first half, but for Clemson, it was the PJ Hall show. Hall scored 18 of Clemson's 30 first-half points.

Clemson jumped out to an early 7-2 lead as Duke only hit one shot in the first four-plus minutes of the game.

For the next nine minutes, neither team could gain much separation until Clemson opened up a 20-15 lead with just over six minutes to play before halftime. Chase Hunter completed a three-point play with a layup and free-throw, Hall hit a three-pointer, and Schieffelin sank a layup to give the Tigers a little bit of breathing room.

Over the next six minutes, Duke went on a 17-2 run as Tyrese Proctor hit two threes and scored nine points during the Tiger's scoring drought to open up a 30-22 Duke lead with 2:44 to play in the half.

Brevin Galloway settled things for Clemson with a trey from the top of the key as Clemson made their comeback. The Tigers scored eight points in the final two minutes of the half – five by Galloway and three by Hall – to cut Duke's lead to 32-30 with less than a minute to play.

Galloway was called for a foul with two seconds on the clock, and Jaylen Blakes hit two-of-three to put Duke up 34-30 at intermission.

Hunter Tyson hit two shots, including a dunk that brought the Littlejohn crowd to its feet to cut Duke's lead to 36-34, but the Blue Devils went on an 8-2 run to open up a 44-36 advantage with 14:47 to play.

Clemson ratcheted up its defense, and it paid off on both ends of the court as Clemson went on an 11-2 run of its own that began with a Josh Beadle layup and saw Ben Middlebrooks score five points – including a perfect three-for-three from the line to take a 47-46 lead with 11:46 to play.

The Tigers were forced to call a timeout after Duke scored the next six points opening a 52-47 lead with just under 10 minutes to play. Out of the timeout, Galloway and Hall hit consecutive shots to make it a one-point game at 52-51 with 8:15 to play.

Proctor laid the ball in to give Duke a 54-51 advantage, but Clemson scored the next six points, including a Galloway three in front of the Clemson bench to give the Tigers a 58-54 lead with 5:48 to play.

With Miami losing to NC State earlier in the day, Clemson has at least a two-game lead on the rest of the conference.

Clemson travels to Wake Forest on Tuesday for a 9 p.m. tipoff with the Demon Deacons.

BIG SHOT BREV X 2 #ClemsonGRIT pic.twitter.com/46HlyTY1Hs
— Clemson Basketball (@ClemsonMBB) January 14, 2023

BIG SHOT BREV! @BrevinGalloway #ClemsonGRIT pic.twitter.com/NGX4oocKzL
— Clemson Basketball (@ClemsonMBB) January 14, 2023

.@h_tyson5 with AUTHORITY #ClemsonGRIT pic.twitter.com/4ELD0vSSDn
— Clemson Basketball (@ClemsonMBB) January 14, 2023

AND ONE @chunt3r2 #ClemsonGRIT pic.twitter.com/6Z1LPd7wHi
— Clemson Basketball (@ClemsonMBB) January 14, 2023

.@joshuabeadle23 drops a dime to @benmiddle5 for the easy dunk #ClemsonGRIT pic.twitter.com/cJ8meRRhox
— Clemson Basketball (@ClemsonMBB) January 14, 2023