Clemson basketball in ‘must-win’ mode as we close regular season vs. Pitt

Clemson basketball in ‘must-win’ mode as we close regular season vs. Pittsburgh

The Clemson basketball team will close out its regular season with a home matchup against the Pitt Panthers at 12 p.m. this Saturday in what will be the de facto Senior Day for the Tigers.

While it will be a day filled with emotions as Clemson basketball honors three seniors- Aamir Simms, Clyde Trapp and Jonathan Baehre- this will also be a day in which the Tigers will need to focus in on the task at hand and finish the season on a high note as we prepare for ACC Tournament play.

The Tigers enter this matchup with a 15-6 overall record and a 9-6 record in the ACC. Getting to 10 wins in the conference has always been a big deal and could be the difference in major seeding for Clemson as we look ahead to both the conference tournament and the NCAA Tournament.

There’s a lot on the line for Clemson basketball heading into this final regular season game

With the loss to Syracuse, Clemson fell to 9-6 in the conference. The Tigers are tied for sixth in the ACC with North Carolina (also 9-6), but they hold the tiebreaker in terms of seeding because of the head-to-head win earlier in the season.

However, there’s a 9-7 Syracuse team that sits right behind them. The Orange hold the tiebreaker over both UNC and Clemson, so that’s what makes this weekend so interesting.

If Clemson lost, but UNC won (beat Duke) we would in a situation where the Tigers would fall from the No. 6 seed to the No. 8 seed.

If the Tigers and Tar Heels both lost, Clemson would be the No. 7 seed.

So, Clemson is avoiding that play-in round either way and the Tigers can’t break the top-four, so why is the game a ‘must-win?’ Look at the difference in the seeding.

If you’re a No. 6 seed and you win your first game (which would be against the winner of the 11-14 matchup), you get to play the No. 3 seed, which would be Virginia Tech right now.

If you’re the No. 7 seed or the No. 8 seed, though, your second game would be against Virginia (No. 2 seed) or Florida State (No. 1 seed). If you can avoid the Cavaliers or the Seminoles for as long as possible, that’s what you want to do.

It’s not just about the ACC Tournament, either.

Clemson is currently at No. 5 seed in Jerry Palm’s latest Bracketology. The Tigers are a No. 8 seed in Joe Lunardi’s bracket and would have to play Gonzaga in the second round if they were to win.

Winning this game Saturday allows the Tigers a chance to maintain their luster as a team who is squarely in the field of 68 while also potentially moving up in terms of seeding. The last thing you want is to be in that No. 8 seed and have to play a Gonzaga or Michigan in the second round.