The “road warriors” have officially made it to the summit.
In a 77-55 demolition of the California Golden Bears on Saturday night, the No. 19 Clemson Tigers (20-4, 10-1 ACC) have entered into a tie for first place in ACC standings. Combined with No. 4 Duke’s heartbreaking loss to North Carolina, the Tigers now stand as the conference’s top team, laying the stage for a huge “winner-takes-all” face-off next weekend.
But the win was not only for the standings — it was historic. Clemson now has achieved 14 straight ACC road wins, tying a second-longest streak. Brad Brownell readily called the win one of the season's most comprehensive performances.
The Tigers were hyper-efficient, posting a 55 percent shooting percentage on the floor and a punishing 12-of-26 from three-point range. “I reckon we played one of our best games of the year today,” Brownell said. “Last 10 or 12 or maybe 15 minutes [of the first half] would probably be as good as it has been all year.” The scoring was balanced in the “rebuilt” roster: RJ Godfrey & Ace Buckner: 13 points each. Jake Wahlin & Carter Welling: 11 each.
Defensively, the Tigers were still an awful nightmare, forcing Cal to shoot just 40% and cementing their position as a top-15 national defense. The conference’s landscape changed violently on Saturday. Clemson did their thing in Berkeley, but Seth Trimble’s 0.4 second buzzer-beater ended up giving Duke its first conference loss of the season, clearing the path for the Tigers. The Tigers won 13 of their last 14 games, but the real challenge is in sight.
After a home game in the middle of the week against Virginia Tech, Clemson takes a trip to Cameron Indoor Stadium on Saturday, Feb. 14, to challenge Duke, which is virtually ahead in the conference. “That makes you really energised,” Brownell said of the team’s shooting and defensive performance. They’ll need every bit of that energy for what’s about to be the biggest regular-season game of the Brownell era.
Next Up:
Wednesday, Feb. 11: vs. Virginia Tech (7 p.m. ET, ACC Network)
Saturday, Feb. 14: at No. 4 Duke (Noon ET, ESPN).