While this game wasn't all that close, for the most part, Boston College stormed back to make things interesting in the final minutes, even pulling within three before Clemson basketball shut the door, 78-69.
And, sure, I may be a little salty that I went 0-for-3 on my pre-game bold predictions even though I really wasn't all that far off. I said Chase Hunter would score 20-plus for the first time in a month and he finished with 18, I predicted a 20/10 double-double for Ian Schieffelin and he had 13 and eight rebounds, and I said Clemson would score 90 and it should have if not for a poor offensive second half -- 49 first-half points made that feel like a lock.
Regardless, the Tigers figured out a way to hold off the Eagles during their second-half surge and a lot was due to the play of the bigs (Schieffelin and Viktor Lakhin combined for 24 points, 21 rebounds, and 2 blocks) and the duo of Jaeden Zackery and Chase Hunter (they combined for 39 points on 13-of-22 shooting).
Seeing everyone play well at the same time was a good sign and they weathered a second-half storm when it felt like nothing was going right.
The Tigers are now 25-5 on the season and 17-2 in ACC play with a home game against Virginia Tech looming this weekend. A win there and a Duke loss to North Carolina means that the Tigers will win a share of their first conference title in three decades.
The dream is still alive, folks.