If you’re going to host a top-20 national prospect, you might as well put them in a show they’re probably going to remember. And that is just what Clemson Women’s Basketball did on Sunday.
With elite 2027 point guard Cece Dennis watching from the stands, the Tigers defied the math — overcoming a 97.2 percent win chance for Duke — to defeat the Blue Devils in a thriller. It was the sort of “Goliath-toppling” moment that can change a recruiting cycle completely.
Dennis isn’t just any kid on a scouting report; she’s a bona fide star who just got off the ground and lit the Overtime Select tournament blaze. She played alongside fellow phenom Kaleena Smith, and Dennis guided her team toward a title with a clinic 29-point game in the championship, including five triples that left the defense scrambling. Her high school-level resume is just as absurd.
As per MaxPreps, Dennis has been a stat sheet stuffer since the day she emerged to a varsity floor:
Career Averages: 23.0 PPG, 6.1 APG, 6.3 RPG, 4.1 SPG
Freshman Campaign: exploded on the scene with 24.5 points and 4.5 steals per contest.
Sophomore Surge: Maintained elite production with nearly 21 points and 6 rebounds per game.
Dennis hasn’t been able to slow down lately because it has nothing to do with a defender — it is a knee injury she had just suffered in November.
The setback has caused her to be sidelined for the rest of the season, but the excitement surrounding her return is already bubbling up. Dennis should be hitting the floor with a vengeance next year, cementing her placement on the All-American ballot, recruiting analysts say. For Clemson, landing her on campus in a signature win is a huge tactical victory.
If the Tigers can merge their giant-killing on-court energy with the touch of a recruiter, the 2027 class could be revolutionary for the program.