For the second year in a row, Rutgers got the better of Clemson in a premier basketball event. Last March the Scarlet Knights defeated the Tigers in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Tuesday night in Piscataway, they handled the Tigers 74-64 in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge.
The loss for the Tigers was their third in the last for games and dropped their record to 5-3.
Clemson trailed 45-44 with 12:24 to play after a Chase Hunter layup. The Tigers could never get the lead over the next nine minutes but also stayed within six points during that stretch. In the final three minutes Rutgers stretched the lead from six to ten points and took it home from there.
Clemson, third in the nation in three-point shooting coming into the game, was just 4-18 from downtown. Overall, the Tigers shot 39%. David Collins led Clemson with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Ron Harper Jr. led Rutgers with 23 points and hit four three-pointers.
Clemson will play its first ACC game of the season this Saturday at Miami.
