Clemson 80 – Louisville 75 Game Summary
by Grayson Mann
- Jestin Porter led the way with 16 points as Clemson snapped a four-game losing streak and knocked off No. 24 Louisville 80-75 at Littlejohn Coliseum, Saturday.
- The Tigers started slowly, coughing up the rock twice in the first four minutes, translating into six points on the other end as Louisville jumped out to an 11-7 lead.
- The Cardinals were hot from the perimeter in the opening minutes, making four of its first six shots from beyond the arc.
- Clemson eventually threw a counter punch, with Ace Buckner’s layup after an and-one opportunity giving the home Tigers a 20-14 lead.
- Despite the early turnovers, the Tigers shot an efficient 48 percent from the floor in the first half to take a 38-35 lead into intermission.
- Clemson’s bigs found success early as RJ Godfrey scored nine of his 13 points in the first 20 minutes.
- Clemson’s offense took over in the second half, with Jestin Porter scoring all 16 of his points after halftime.
- Porter’s biggest moment came at the 8:46 mark of the second half, cashing in a three-pointer off a Louisville turnover to put the Tigers up 60-49.
- Godfrey’s layup with 1:08 to play put Clemson up 15 but the Cardinals didn’t surrender, scoring 16 points in 57 seconds to cut the lead to four. Ace Buckner (11 points) made four of six from the foul line in the final seconds to put the game away.
- Clemson improves to 7-1 at home against Louisville.
- The Tigers move to 4-5 in Quad 1 games, likely stamping their resume for the NCAA Tournament.
- With the win, Clemson moves to 21-8, 11-5 ACC, and clinches at least the No. 6 seed in the ACC Tournament.
- The Tigers have two regular season games remaining, the first of which is on the road against 18th-ranked North Carolina. Tipoff from the Dean E. Smith Center in Chapel Hill, NC, is scheduled for 7 p.m., Tuesday.
