Only hours after Auburn was upset at home by Florida, Clemson upset Duke 77-71 in a thriller. Dick Vitale returned for the game that promised to give the ACC a boost. In a game filled with momentum swings, huge shots, and a vibrant crowd, the Tigers stunned the Blue Devils to improve to 11-2 in ACC play. The goal of an unbeaten ACC run for Duke ends with Clemson. The showdown between the top two teams in the ACC lived up to every single expectation. The real question, however, is what kind of repercussions this game will have moving forward in the ACC.
Clemson Upsets Duke: What to Make of the Shocking Result
Clemson Solidifies Status as ACC Contender
This seems like an obvious point, but Clemson needed to upset Duke to assert themselves as a legitimate candidate to win the ACC. Clemson will likely improve their standing at 33rd in the NET ranking. The victory over Duke is Clemson’s third Quad One (Q1) victory on the season and immediately cancels out their bad Q3 loss earlier in the week to Georgia Tech. Their 8-4 record against Q1/Q2 opponents is elite for any tournament team. Not only will their win remain one of the best wins in the country, but it will likely lock Clemson into the NCAA Tournament, assuming they don’t lose every game the rest of the season.
After losing at Louisville, Clemson has maintained success against the middle-tier opponents in the ACC, including a tough Q1 win over floundering Pittsburgh in overtime. Clemson could have let their heartbreaking loss to Georgia Tech affect their play against Duke. Early on, that seemed inevitable. However, Clemson upset Duke because of their immense second-half effort. They turned around their play from the previous three halves and dominated the seemingly unstoppable Blue Devils. The Tigers now embark on a stretch of games that includes North Carolina, SMU, and Florida State, all Q1/Q2 games. They have the momentum to finish near the top of the ACC but also improve their seed in the NCAA Tournament.
Duke Stumbles, but Nothing to Worry About
Blue Devils fans would much rather lose this one game in Clemson than another road game later in the season in Chapel Hill. Duke followed their star Cooper Flagg. He couldn’t get the offense going, and Duke trailed by 7 in the second half. Flagg turned into a scoring machine, and Duke fought back to take the lead. The Tigers turned their play to a different level, and the Blue Devils didn’t have their best stuff. Clemson upset Duke. That happens all the time in college basketball. Most of the time, that results in a blowout like we saw from Florida and Tennessee earlier in the season. Duke still managed to have the ball down two with 20 seconds left.
Tyrese Proctor made huge shots throughout the game and kept the Blue Devils in the game despite Flagg’s struggles. This appears like nothing more than a perfect storm of events for Duke. Duke will come back more than motivated. California comes to Durham on Wednesday. The Golden Bears might be in for a long day.
The Last Word on Clemson’s Upset over Duke
The ACC desperately needed a jolt of life from a team not located in Durham, North Carolina. Clemson may have just revived the conference. On primetime television, Clemson pushed back the powerhouse Blue Devils, shut down the potential National Player of the Year, and upset the hottest team in college basketball. There is a whole month left to play before we can say whether the ACC is no longer dead, but Clemson’s upset over Duke may just be the thing the ACC has needed all along.
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