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Clemson stuns Duke, storms court after 5th straight win vs. top 5 opponent
By Paul Harvey
Published:
Clemson and Duke met Saturday night with the Blue Devils riding a 16-game winning streak entering the weekend. And after earlier results on Saturday, Jon Scheyer’s group was likely playing for more than just another win.
In the mid-afternoon, Florida delivered a strong road victory over No. 1 Auburn. That means the Blue Devils, the only other team to beat Auburn so far this season, could have ascended to the top spot with a win on the road vs. the Tigers.
However, Clemson had other plans. In spite of trailing by 6 points at halftime, the Tigers rallied and grabbed their first lead of the game with just over 12 minutes remaining in the contest. Duke still did not go quietly with Cooper Flagg waking up at the end of the game with 9 straight points for the Blue Devils, including a 3-pointer to give the team a 71-70 lead with a minute remaining.
The rest of the game was all Tigers with Clemson scoring the final 7 points, including 6 from Chase Hunter, for the 77-71 upset. It goes down as the 5th straight win for the Tigers against a top 5 opponent, the longest active streak in Division I.
The victory also set off a swift court-storming and electric scene in Clemson:
With Auburn and Duke both losing, Alabama — entering Saturday at No. 3 — likely has a shot to ascend to the top spot with a win over Arkansas. That game is ongoing on ESPN with the Crimson Tide looking to tie Auburn atop the SEC standings.
Paul Harvey lives in Atlanta and covers SEC football.
