Miami keeps dancing, upsets Clemson 67-64

GREENSBORO, N.C.– It was Thursday at the ACC Tournament and for the second season in a row, Clemson was off to play Miami. Brad Brownell’s team had a great shot to bolster their No. 7 seed according to ESPN’s Joe Lunardi and potentially go on a run.

Jim Larrañaga and the Hurricanes had other plans.

Miami put together another strong offensive performance for the second day in a row at the Greensboro Coliseum defeating No. 5 seed Clemson 67-64 as an 8.5 point underdog. Their sophomore guard led the way.

Kolton Wong scored 20 points on 8-of-14 shooting while grabbing six rebounds and playing a game-high 39 minutes. Wong was a key cog in breaking down the Clemson defense which led to the Hurricanes scoring 40 points in the paint and shooting 53.7% from the field.

Clemson, meanwhile, really labored from inside the arc. The Tigers produced just 18 points in the paint while shooting 11-of-26 from two-point land. Brownell’s squad produced 15 assists on 23 made baskets, but things did not click outside of the three-point shooting. The team had a seven-minute drought in the middle of the second half leading to a 16-2 Miami run.

By no surprise, senior Aamir Simms paced Clemson on offense and the All-ACC selection led the team with 17 points, eight rebounds, and four assists. His running mate in the frontcourt was the second-best threat. Hunter Tyson scored 16 points and scooped up seven rebounds while going 4-for-4 from downtown. Clyde Trapp collected all 10 of his points after halftime and his late three pulled Clemson within one-possession with 40 seconds remaining.

From there, Miami would have turnovers on consecutive possessions, giving Clemson the ball with just 22 seconds remaining and a chance to steal a win. After a timeout, Nick Honor got into a pick-and-roll action with Simms. It ended with a field goal attempt in the paint that wasn’t true. His floater clanged off the rim as the sophomore finished the game shooting 1-of-8 from the field. The ‘Canes secured the rebound and victory with just two seconds left.

Miami moves on to play Georgia Tech tomorrow and Clemson now gets the weekend off. Brownell owns a 5-10 overall record in the ACC Tournament and this program still owns the league’s worst record in this tournament. Clemson is the only original member who has never won this event.

It’s now off to Selection Sunday to see where the Tigers will land seeding-wise for the program’s 13th tournament invitation.