Clemson Tigers Fell Into Perfect Trap Game Ahead of Marquee Matchup

The Clemson Tigers fell right into a trap game prior to hosting the Duke Blue Devils.

Nick Ziegler | Feb 5, 2025

Clemson guard Chase Hunter (1) reacts after turning over the ball near Georgia Tech forward Baye Ndongo (11) with 3 seconds left during the third overtime at Littlejohn Coliseum in Clemson, S.C. Tuesday, February 4, 2025. / Ken Ruinard / staff / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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Clemson Tigers

It has been a great season for the Clemson Tigers on the hardwood, but they recently suffered a bad loss.

Coming into their matchup on Tuesday night at home against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, the Tigers had an impressive 10-1 record in the ACC and were 18-4 overall.

Shockingly, Clemson wasn’t ranked in the Top 25 to start the week despite the success they have had throughout the campaign.

With a huge matchup looming against the Duke Blue Devils on Saturday night, the contest against the Yellow Jackets was a classic trap game.

Unfortunately, the Tigers fell right into the trap and lost a three-overtime thriller by a score of 89-86.

Clemson has not been a stranger to overtime games this year, but this one was a bad loss for the Tigers. Even with the win, Georgia Tech is under .500 both overall and in the ACC.

For a team that was hoping to burst into the Top 25 this coming week, that just became a lot more difficult.

With the Tigers slipping up against an inferior opponent at home, this was the classic look-ahead spot. Now, Saturday’s game against the Blue Devils becomes even more important for them to win.

Due to the ACC being very down this year, there aren’t a lot of opportunities for Clemson to get quality wins. This will be arguably their best chance at one against Duke at home.

However, it will be no easy task.

The Blue Devils are not only the cream of the crop in the conference, they are one of the best teams in the country. Freshman Cooper Flagg has arguably exceeded expectations in his freshman season and it’s easy to understand why he will be the No.1 overall pick in the NBA draft.

He has averaged 20.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game.

The Tigers are going to have their hands full not only with Flagg, but with what is also very big and lengthy Duke team.

Duke will have one more game to play before they travel to face Clemson, and it is possible they might be looking ahead to the huge showdown as well.

For the Tigers, though, the loss against the Yellow Jackets was a really poor one and they will likely be two games behind Duke in the ACC standings by Saturday.

Furthermore, another loss in the conference, even to the Blue Devils, could limit their margin for error in terms of making the NCAA Tournament the rest of the way based on how the program and the ACC has been viewed this year.

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