CLEMSON -- Clemson fans roared late into the night Tuesday at Littlejohn Coliseum as the Tigers stunned No. 4 Kentucky, 70-66, in a thrilling 9:30 p.m. “Grit After Dark” matchup.
While the rest of the ACC was put to sleep by SEC opponents in the ACC-SEC Challenge, Clemson’s defense put Kentucky’s top-ranked offense to bed, holding the Wildcats—who averaged 96.7 points per game—to just 66.
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The Tigers (8-1) stifled Kentucky (7-1) from beyond the arc, holding the Wildcats to 26 percent, far below their 38.24% season average.
The game featured 13 lead changes, with Chase Hunter sealing the deal by sinking two clutch free throws to put Clemson up four with 1.9 seconds left.
Jaeden Zackery stepped up offensively, scoring 13 points while Hunter and Ian Schieffelin struggled, combining for just 6-of-28 from the field.
Zackery electrified the crowd with an and-1 finish that gave Clemson an eight-point lead with 4:20 to play.
He shot 5-for-12 from the field, 2-for-4 from three, and added four steals and two assists.
Chauncey Wiggins also delivered with 12 points, confidently attacking the basket and shooting 2-for-3 from deep. He added four rebounds and a block.
On the boards, Schieffelin was dominant, grabbing a career-high 20 rebounds, including eight offensive boards, despite a rough shooting night (4-for-20 from the field, 1-for-8 from three). It marked the first time since 1999 a Clemson player has hauled in 20 rebounds.
He still secured his fifth double-double of the season with 11 points, battling Kentucky’s pair of seven-footers all night.
Viktor Lakhin was a force in the paint, holding his own against Kentucky's pair of 7-footers. He finished with four blocks, six rebounds, nine points, and two assists in just 22 minutes on the floor.
Clemson’s defense had its challenges against Otega Oweh and Lamont Butler, who scored 17 and 16 points, respectively.
Foul trouble limited both players, with Butler logging just 19 minutes. Oweh went cold in crunch time, missing three straight threes in the final two minutes as Clemson clung to a narrow lead.
Myles Foster sparked the Tigers early, scoring seven points in just eight minutes, including a key corner three.
Dillon Hunter logged 26 scrappy minutes, flying around on defense and causing chaos. Though his stat line—six points on 2-for-3 shooting with two assists, two rebounds, a block, and a steal—was modest, his energy made an impact.
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Del Jones also brought hustle off the bench, earning valuable minutes as a defensive spark plug.
Chase Hunter had a tough night from the floor, going 0-for-4 from three and finishing with 10 points, but his perfect free-throw shooting (6-for-6) helped seal the win.
Clemson shot 73.7% from the line (14-of-19), edging out Kentucky’s 61.1% (11-of-18)—those three points being the difference in the game.
Tuesday was the 17th meeting all-time between the Wildcats and Tigers.
For the second consecutive season, the unranked Tigers have taken down a top-5 opponent, following last year’s upset over No. 3 UNC.
Clemson now heads to Coral Gables to face Miami in its ACC opener on Saturday, Dec. 7, at noon, with the game airing on ESPN2.
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