Tigers Top Orange, 67-55

Saturday, March 9

Clemson, S.C.

12 PM

Syracuse University

19-12 (10-8ACC)

Clemson

19-12 (9-9ACC)

Syracuse

Clemson

3/9/2019 2:13:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score Highlights Jim Boeheim Press Conference Player Interviews

CLEMSON, S.C. – The Clemson Tigers (19-12, 9-9 ACC) outscored Syracuse 43-24 in the second half to rally back from a double-digit deficit and defeat the Orange 67-55 in the final game of the regular season on Saturday afternoon at Littlejohn Coliseum.

The Orange (19-12, 10-8 ACC) led by as many as 10 in the first half, but couldn't hold the advantage and lost to the Tigers for the first time in the last four meetings.

Oshae Brissett, Buddy Boeheim and Tyus Battle all scored in double figures for Syracuse. Brissett led the way with 15 points and seven rebounds. Boeheim scored 11 points and Battle had 10.

Marcquise Reed paced the Tigers with 24 points, 20 of which came in the second half. He also pulled down 10 rebounds. Elijah Thomas also recorded a double-double for Clemson with 13 points and a game-high 11 boards.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Syracuse took advantage of some cold Clemson shooting and used a 12-2 run over a three-minute span to build a 23-13 advantage with 6:48 left in the first half. Reserve center Bourama Sidibe helped spark run, scoring four of his eight points during the spurt.

Clemson trimmed the margin to five three times in the latter stages of the first half, but a basket by Boeheim with 14 ticks on the clock gave Syracuse a 31-24 lead at the break.

In the second half, Clemson stayed within striking distance and eventually tied the game at 38-38 on a 3-pointer by Reed at the 14:26 mark. An Aamir Sims jumper on Clemson's next possession put the Tigers ahead for the first time in the game and forced a Syracuse timeout with 13:28 to play.

The baskets by Reed and Sims were part of a 14-0 run for the Tigers that resulted in a 47-38 Clemson lead before Brissett finally drilled a 3-pointer to end the Syracuse drought.

The Orange worked their way back to within two, 49-47, on a rare four-point play by Boeheim with 8:59 remaining. However, the momentum was short-lived. Clemson tallied the game's next nine points to go up 11 (58-47) with 5:43 left. Syracuse never got closer than seven points the rest of the way.

TALE OF TWO HALVES FOR THE TIGERS
The first 20 minutes and the second 20 minutes couldn't have been more different for Clemson. The Tigers missed their first 13 shots of the game and had just seven made field goals in the first half compared to 10 turnovers. Overall, Clemson shot 25 percent (7-28) in the opening stanza.

Things changed dramatically in the second half. The Tigers connected on 43 percent (12-28) of their attempts from the floor, while turning it over only five times. Clemson also outrebounded the Orange 24-10 after the break and converted 16-of-18 (.889) free throws.

BENCH BOOST
Syracuse got 25 of its 55 points from its reserves Saturday and finished the game with a 25-7 advantage over the Tigers in bench scoring. In addition to Boeheim's 11 and Sidibe's eight points, Marek Dolezaj chipped in with six.

The play of the trio was crucial to Syracuse's success in the first half with starters Elijah Hughes and Paschal Chukwu sidelined with early foul trouble. Dolezaj scored all six of his points in the opening frame, while Boeheim had seven and Sidibe had four. Their 17 combined points represented 54.8 percent of Syracuse's first-half total and helped the Orange control the game's opening 20 minutes.

OF NOTE

Sidibe played more minutes Saturday (22) than he has in Syracuse's last five games combined (10) and his eight points were a season high in ACC play.
Clemson was credited with an assist on 13 of its 19 field goals (68.4 pct.).
The Tigers dominated the glass 45-30, including an 18-6 advantage on the offensive boards. They didn't do much with their second opportunities though, finishing with 11 second-chance points to Syracuse's eight.
Boeheim scored in double figures for the ninth time this season. Seven of his nine 10+ point games have come since the start of conference competition.
Brissett has now led the Orange in rebounding 16 times in 31 games.
Clemson went to the free-throw line 30 times compared to only 17 trips for the Orange. The Tigers outscored Syracuse 24-13 from the charity stripe.
Saddled with early foul trouble, Hughes played only 11 minutes and did not score for the first time this season. He entered the game as Syracuse's second-leading scorer at 13.8 points per contest.

UP NEXT
The Orange will be either the No. 6 or No. 7 seed in the 2019 New York Life ACC Tournament. Syracuse will play in a second-round game at either 7 p.m. or 9 p.m. on Wednesday, March 13 at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, N.C. The complete tournament bracket will be released by the conference following the conclusion of tonight's Duke-North Carolina game.