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Clemson hands #2 Duke second straight loss in trips to Littlejohn Coliseum as Viktor Lakhin scored 22 points

There was plenty of noise across college basketball on Saturday, as six ranked teams went down including the nation’s #1 and #2. Auburn’s loss was stunning, coming at home to Florida, but with the Gators themselves ranked inside the top 10, that’s more of a testament to just how much of a gauntlet the SEC is. Just behind Auburn, Duke went on the road and fell to Clemson, losing for the first time in ACC play, where it only played two single-digit contests thus far.

Now 19-5 (11-2), this win was massive for Clemson, as the Tigers had just fallen to Georgia Tech in triple overtime on Tuesday night. In the first half of last night’s contest, it was the Blue Devils who were in control on the road. On his way to 23 points on the night, Tyrese Proctor started off hot, as the junior guard had a season-high in the loss.

The script flipped out of the halftime break though, as Clemson turned a 41-35 halftime deficit to a 51-49 lead within eight minutes behind Viktor Lakhin scoring the team’s first eight points of the half. The game was back and forth for the final five minutes after Duke’s star freshman Cooper Flagg tied the game at 59-59 with 5:16 to go.

Lakhin would push Clemson back in front before Proctor gave Duke a lead with a three-pointer. Chase Hunter, Flagg, and Jaeden Zackery then went back and forth in a matter of 40 seconds, giving Clemson a 65-64 lead. Two Lakhin free throws gave Clemson a three-point lead, but Flagg tied it back up with a three-pointer with two minutes to go.

A Dillon Hunter three-pointer gave Clemson the lead back at 70-67, but then Flagg scored four straight points to put Duke in front. Flagg would finish with 14 of Duke’s final 17 points, scoring 18 on the game. The final punch was landed by Chase Hunter though in a quick response to a Flagg three, giving Clemson a 72-71 lead it would hold onto for good. After some late free throws to ice the game, Cincinnati transfer Viktor Lakhin would finish with 22 points on 9-of-12 shooting, marking one of his best games yet at Clemson.

Flagg’s late game slip with 14 seconds may be what you see in a recap on social media, but let’s not it get twisted that Flagg wasn’t the guy who kept Duke in the game throughout all of the final few minutes. Clemson simply executed better late, much expected from a very experienced team inside one of college basketball’s most underrated atmospheres at Littlejohn Coliseum.

The Tigers host North Carolina on Monday, and after the ensuing road trip to Florida State and SMU, the regular season schedule lightens up for the final four games. For Duke, it’s just one small scratch in an impressive season, and something the young team should be able to learn from and take into March when the competition stiffens even more so.

Other Things to Note:

• #6 Florida pulls off stunner on the road, takes down #1 Auburn 90-81
• Wade Taylor IV wins it late for #10 Texas A&M against #15 Missouri in 67-64 thriller
• Steven Ashworth hits six three-pointers as Creighton takes down #11 Marquette 77-67
• #20 Arizona moves to 11-1 in Big 12 play with 82-73 win over #13 Texas Tech
• Dug McDaniel, Coleman Hawkins continue to roll as Kansas State beats #16 Kansas 81-73