By Kaila Burns-Heffner.

Clemson’s 70-63 overtime victory over Georgia Tech on Saturday was special for many reasons. It adds another ACC win to the Tiger’s record, it showed that Clemson could beat the team that beat them just 12 days prior, and it also was a nice victory for the seniors on Senior Day.

Rod Hall and Damarcus Harrison were the two seniors who were recognized both before and after the Georgia Tech victory for their dedication to the team and Clemson. For Hall, this season marks the last of four spent at Clemson and for Harrison, it marks the last of three. Getting the win over a team who had previously beaten them was a great way for the seniors to be recognized.

“I sort of look at it as revenge and as also a game that we need to win regardless. When we went to their house, we didn’t play well,” said Hall. “We came out with the win. We did better things than we did when we played them at their place.”

At one point in the first half, Clemson had a 23-point lead over the Yellow Jackets. It took Georgia Tech almost 14 minutes to make a single field goal, and the Yellow Jackets ended the first half only making 4 of 24 field goals.

Although Georgia Tech was missing shots and turning the ball over, Clemson’s defense was a main part of Georgia Tech’s lack of offensive success. Hall and Harrison combined for 5 defensive rebounds and capitalized on Georgia Tech’s mistakes.

“Both those guys played well today. Damarcus’s threes early were big. The free throws by both guys were big, and their defense was outstanding. Damarcus’s defense was really good today, so was Rod’s. That’s what got us off to a good start,” said head coach Brad Brownell.

However, Georgia Tech fought back to close the gap in the second half, causing the game to go into overtime with the teams tied 60-60.

“Sometimes when you have a big lead like that, you tend to let your foot off the pedal and we kind of did that tonight,” said Harrison. “We fought back and made plays and ended up getting the win in overtime.”

Harrison and Hall each scored 15 points and were tied for the second highest scorer behind Jaron Blossomgame. Harrison scored 2 three-point shots and made 9 out of 11 free throw attempts, but the senior guard was forced to sit out and watch his teammates fight for the win in overtime.

With 39 seconds left in the game, Harrison fouled out and was ineligible to play during the last five minutes of his senior game. Although it was difficult for him, he had confidence in the players that would fill his void.

“It was pretty hard, a little nerve racking,” said Harrison. “I was just glad that we got good players coming off the bench.”

While Harrison was out, Hall used the time to make up for his turnover right before the final buzzer and scored 5 of Clemson’s 10 points scored in overtime. Clemson held the Yellow Jackets to score just 3 points in overtime, and the game was won.

The Tigers will take on NC State on Tuesday at 9 p.m. for the last regular game of the season. The game will be one of the last held in Littlejohn coliseum.