Raise your hand if you thought Clemson was going to open ACC play with a 4-1 record.

After going 0-3 during its December stretch against the SEC, Clemson’s rugged conference start looked even scarier.

The Tigers played tough in Chapel Hill, covered the spread, but did what they’ve always done. A day after New Year’s, they won in a shootout against Florida State, before beating Syracuse at The Dome three days later. With their home wins over Louisville and Duke, Clemson has beaten top-25 teams in consecutive games for the first time since 1989.

The schedule doesn’t get any softer. Clemson’s at home again on Saturday at 2 against Miami, the No. 8 team in the country.

Momentum is on the Tigers’ side. The Canes lost for the first time since November when they played in Charlottesville on Tuesday night.

That, Jaron Blossomgame said after dropping 17 against the Blue Devils, has keyed this January run.

“We’re just really confident and we all believe in each other,” Blossomgame. “We have positive momentum. We believe that we’re a really good team. It’s showing on the court.”

He also credited the senior leadership from Landry Nnoko and Jordan Roper.

“We lost a couple of close games, but we just knew that we’ve got to get it going,” Nnoko said. “Guys are more confident and people are more talkative out there on the court. We just have more confidence.”

The long lay-off after per-conference play helped renew the team’s spirit.

“When we got back (from Christmas break), it was kind of like a clean slate,” Brad Brownell said. “Let’s all get back to doing what we we’re doing. Let’s just focus on the process of getting better. My phrase is always: Be passionate about the process.

“Just throw yourself into the process. If you’re doing good things when you’re practicing — every time you’re practicing, you’re building good or bad habits — let’s build better habits.”

Clemson will continue to need to build good habits, because the next four games are just as tough. After Miami, Clemson goes on the road to play Virginia. They’ll host Pittsburgh then close the month at Florida State.