CLEMSON – Though No. 20 Clemson failed to pull off an upset win against No. 4 Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Saturday, the backbone of the Tigers’ team still made the trip up to Durham in the 67-54 loss.

A large part of the Tigers’ success this season has stemmed from tough, gritty defense. Through 13 games, Clemson has held ACC teams to an average of only 64.7 points per game, the second-lowest in the conference, just behind the Blue Devils.

Ahead of the matchup with Clemson, Duke head coach Jon Scheyer knew that defeating the Tigers meant going through the gauntlet of defensive pressures the majority of ACC teams have failed to best this year.

“A ton of respect,” Scheyer said of Clemson. “Coach (Brad) Brownell, for me, is one of the best coaches in the game, period. Clemson’s program, who they are as a team this year, we knew it was going to be a physical, tough game. Their defense is terrific.”

In the matchup between the Tigers (20-6, 10-3 ACC) and the Blue Devils (23-2, 12-1 ACC), both defenses lived up to the proverbial hype, as both teams were held to season-lows in point totals. 

Against Clemson, Duke scored 15 fewer points than its season average of 82.2 points per game. Additionally, the Tigers held Scheyer’s squad to 42.6% shooting from the field, down from a season average of 49.6%.

The Tigers also held star freshman Cameron Boozer, a top-three projected 2026 NBA Draft pick, below his season averages in points, field goal percentage, and rebounds.

“I thought we guarded about as well as we can guard them,” Brownell said postgame. “I thought our kids played their tails off. I thought we fought, we battled.”

While the Tigers scored only five points in the first eight minutes of the second half, Clemson still managed to grab five offensive rebounds and force two turnovers in the midst of an 18-5 Duke run. The Blue Devils finished with an overall 37-to-32 advantage on the glass, while both teams grabbed nine offensive boards.

Clemson forward R.J. Godfrey led the charge at the rim with eight rebounds and two blocks.

“I thought we fought on the glass,” Brownell said. “They still got nine offensive rebounds. We got nine. But I’m proud of our guys for continuing to fight. It’s hard when you’re struggling that bad on offense for your defense not to just give in. And I didn’t think we did.”

Clemson fought to the end, holding Duke without a field goal in the last 4:40 of play, and finishing its performance on a 11-2 run. This perseverance, according to Scheyer, was expected after two consecutive years of hard-fought contests against the Tigers.

“I’ve coached three games against Clemson as a head coach,” the former Blue Devil player-turned-coach said. “Every game has gone down to the wire and so I think it also shows the respect we had for them where we understood that middle of the second half, how important that time was.”

In Scheyer’s second year at the helm in 2024, the Blue Devils edged out a 72-71 win over the Tigers at Cameron Indoor, the slimmest margin of victory for Duke in five years. One year later, the Tigers defeated Duke 77-71 at Littlejohn Coliseum. 

“I think the thing we’ve learned from some of these games we’ve been in, they’re a proud, proud team,” Scheyer said. “They’re going to respond.” 

After a week that featured two losses to Duke and Virginia Tech, Clemson will have its next chance to respond Wednesday, when the Tigers will head back to North Carolina to take on Wake Forest (13-12, 4-8 ACC) at LJVM Coliseum in Winston-Salem. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. on the ACC Network.

After their 14-game road winning stretch expired in Durham, the Tigers will have a chance to begin a new streak against the Demon Deacons, as well as continue the fight to earn a coveted double-bye in the ACC Tournament.

Wake Forest’s offense averages just under 80 points and just under 10 3-pointers per game, so the Tigers’ defense will also need to make the trip north in order to secure Clemson’s elusive 21st win.