Clemson suffered their first loss tonight, and it was a brutal one, as their second-half comeback against the Georgetown Hoyas ultimately fell short on a chilly night. This wasn’t just a loss, it was a tale of two halves that showed the Tigers exactly where they stand early in the season.
The First Half Was a Nightmare
Man, what a start. The Tigers’ first half was as cold as the November air outside, completely out of sync on both ends of the floor. After trading buckets for the first seven minutes, Georgetown’s Jaland Low drained a three-pointer, putting the Hoyas up 17-14 with 13:42 left. From there, it was a runaway train. Clemson wouldn’t score again until David Fuchs hit a hook shot with just over nine minutes remaining, and by then, the score was a staggering 30-16. Their offense looked ice cold, and the defense seemed completely disinterested. Georgetown, on the other hand, was playing like it was the John Thompson golden era, hitting everything. Basketball is all about runs, and the Hoyas were on an absolute heater. By the time Clemson finally shook off the cobwebs, Georgetown was up 45-27 with less than two minutes left in the half. The Tigers managed a small run before the break, giving themselves the faintest whiff of momentum, but still trailed 47-32 heading into halftime. It was a seriously rough watch.
The Comeback That Almost Was
Whatever Coach said at halftime, it worked. The Tigers flipped a switch in the second half. Cole Certa and Ace Buckner started lighting it up, and suddenly, the defense was playing with purpose, crashing the boards like their season depended on it. With 13:18 left on the clock, David Faulkner threw down a dunk that cut Georgetown’s 15-point halftime lead all the way down to four! A game that looked like a total write-off became absolutely electric. They even took the lead, with Cole Certa burying a three-pointer to put Clemson up 62-61 with eight minutes remaining. Then, Certa hit a layup to put them up by two at the 6:23 mark. It looked like they were going to pull it off, truly turning the game on its head.
Georgetown’s Veteran Backcourt Delivers The Knockout
But credit where credit’s due, Georgetown’s veteran backcourt had an answer for everything. Every single time Clemson surged and looked like they were taking control, Elmarko Jackson and Jaland Lowe responded. Lowe immediately matched Certa’s three-pointer to retake the lead after Clemson went up 62-61. Then, after Certa’s layup gave the Tigers a two-point cushion, Elmarko Jackson coolly sank a mid-range jumper to tie the game at 66-66 with 5:49 left. Jackson then put the Hoyas on his shoulders, scoring eight of their next ten points while Clemson’s hot shooting started to cool. He passed the scoring baton to Lowe after a layup with three minutes left, and Lowe absolutely closed it out, dropping nine of Georgetown’s final eleven points. A Chase Thompson three-pointer with 26 seconds to go got the Tigers to 81-76, but the Hoyas managed to handle the Clemson press, with a little help from a couple of questionable calls from the refs, and Vince Iwuchukwu sealed the deal with a dunk as time expired. Lowe led Georgetown with 21 points, hitting three of six from beyond the arc, Iwuchukwu dominated the paint with a 20-point, 10-rebound double-double, and Jackson added 17 points, many of them clutch. This loss stings. It’s the first time the Tigers have seen defeat this season, and they just learned a harsh lesson about closing out games against veteran backcourts. They’ve got to regroup, figure out how to play two full halves, and try to ignore those questionable calls if they want to bounce back.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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