The newly minted-No. 13 Clemson Men’s Basketball (22-5, 14-2 ACC) return home to Littlejohn Coliseum for a Wednesday night matchup against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (12-15, 6-10 ACC) at 7:00 p.m. on ACC Network. This is the only meeting of the season between the two schools, with the Tigers winning the lone meeting a season ago.
Clemson earned an impressive 79-69 victory over SMU on Saturday afternoon, their sixth straight road win. Four of the five Tiger starters were in double-figure scoring, with Jaeden Zackery leading the group with 19 points. The senior also racked up six rebounds and seven assists in the win.
The Tigers offense hit 14 three-pointers on the afternoon, something they’ve now done twice this season and 18 times in program history. Zackery shot 5-for-8 from distance, and Ian Schieffelin, Viktor Lakhin, and Chase Hunter all knocked down multiple shots from behind the arc.
On the other side, the Mustangs turned the ball over 15 times and shot just 8-for-25 from three (32%). SMU’s starting lineup also featured four players in double-digit scoring.
Wake Forest transfer guard Boopie Miller missed his third straight game with a foot injury, and his absence was felt. Senior guard Kario Oquendo, who exploded for 25 points in the Mustangs’ previous game, was held to just 2 points on 1-for-5 shooting.
The Tigers rose five more spots in the weekly Associated Press Top 25 Poll, finding themselves at No. 13 in the country after the SMU win. Should Brad Brownell’s team take care of Notre Dame and Virginia this week, they could earn the program’s best ranking since sitting at No. 12 on January 11, 2021.
The Tigers remain No. 2 in the ACC standings, behind No. 2 Duke (16-1), and tied with No. 19 Louisville (14-2). Duke defeated Miami on Tuesday night, and host Florida State on Saturday. The Cards traveled to Virginia Tech on Tuesday, and host Pitt on Saturday.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish (12-15, 6-10 ACC)
Head coach: Micah Shrewsberry (2nd season here, 6th overall, 25-35 at Notre Dame, 13-23 ACC)
- 2023 NCAA Tournament Round of 32 (with Penn State)
Advanced rankings*:
- 93 in Kenpom (Clemson is 19)
- 100 in NET (Clemson is 22)
- 87 in BPI (Clemson is 16)
* – out of all 364 Division I teams
Record by quadrant:
Quadrant 1: 0-5
Quadrant 2: 3-6
Quadrant 3: 3-3
Quadrant 4: 6-1
Notable wins: Pitt, Virginia, Georgetown
Notable losses: Elon, Syracuse, Miami, Virginia Tech
Leading scorer: Markus Burton (guard #3), 20.3 points
Leading rebounder: Kebba Njie (forward #14), 6.2 rebounds
Assist leader: Markus Burton (guard #3), 3.0 assists
Last time out:
Saturday, February 22
Notre Dame 76, Pitt 72 in South Bend, IN
Notre Dame snapped a three-game losing streak inside the Joyce Center by shooting a strong 56.2% from the field and outrebounding Pitt 28-24. Markus Burton put up 20 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists on the afternoon, while Tae Davis led the Fighting Irish in scoring with 21 points on 8-of-11 shooting. Pitt standout guard Jaland Lowe was held to 13 points on an inefficient 5-for-14 shooting, and Notre Dame climbed up to 12th in the ACC standings with the win.
Outlook:
Clemson returns home, where they’re a strong 13-2 this season, against a Notre Dame team that is just 3-7 on the road. Micah Shrewsberry’s team is coming off one of their most impressive victories of the season, but so is Clemson. With the Tigers favored by double digits, this is an opportunity to continue their special season, and stay in the hunt for an ACC regular-season title.
The matchup I’m watching in this game is with the guards. Chase Hunter and Markus Burton are two of the ACC’s best bucket-getters, and I’m of the belief that a Notre Dame win hinges on Burton having one of his best games this season. I’d expect Jaeden Zackery to draw the defensive assignment on Burton and try to make the 20-point-per-game scorer work hard for every bucket.
