How Memphis basketball took down Clemson for its fourth Quad 1 win this season

CLEMSON, SC – Memphis basketball victory celebration – after his 87-82 overtime win − was a little subdued, considering what Saturday’s game at no. 16 Clemson had driven on.

Penny Hardaway got some high-fives from a few of his Tigers and a hug from Nicholas Jourdain as he left the court inside Littlejohn Coliseum. But the win was the latest in a string of sweet ones for Memphis this season.

The Tigers (8-2) hit a significant bump in the road last week in the form of a 13-point home loss to Arkansas State, which was a significant underdog. Memphis had to respond. And it did so in a big way.

It’s the Tigers’ fourth win of the Quad 1 variety this season, and Hardaway is now 17-2 against power conference opponents since beating Alabama on Dec. 14, 2021.

Tyrese Hunter led the way with 23 points (helped by seven made 3-pointers) and Colby Rogers added 22 points in the winning effort. Dain Dainja scored seven of his 11 points in the second half and overtime period, including a pair of clutch layups to send the game into overtime and a pair of clutch free throws with 15.3 seconds left in the overtime period to give Memphis a 3-point cushion.

The Tigers return to the floor at Virginia on Wednesday (6 p.m., ESPN2).

Memphis withstood a big game from Clemson (9-2) big man Viktor Lahkin, who dropped 23 (to go along with 11 rebounds), while Chase Hunter and Ian Schieffelin combined for 34 points.

The Tigers made 12 3-pointers in the game, including three in overtime – two by Hunter.

Clemson seemed to take command late in the second half, leading 69-63 with just 2:22 left. Memphis then made a series of clutch baskets, highlighted by a pair of layups from Dain Dainja (including one that tied the game with 20 seconds left) and a 3-pointer by Rogers.

Moussa Cisse gave Memphis some valuable minutes in the second half. After being shut out in the first half (with three rebounds and two blocks), the towering big man put up 8 points, five rebounds and a steal in just 11 minutes after the break. But he fouled out with 3:39 left in a 62-62 tie.

Memphis controlled the game for most of the first half after jumping out to a 10-0 lead and kept Clemson off the scoreboard until the 14:16 mark.

While Clemson endured an icy start (0 for its first seven from the field), it also withstood Rogers’ heat. The Wichita State transfer was unstoppable early, putting up 13 points in the first half on 6-of-7 shooting. Rogers has now scored in double figures in six straight games.

Clemson found its groove offensively late in the first half, rattling off a 12-3 run over a 3:35 span to take a 32-30 lead on Jaeden Zackery’s 3-pointer with 1:05 left before halftime. Clemson looked poised to extend that lead, but Tyrese Hunter stole an in-bounds pass with 6 seconds on the clock. He converted on the other end and knocked down a 3-pointer (his third of the first half) as time expired to put Memphis up 33-32.

Turnovers — non-steal turnovers, especially — kept Clemson in the game. In the first half, Memphis committed eight turnovers, but only two were the result of Clemson steals. Clemson turned those eight turnovers into 9 points.

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This article originally appeared on the Memphis Commercial Appeal: How Memphis basketball took down Clemson for its fourth Quad 1 win