MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Chase Hunter had 20 points and six assists and sixth-seeded Clemson held off third-seeded Baylor for a 72-64 victory in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday.
The Tigers advanced to the Sweet 16 for the second time in coach Brad Brownell’s 14 seasons. They lost to Kansas in the third round in 2018, but earned a spot.
“This was a big win for us,” Brownell said. “Baylor is obviously a very talented and well-coached team. So for us to play the way we have, I thought our defense was outstanding throughout. He was a big key to our two wins here in Memphis.”
Joseph Girard III had 13 points for the Tigers (23-11), and Ian Schiefferin and P.J. Hall each had 11 points.
Clemson’s next game will be against No. 2 seed Arizona State in the West Regional semifinals in Los Angeles. The Wildcats advanced with a 78-68 win over Dayton on Saturday.
Ray J. Dennis led Baylor with 27 points, including 21 in the second half. Jacoby Walter added 20 points, but the Bears (24 wins, 11 losses) were eliminated in the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the third consecutive year.
Baylor was 26-16 at the foul line, while Clemson was 24-20.
The Tigers controlled the game throughout the first half and most of the second half. Schieffelin’s wild layup with 6:41 left extended the lead to 61-46.
Schiefferin flipped the ball over his head, but managed to get it into the basket while being fouled. However, he missed the following free throw.
“I just took shots and tried to foul,” Schiefferin said. “I fell to the ground, looked up, and the ball went in. If I tried 10 more times, I don’t know if it would work.” But it went in when it mattered. ”
Baylor coach Scott Drew tried to rally his team during a second-half timeout.
“I said, ‘Let’s have the best comeback in the NCAA Tournament.’ I think they were excited about it,” Drew said.
The Bears responded. Walter’s 3-point play with 2:19 left cut Clemson’s lead to 64-62.
Baylor had a chance to tie it with 36.2 seconds left, but Walter missed two foul shots. RJ Godfrey then made four free throws and Girard made two to close out the game for Clemson.
After long-range shooting was a big part of Friday night’s 92-67 victory over Colgate, the Bears struggled with their 3-point shooting. In the first game of the NCAA Tournament, he went 6-for-24 from deep against the Tigers, who had 3-for-30 hits and 16 points.
Clemson focused on getting long-range shots and ran into a Tigers scrum when Baylor brought the ball inside.
Coach Brownell said his top priority is limiting 3-point shots.
“I think we did as good a job as we could,” he said.
Baylor also had seven assists and 10 turnovers.
“I think we just made sure we got some big baskets when we needed them,” Hunter said of stopping the Bears. “We got a big stop when we needed it. We knew they were a great team. They were going to keep getting away.”
