National Basketball Association
Clemson 59, Virginia Tech 51
When: 12:00 PM ET, Saturday, February 9, 2019
Where: Littlejohn Coliseum, Clemson, South Carolina
Officials:
# James Luckie, # Ramie Styons, # Clarence Armstrong
Attendance:
9000
By Field Level Media
Shelton Mitchell scored 22 points and Clemson blocked 12 Virginia Tech shots Saturday as the Tigers knocked off the 11th-ranked Hokies 59-51 in Clemson, S.C.
Clemson's victory, its first against a ranked opponent this season, improved the Tigers to 15-8 overall and 5-5 in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
It was Clemson's fourth consecutive victory in ACC play following a 1-5 start and snapped a four-game losing streak against Virginia Tech.
The Hokies slipped to 18-5 (7-4 ACC) with their second straight loss.
Mitchell, a graduate guard, made seven of his 14 shots from the floor, including a career-best 5-of-9 shooting from 3-point range.
Fellow graduate guard Marcquise Reed added 15 points as the Tigers improved to 11-2 at home this season.
Virginia Tech led 5-2 as Clemson missed its first four shots from 3-point range before Mitchell connected with 15:50 left in the first half, jump-starting a 12-0 run in which Mitchell accounted for all of the Tigers' points and gave Clemson a lead it would never relinquish.
Mitchell finished the first half with 18 points on 6-of-7 shooting, including 5-of-6 from beyond the arc, and the Tigers took a 33-29 lead into the half.
The Hokies pulled within a point, 41-40, on a basket by Kerry Blackshear Jr. with 12:28 remaining, but Reed and Hunter Tyson connected on back-to-back 3-pointers to push the Tigers' lead to 47-40 with 9:15 left, and the Hokies never got closer than three points the rest of the day.
Justin Robinson, Virginia Tech's second-leading scorer, missed a third straight game and is sidelined indefinitely after suffering a foot injury at Miami on Jan. 30.
Clemson held the Hokies to a season-low 28.3 percent shooting percentage to go along with the 12 blocked shots - a high in nine seasons under Coach Brad Brownell.
Clemson senior forward Elijah Thomas had seven blocks for a second consecutive game and has 22 blocks during the Tigers' four-game winning streak.
Blackshear, a junior forward, led Virginia Tech with 17 points on 5-of-8 shooting while sophomore guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker added 13 and graduate swingman Ty Outlaw scored 10.
--Field Level Media
Top Game Performances
| Virginia Tech |
|
Clemson |
|
Kerry Blackshear Jr. 17 |
Scoring |
Shelton Mitchell 22 |
|
Wabissa Bede 3 |
Assists |
Marcquise Reed 4 |
|
Ty Outlaw 8 |
Rebounds |
Elijah Thomas 9 |
|
Nickeil Alexander-Walker 6 |
Free Throws Made |
Marcquise Reed 7 |
|
Wabissa Bede 4 |
Steals |
Marcquise Reed 4 |
|
Kerry Blackshear Jr. 1 |
Blocks |
Elijah Thomas 7 |
Team Stats Summary
| Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
| Virginia Tech
|
51 |
28.3 |
5-19 |
16-17 |
8 |
33 |
1 |
9 |
11 |
| Clemson
|
59 |
41.3 |
11-28 |
10-13 |
13 |
28 |
12 |
6 |
12 |
For more information, contact us