What We Learned from Clemson’s 64-61 Win Over Syracuse

The Clemson Tigers opened ACC play with a road win over the Orange.

Clemson opened SEC play with a close win at Syracuse. | Rich Barnes-Imagn Images

The Clemson Tigers (11-3, 1-0 ACC) eked past the Syracuse Orange (9-5, 0-1) 64-61 in both teams’ ACC opener on Wednesday afternoon at the JMA Wireless Dome in upstate New York.

After yet another tight win for the Tigers, let’s take a look at what we learned from the contest. 

RJ Godfrey remains Clemson’s offensive engine

The senior forward turned in one of his best games of the season on Wednesday, leading Clemson in scoring for the fourth time. A 14-point performance led the Tigers, who shot an ice-cold 25% from three-point range in the game.

With the outside shot not falling, Clemson turned to attacking the paint. That attack was led by Godfrey, who threw down four dunks in the process. Clemson dominated scoring inside to a 46-24 tune.

That's at least the 4th dunk from RJ Godfrey today. He's having one of his best games this season. #Clemson

— Drew Cagle (@_dcagle) December 31, 2025

Through 14 games, Godfrey is a team-best in plus-minus. Clemson is 145 points better with the Georgia transfer on the floor as opposed to off. Against the Orange, Godfrey finished as a plus-five in the stat sheet.

Dillon Hunter’s scoring punch must continue

When Godfrey went to the bench after committing his fourth foul with 6:01 remaining, Clemson’s chances at a win were in flux. Syracuse had closed the deficit to a mere four points, and the Tigers were losing their best offensive option.

That’s when Dillon Hunter stepped in. The senior leader went to work immediately on the next two offensive possessions. Two made three-pointers later, and Clemson maintained its lead. Before those two crucial shots, Clemson had made just two threes in the game. Despite that, Hunter shot with confidence and was rewarded.

Moving forward, it’s clear that Hunter must continue to be one of CU’s top scoring options. He doesn’t need to average 18-20 points per game and completely carry the offense. Averaging double-digit scoring to go with strong perimeter defense would be perfect for a Clemson team that has designs on playing deep into March.

Clemson values the basketball

Wednesday’s game continued a theme that has been a throughline of Clemson’s start to the 2025-26 campaign: the Tigers take care of the ball.

Entering play on Saturday, Clemson averaged the fewest number of turnovers per game (9.2) in the ACC. Though that mark will uptick slightly after a 12-turnover game against Syracuse, Clemson minimized turnovers down the stretch.

The Tigers committed just five turnovers in the second half against the Orange, including a five-second inbounding violation in the final minute that was debatable. Minimizing turnovers allowed for more Clemson shot attempts, along with forcing a struggling Syracuse offense to try to score against a set defense.

Next up

Clemson is back on the road for another conference battle against the Pittsburgh Panthers (7-7, 0-1 ACC) on Saturday at 12:00 p.m. on The CW. The Tigers won 78-75 in overtime at Pittsburgh’s Petersen Events Center in last season’s lone matchup. Last time out, Pittsburgh held a 10-point halftime lead before dropping a 76-69 game at Miami on Tuesday night.

Clemson holds a 13-2 all-time record against Pittsburgh.