Clemson Tigers Blow Past Virginia for Latest ACC Men’s Basketball Victory

The Clemson Tigers men’s basketball team continues its hot streak as the ACC Tournament approaches.

Mar 1, 2025; Charlottesville, Virginia, USA; Clemson Tigers center Viktor Lakhin (0) battles for a rebound with Virginia Cavaliers forward Anthony Robinson (21) and Cavaliers forward Jacob Cofie (5) during the second half at John Paul Jones Arena. | Amber Searls-Imagn Images

The beginning of March was kind to the Clemson Tigers men’s basketball team. They hope the end of March is kind to them as well.

The final stretch of the ACC regular season saw the No. 13 Tigers defeat the Virginia Cavaliers, 71-58, on Saturday at John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville, Va.

The win allowed the Tigers (24-5, 16-2 in ACC) to, momentarily, match Duke’s win total in ACC action. The Blue Devils were set to play later Saturday against Florida State.

The Tigers entered Saturday’s action tied for second place with the Louisville Cardinals, with the Cards holding the tiebreaker over the Tigers due to an early-season victory in Louisville.

More importantly, with two game remaining, Clemson has already clinched one of the four double byes in the ACC Tournament, which means the Tigers will get a break after the end of regular season action and won’t play until the quarterfinals.

Clemson and Louisville have a three-game cushion on SMU, which is in fourth place. Assuming the Blue Devils, Tigers and Cardinals win out, Clemson would be the No. 3 seed in the ACC Tournament when it starts in Charlotte on March 11. The Tigers would not play until March 13.

The Tigers had to rally at halftime, as they fell behind the Cavaliers (14-15, 7-11), 32-27. Clemson wasted no time in the second half, outscoring Virginia, 44-26, in the final 20 minutes. Key to that was a 15-0 run for the Tigers.

Clemson shot 47% for the game but that percentage was dragged down by a 1-for-10 showing from the 3-point line. The Tigers did cash in at the free-throw line, going 18-fo-23 for the game. Virginia was just 6-for-10. The Cavs shot 42% for the game and offset that with an 8-for-19 game from the 3-point line.

Ian Schieffelin led the Tigers with another double-double, as he scored 21 points and grabbed 13 rebounds. He shot 8-for-11 from the floor. Viktor Lahkin added 14 points and grabbed eight rebounds. He also had five assists. Jaeden Zachery added 12 points on 50% shooting and made Clemson’s only 3-pointer of the game.

Isaac McKneely led Virginia with 16 points. Dai Dai Ames and Andrew Rohde added 12 points each.

Clemson has two regular-season games remaining. First, the Tigers remain on the road to face Boston College on Wednesday at 7 p.m. Then, the Tigers wrap up the regular season at home when they host Virginia Tech next Saturday at 6 p.m.