Clemson Tigers Knocking on Door of Being NCAA Tournament Lock

The Clemson Tigers men's basketball team moved one step closer to being an NCAA tournament team.

Feb 8, 2025; Clemson, South Carolina, USA; Clemson Tigers guard Dillon Hunter (2) reacts with teammates after making a three point shot against Duke Blue Devils during the second half at Littlejohn Coliseum. | Ken Ruinard-Imagn Images

The Clemson Tigers men’s basketball team has been rising to the occasion more often than not during the 2024-25 season.

They did it again over their last two contests, starting with a visit from the Duke Blue Devils to Littlejohn Coliseum over the weekend.

The cream of the crop in the ACC hadn’t been challenged very much during conference play, entering the game with a 20-2 overall record and perfect 12-0 against ACC foes.

Clemson took that zero away, defeating them 77-71 to add another premier victory to their resume.

Duke was the second top-five team the Tigers defeated this campaign on their home court. Back on Dec. 3, they beat the No. 4 ranked Kentucky Wildcats during the SEC/ACC Challenge for their first ranked win of the season.

Clemson didn’t rest on their laurels after the massive victory over the Blue Devils, returning to the court on Monday night to face the North Carolina Tar Heels.

There was no big game hangover, as the Tigers handled business with ease, blowing out the visitors 85-65.

That win has Clemson on the precipice of being a lock for the 2025 NCAA Tournament.

As shared by Neil Paine of ESPN, the Tigers now have a 92% chance of being in the field for March Madness, with an overall record of 20-5 and a 12-2 mark in conference.

“The Tigers have been closing in on 'Lock' status for awhile, most recently with an upset win against Duke on Saturday followed by a thrashing of North Carolina Monday. Whatever the model odds say, Clemson is in great shape -- its 12-5 record against the BPI top-100 and No. 25 ranking in SOR are primed to carry the Tigers back to the tourney after last year's Elite Eight run,” Paine wrote.

To qualify as a lock based on their criteria, a team needs to have at least a 95% chance of being in.

Right now, Duke is the only ACC team that has reached that tier, with them sitting at 100%.

A down year for the conference is likely what is holding Brad Brownell’s group back from being in the same tier as the Blue Devils.

They are the only two ranked schools from the ACC with nine teams having an overall record at the .500 mark or below and 11 of the teams sitting under .500 in conference play to this point as well.

That has provided a lot of potential pitfalls throughout the campaign, but the Tigers have avoided them to this point.

If they can keep up this level of performance through the end of the regular season, they should be able to lock down a spot, at worst, as the sixth-seed in the tournament.