Clemson struggles to keep up with Duke, stumbles on the road

Clemson’s momentum away from home finally hit a wall Saturday afternoon in Durham.

The No. 18/20 Tigers saw their ACC road winning streak come to an end with a 67-54 setback to fourth-ranked Duke inside Cameron Indoor Stadium, where wins have been hard to come by for Clemson for more than three decades.

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The opening half was a grind-it-out affair that looked nothing like a typical Duke offensive showing. Clemson defended at a high level, held the Blue Devils to just 31 first-half points and trailed only 31-26 at the break despite struggling badly from the perimeter. The Tigers generated most of their early offense inside, leaning on physical play from RJ Godfrey and Carter Welling while trying to weather Duke’s early three-point bursts.

Godfrey provided a steady presence in the paint, attacking mismatches and keeping Clemson within striking distance. Welling chipped in around the rim and at the free-throw line, but the lack of outside shooting limited Clemson’s ability to build any sustained momentum. Duke, meanwhile, found just enough from long range to stay in front, with Isaiah Evans knocking down multiple threes in the opening 20 minutes.

Any hopes of a second-half surge were quickly erased.

Duke came out of the locker room with a burst, opening the half on a decisive run fueled by transition baskets, timely threes and Clemson turnovers. The margin ballooned into double figures within the first several minutes, and the Tigers never truly recovered. A highlight alley-oop by Cameron Boozer midway through the half punctuated the Blue Devils’ control and sent the Cameron Crazies into a frenzy.

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Clemson tried to answer with interior toughness and defensive effort, but the offense never found its rhythm. The Tigers finished the afternoon shooting just over 35 percent from the field and made only one three-pointer, a combination that proved too much to overcome against one of the nation’s most efficient teams.