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Clemson's late bucket halts FSU's upset bid

Chandler Jackson played a season-high 20 minutes and scored seven points.
Chandler Jackson played a season-high 20 minutes and scored seven points. (Mike Olivella)

Florida State was just seconds away from its first upset of a top-25 team this season. But on a day with some inspired performances by the Seminoles' newcomers, a Clemson veteran made the decisive play.

Chase Hunter drove the lane and drew a foul, sinking the free-throw attempt, with four seconds left to help No. 24 Clemson escape with an 82-81 win over Florida State on Saturday.

Matthew Cleveland scored 15 of his 18 points in the second half for Florida State (7-15, 5-6 ACC), which made a season-high 13 3-pointers. The Seminoles had made just 3 of 22 3-pointers in a lopsided home loss to No. 20 Miami on Tuesday.

"We have been challenging the guys to come out with that level of focus every game," FSU coach Leonard Hamilton said. "We have not had that consistent effort. A lot is that we are able to now keep guys a little fresher, we got some guys that were not maybe experienced early in the year, now we are able to get them in the game."

Hunter Tyson scored 27 points on 10 of 17 shooting for Clemson (18-4, 10-1 Atlantic Coast Conference), which halted an eight-game road losing streak to Florida State.

Tyson made 6 of 12 shots from beyond the arc, playing the full 40 minutes. He has now made 50 3-pointers on the season.

Caleb Mills and Darin Green Jr. each hit four 3-pointers for the Seminoles. Freshman forward Baba Miller had his best game, scoring 11 points and pulling down four rebounds in 20 minutes.

Chandler Jackson scored seven points and had two assists, playing a season-high 19 minutes.

"Jackson played with a lot more confidence tonight," Hamilton said. "He actually played with the confidence he played with in high school. He was getting into the middle of the lane with no hesitation. He’s now shooting the jump shot with confidence. And that’s a kid who didn’t practice for eight weeks because of a broken thumb. He’s showing a lot of growth, giving us good leadership on the floor. I’m especially pleased with his defense."

Clemson won the rebounding edge 38-27


Bench help

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Sola Adebisi joined the Seminoles in November and had been used sparingly in a few games. But the 6-foot-6, 190-pound junior walk-on proved invaluable in the first half. Playing due to FSU’s foul trouble, he had four points and pulled down two rebounds in just over five minutes.

Adebisi also likely saw playing time with Naheem McLeod not on the FSU bench.

Up next

Florida State plays at NC State on Wednesday (9 p.m. on ACC Network).

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