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ACC Roundup - Wake Lets One Get Away At Clemson

The Demon Deacons still don’t close very well.

By JD King
NCAA Basketball: Wake Forest at Clemson
Jan 21, 2020; Clemson, South Carolina, USA; Clemson Tigers forward Aamir Simms (25) reacts between plays during the second half of the game against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons at Littlejohn Coliseum
Joshua S. Kelly-USA TODAY Sports

There was only one game Tuesday night as Clemson came back to beat Wake Forest 71-68.

It’s the kind of game that unfortunately has defined the Danny Manning era, where the Deacs lose focus or energy or something at the end.

Wednesday’s ACC Action

  • Georgia Tech @ Louisville || 7:00 || ACCNX
  • Syracuse @ Notre Dame || 7:00 || ESPN2
  • UNC @ Virginia Tech || 8:00 || ACCN
  • Boston College @ Pitt || 9:00 || ACCNX

Tuesday’s Results

  • Clemson 71 Wake Forest 68

ACC Standings

In this case it may have been Oliver Sarr’s woes. The big man picked up his third foul at the 14:51 mark and sat for about six and a half minutes.

He never had a major effect on the game again after that and Clemson began to fight its way back.

The Tigers shaved Wake’s lead to 57-56 with 7:45 left and with :43 left, the Tigers were up 67-61. Brandon Childress hit a three with :01 left to cut the lead to 70-68 and then fouled Hunter Tyson who split his free throws for the final score.

Aamir Simms, who has played exceptionally well lately, had just nine on 2-6 from the floor.

With the loss, Wake falls to 9-9 and 2-6. The surprise was Tyson, who shot 9-13 and scored 21.

Andrien White had 22 for the Demon Deacons. Childress added 14.

In a bit of good news, Wake Forest got Isaiah Mucius back after he missed a game with an injury.

It’ll be a busy Wednesday as Georgia Tech goes to Louisville, Syracuse visits Notre Dame, Pitt hosts BC and UNC hazards Virginia Tech.

The Tar Heels are 2-8 in the last 10 games. Williams tied Dean Smith’s career win record on December 30th and has not been able to pass him yet.

Virginia Tech is an interesting contrast since the Hokies are small and play a quick, pressure-filled game and shoot threes exceptionally well.

UNC is bigger and has had a lot of trouble holding on to both the ball and leads. That should be very interesting indeed.

Also worth mentioning: Pitt is now 12-6. A win over BC would put the Panthers at 13-6 with a road trip to Syracuse coming up on Saturday (followed by a trip to Duke on Tuesday).

A win at Duke won’t be easy but we expect Pitt fans would be thrilled to be 14-6. At 15-6, if the 15th win is over Duke, the Panthers would be getting tournament mentions.

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