With top scorer Chase Hunter available but battling the flu, Chauncey Wiggins stepped up with 16 points as Clemson earned a 72-57 victory over Virginia Tech on Saturday in Blacksburg, Va.
Del Jones also rose to the occasion, scoring nine of his career-high 13 points in the final nine minutes as Clemson (17-4, 9-1 ACC) won its fifth straight to keep pace with first-place Duke, which has yet to lose a conference game.
Viktor Lakhin and Jaeden Zackery each added 11 points and five rebounds for Clemson, which went much of the way without Hunter, who scored two points in his 10 minutes on the floor.
Dillon Hunter, who missed the Tigers’ previous game with the flu, returned Saturday and took his brother’s spot in the starting lineup, scoring two points.
The Tigers made 48.3 percent of their shots, including 7 of 21 (33.3 percent) from 3-point range and committed just eight turnovers.
Tobi Lawal produced 14 points and six rebounds for Virginia Tech (8-12, 3-6) which lost its third straight.
Jaydon Young added nine points for the Hokies who made 38.0 percent of their shots, including 7 of 19 (36.8 percent) from deep.
Brandon Rechsteiner drained a 3-pointer late in the first half to give Virginia Tech a 26-24 lead.
Clemson responded with a 15-point run. Wiggins triggered the burst with a layup and added a 3-pointer. Zackery and Jake Heidbreder added 3-pointers during the run, which boosted the Tigers’ lead to 41-29 at the break.
Virginia Tech’s shooting woes continued into the second half as their string of misses from the floor reached 12. A 3-pointer by Wiggins less than two minutes into the second half gave Clemson a 46-29 lead.
During an 11-0 Hokies run, Tigers coach Brad Brownell inserted Chase Hunter into the lineup, but he missed three quick tries from 3-point range.
The Virginia Tech sprint, which was highlighted by a two-fisted slam from Lawal, cut Clemson’s lead to 49-45, but that’s as close as Virginia Tech came as Wiggins answered with a 3-pointer and Jones steadied the Tigers down the stretch.
–Field Level Media
