Clemson men's basketball leaned on a breakout performance from Ace Buckner to hold off South Carolina on Tuesday night, picking up a 68-61 rivalry win inside Littlejohn Coliseum.

The Clemson Tigers prevailed on the hardwood against the South Carolina Gamecocks, winning 68-61 at Littlejohn Coliseum on Tuesday night. Defense ruled the roo

Clemson limited leading scorer Meechie Johnson to eights points on 2-of-9 shooting. He entered the game averaging 15.5 points per game with career-best shooting splits from the floor and behind the arc. Johnson was effective in other areas though with six rebounds, four assists (led team) and three steals (led team).

Clemson men's basketball found enough answers Tuesday night to slip past South Carolina, earning a 68-61 win in front of a lively crowd at Littlejohn Coliseum.

Clemson took the lead for good nearly eight minutes into the first half and built a 34-27 halftime advantage. Welling scored eight points as Clemson shot 50% (13 of 26) from the floor. Sharavjamts scored nine points to pace South Carolina, which shot 39% (11 of 28) overall and made just 2 of 15 from distance in the first half.

Ace Buckner turned in a career-high 19 points off the bench in Clemson University men’s basketball’s 68-61 win over South Carolina on Tuesday night in Littlejohn Coliseum.

The South Carolina Gamecocks and Clemson Tigers meet Tuesday in Clemson, South Carolina, with tip-off slated for 7 p.m. ET.

Brad Brownell and the Tigers defeated Lamont Paris and the Gamecocks in Littlejohn Coliseum in a non-conference contest by a score of 68-61.

Clemson generated four turnovers to beat South Carolina in Week 14. The win helped the Tigers end the regular season on a four-game win streak.

Injuries and a reduced role slowed his momentum, but with Clemson shorthanded for the Pinstripe Bowl, a familiar wide receiver gets a renewed chance.

Clemson basketball freshman reserve guard Zac Foster exited with an injury vs. South Carolina in the first half on Dec. 16.