Photo Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports Mar 28, 2024; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Clemson Tigers guard Chase Hunter (1) celebrates after defeating the Arizona Wildcats in the semifinals of the West Regional of the 2024 NCAA Tournament at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
By Robert O'Neill on

For the first time since 1980 and the second time in school history, the Clemson Tigers are heading to the Elite Eight.

The six-seed Tigers pulled off a 77-72 upset win over the two-seed Arizona Wildcats Thursday night in the Sweet 16 in Los Angeles.

Guard Chase Hunter led the way for Clemson with 18 points, including a three-point play late in the game that extended Clemson’s lead from two to five, making it a two-possession game at a pivotal point.

If it seems like Arizona often comes up short against lower seeds, that’s because it’s been the case in their last six NCAA Tournaments, per CBS Sports.

Clemson has also continued the ACC’s strong stretch of play so far in the NCAA Tournament, as the win moved the conference’s record to 9-1 in the tournament.

After making the Elite Eight nine times between 1994 and 2015, Arizona has now gone nearly ten seasons without getting back to one, as the Wildcats have seemingly become snakebit. Pac-12 Player of the Year Caleb Love struggled to get anything going for the squad, going just 5-of-18 from the field and recording just 13 points, one of his worst shooting performances of the season.

Clemson will face either the North Carolina Tar Heels or Alabama Crimson Tide on Saturday in the Elite Eight as they try to advance to their first Final Four in school history.

Social media was ecstatic about the Tigers’ big win.

[CBS Sports]

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