Clemson was looking to secure a spot in the Sweet 16 on Sunday like the 3 other ACC teams still dancing. North Carolina, NC State, and Duke all punched their tickets to the next round after winning their 2nd round games on Saturday and Sunday.

There was a lack of upsets in the 2nd round slate and Clemson tried to change that. Clemson kept Baylor on the ropes and pulled away for a 72-64 win with an upset to join the other ACC programs moving on.

Clemson and Brad Brownell advanced to the Sweet 16 with an upset win over Baylor that ended a tough stretch in March Madness for the program.

Here are some takeaways from the madness of Clemson’s victory:

1st half ends with a bang for Clemson

Clemson took hold of the lead in the 1st half and didn’t let go.

The team went into halftime shooting 52% from the floor and 55% from 3-point range. The defense of Clemson did a good job of limiting Baylor’s offense and held the Bears to 33% shooting from the field and 3-point percentage.

Clemson scored 12 points in the final 8 minutes of the half and held Baylor to just 7 to take a 10-point margin into the locker room.

Things ended on a high note with Chase Hunter knocking down a buzzer beater from the logo as the half came to a close. Hunter led Clemson in scoring with 20 points at the final buzzer.

Defense wins championships

Baylor had the 5th-highest adjusted offensive efficiency (123.1) according to KenPom coming into Sunday’s game. However, the Tiger defense was up to the task.

Clemson proceeded to hold the Bears to under 35% from 3-point range. The Tigers adjusted defensive efficiency (99.2) was ranked 45th before tipoff.

It’s been said that defense wins championships and Clemson continues to rely on that side of the ball to set the tone in March. The Tigers moved past New Mexico after holding the Lobos to 56 points in the opening round.

If Clemson wants to keep advancing, the defense must continue putting up these kinds of performances.

Tiger hoops ventures further into March Madness

The NCAA Tournament typically hasn’t been kind to Clemson under Brad Brownell.

The Tigers reached the Sweet 16 for the 1st time since 2018 on Sunday after downing Baylor. Outside of the most recent success, Clemson lost in the 1st round in 2021 and then in the 2nd round before that in 2011.

After what has been a special tournament for the Tigers, Clemson will be facing Arizona in the Sweet 16 on Thursday in Los Angeles. That is not going to be an easy matchup at all, and fans can track the latest odds and trends with Saturday Road’s DraftKings links.