Well alright, Clemson. That’s how you silence the doubters.

Clemson basketball took an early lead at the 17:46 mark of the first half and never looked back Friday afternoon, benefitting from a balanced scoring attack and dominant defensive effort to bury the upset dreams of 11-seed New Mexico with a dominant 77-56 win.

The Tigers now move on to the Round of 32 Sunday where they’ll face No. 3 seed Baylor for a chance at the Sweet Sixteen.

Chase Hunter led the way for Clemson Friday, finishing with 21 points, 6 assists and 3 rebounds with 2 steals and just 1 turnover. Forward Ian Schieffelin had an excellent outing as well, dropping a 16-point, 12-rebound double-double with a overwhelming presence on the boards.

Here are 3 quick takeaways from Clemson’s win over the 11-seeded Lobos:

So much for an upset

It’s no secret that New Mexico was a very popular upset pick to win Friday’s game, despite being an 11-seed which squeaked into the field after winning the Mountain West Championship game last week.

Does the use of the word “squeaked” seem surprising to you? Don’t ask me, ask the Selection Committee which said on March 17 that if New Mexico had not won the MWC they would not have made the Field of 68. And it turns out that may have been for good reason, despite the public’s apparent affinity for these Lobos.

Incredibly, ESPN BET and other major sportsbooks had New Mexico as a -2.5 favorite. Furthermore, is ranked 11 spots higher than Clemson on KenPom.

But Brad Brownell’s squad was dominant. The Tigers jumped to a 30-11 lead and led by 20/15 points for the remainder of the game. New Mexico made a slight run at the Tigers to start the 2nd half, but stout defense extinguished all hopes of a comeback.

Defense wins championships… or at least the Round of 64

Clemson has not been a defensive team this season. Sure, the Tigers have a fair unit that performed well in the ACC, but it’s had its share of holes this season – especially at forcing turnovers and guarding the 3.

But the Tigers forced plenty of turnovers on Friday and by all account played one of their best defensive games of the season against the Lobos, which has a top 25/30 offense in the country and some insanely impressive guards in Jaelen House, Donovan Dent and Jamal Mashburn.

That trio committed 7 of New Mexico’s 13 turnovers on the day and combined to score 24 points – just not enough for a trio averaging 44 points a game.

In addition, Clemson’s defense held New Mexico to just 30% from the field and just 13% from behind the 3-point arc on 23 attempts. The Tigers were also more efficient at the free throw line, hitting 73% of their foul shots compared to New Mexico’s 65%.

Tigers and Bears to battle in Round of 32

Clemson will face off against Baylor in the Round of 32 for a shot at the Sweet Sixteen next week. The bears eviscerated Colgate earlier Friday behind a strong outing from senior forward Jalen Bridges, who totaled 23 points with 5 rebounds in a 92-67 win.

The Bears are a buzzsaw on offense, which means the Tigers are going to have to keep this hot streak of defensive play going to have a chance against one of the better teams in the best conference in America, the Big 12.

Only Purdue, Kentucky and Dayton are shooting better from range this season than Baylor, which has hit just under 40% of their shots from range as a team this season. Chase Hunter and Joe Girard will have to be on top of things on the perimeter to help out Clemson’s size difference on Sunday.

Although the Tigers played well against New Mexico Friday, it’s likely that Baylor will open as a slight favorite at sportsbooks around the country.