The Clemson Tigers (14-9) and Notre Dame Fighting Irish (16-7) will take the court at Bon Secours Wellness Arena for this game. The game begins at 9:00 pm ET on Monday, Feb. 8 and can be seen on ESU and ES3.
The Tigers lost a winnable game to Virginia Tech 60-57 on Saturday. Landry Nnoko recorded 17 points and 12 rebounds, earning his third double-double of the year. The Fighting Irish are coming off an 80-76 win over North Carolina on Saturday. Bonzie Colson had a good performance and claimed his third double-double of the season, accounting for 19 points and 10 rebounds.
Half-court execution will be at a premium as Clemson ranks 346th in the nation in possessions per game (63.8 possessions per game), while Notre Dame is 336th (64.9). Moreover, foul-shooting opportunities could prove to be quite rare for the Fighting Irish. They are 270th in the nation in FTA rate (33.2), while the Tigers are among the nation’s least foul-prone teams (allowing a rate of just 28.2, ranking 29th in the country).
The Tigers enter the game with records of 14-8 Straight Up (SU) and 12-6 Against The Spread (ATS). Clemson has averaged 79.1 points per game over the last 10 games, higher than its season average of 69.1. The Tigers are one of the best in Division I in terms of free throw percentage, shooting a stellar .734 from the free throw line. The Clemson defense has done poorly against opposing offenses during the last 10 games, allowing an average of 72.3 points per game, well above their season average of 63.0. Clemson has given up very few turnovers with an average of only 10.8 per game.
On the other side, the Fighting Irish have records of 9-11-1 ATS and 16-7 SU. Most recently, Notre Dame is 8-2 ATS over the last 10 games. Offensively, the Fighting Irish have really sputtered in the last 10 games. Their season average has fallen to 78.5 points per game after averaging only 70.1 during that stretch. The Fighting Irish rarely make costly errors handling the ball. They have the 12th-best assist-to-turnover ratio in the country at 1.54.
The conference rivals will be squaring off for the first time this season. In their most recent meeting a season ago, Notre Dame came out on top, moving its SU record against the Tigers to 3-0. The Fighting Irish also lead the matchup ATS with a record of 2-1.
Predictions: SU Winner – ND, ATS Winner – ND
Notes
Notre Dame averages 78.5 points per game this season. Clemson is one of the best teams in points allowed, giving up just 63.0 points per game (ranked 15th).
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish have the third-best offensive rating in the nation (121.0). The Clemson Tigers have a defensive rating of 98.6 (ranked 87th).
Notre Dame has an average field goal percentage of 48.7% (ranked 16th). Clemson is a losing 1-4 when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.
The Clemson Tigers rank lower for their field goal percentage (236th) than they do for their effective field goal percentage (199th), but the Notre Dame Fighting Irish have a better FG% ranking (16th) than eFG% ranking (22nd).
The 12th-ranked team in the category, Notre Dame has an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.54 this season. Clemson ranks 71st with an A/TO of 1.24.
The Clemson Tigers make an average of 5.6 steals per game. When the Notre Dame Fighting Irish allow 5 or more steals, they are a winning 9-5.
