Wake Forest, depending on the outcome of the Pittsburgh-Louisville game, has a legitimate right to argue it deserves to be the No. 1-ranked team in the nation. The Demon Deacons have now taken out North Carolina and unbeaten Clemson, knocking off the Tigers 78-68 in Littlejohn on Saturday afternoon.Jeff Teague led the way (again) with 24 points, while Al-Farouq Aminu posted a double-double (12/10); he and Chas McFarland, who posted 12 boards, kept anyone most of Clemson's roster off the glass all afternoon.
The game was a back-and-forth affair until the Deacs amped up the defense and held Clemson scoreless to close out the first half with an eight-point lead. Wake held close to a double-digit margin for most of the second half, but Clemson was able to ratchet down and bring the game within a single point with just under few minutes to go.
Despite nearly having all five starters in double figures though, the Tigers were never able to take the lead back and Wake, which shot nearly 80 percent from the stripe as a team, was able to close out the home team.
Four things really stood out from this game. First of all, Clemson is legit. The Tigers didn't play their best basketball today, particularly in the second half, but there's a pretty good chance that they can break their 0-for-
Secondly, this is the all-time best start by any Wake Forest team in the prestigious, albeit undervalued, history of the school's basketball program, toppling the previous all time best start of 15-0 by the 1926-27 team.
Additionally, have you heard that Wake Forest is good? Because most people, geniuses aside, didn't realize just how talented they were before the season.
Oh, and finally, Clemson fans are, unsurprisingly classy. How do I know? Because we have video proof of a Clemson fan piledriving McFarland after he falls into the stands chasing after a loose ball. But at least they're not bitter.
