Are the Clemson Tigers in danger of missing the NCAA Tournament?
Not really, but the Tigers would like to avoid an ugly loss on their home court to a last-place Georgia Tech team to close the 2025-26 men’s basketball regular season when the two teams meet Saturday. The Yellow Jackets are a Quad 4 opponent, ranked No. 172 in the latest NET rankings, which see Clemson at No. 35.
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Clemson (21-9 overall, 11-6 conference) is coming off a 67-63 loss to No. 17 North Carolina on Tuesday night in Chapel Hill. RJ Godfrey had a career-high 22 points and made 10 of his 13 shots, but he went the final eight-plus minutes without a field goal. Carter Welling added 13 points for Clemson.
Prior to the loss at UNC, Clemson defeated a top-25 Louisville Cardinals team, 80-75, for a significant Quad 1 victory to add to its résumé. The win over Louisville snapped a four-game losing streak for Brad Brownell’s team.
Two of the Tigers’ victories earlier this season were also upgraded to Quad 1 wins recently: Clemson’s 68-65 win over Cincinnati to close nonconference play on Dec. 21, and its 69-59 win over a surging Miami Hurricanes team on Jan. 17. Miami has won seven of its last eight and entered the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll at No. 23 this week.
Here’s a look at where Clemson basketball sits in the latest March Madness forecasts from college basketball bracketologists.
Clemson basketball in precarious spot in latest NCAA Tournament, March Madness projections
In Friday’s bracketology update from longtime ESPN college basketball prognosticator Joe Lunardi, Clemson is a projected No. 9 seed in the NCAA Tournament after dropping five of its last six games. Lunardi had the Tigers as a No. 5 seed after their 6-0 start in ACC play on Jan. 20.
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As things currently stand, Lunardi sees the Tigers taking on the UCF Knights (20-9) in the No. 8 vs. 9 seed game in the first round of the Midwest Region in Buffalo, New York.
If Clemson survives that first-round game, Lunardi has the Tigers squaring off against one of his projected No. 1 seeds: Dusty May’s Michigan Wolverines (28-2).
Moreover, ESPN college basketball analyst Neil Paine has Clemson on his list of teams that “should be in” the tournament barring something unexpected.
“Fresh off a nice résumé win over Louisville on Saturday, the Tigers hung with North Carolina in Chapel Hill on Tuesday — even leading midway through the second half — but ultimately fell for their fifth loss in six games. It doesn’t spell doom for Clemson, though; it still ranks no worse than seventh in the ACC in résumé average, and its consensus at-large chances remain above 90% — down from 98% after the recent slump, but still high enough in the conference’s pecking order to feel optimistic about its chances ahead of the regular-season finale against Georgia Tech. A win would give the Tigers a much-needed momentum reset ahead of the ACC tournament.” –Neil Paine, ESPN.
USA TODAY Sports bracketology has Clemson in No. 8 vs 9 seed NCAA Tournament game
USA TODAY Sports’ college basketball analysts Paul Myerberg, Erick Smith, and Eddie Timanus see Clemson as a No. 9 seed, as well. The group’s latest March Madness forecast has the Tigers facing No. 8 seed TCU (20-18) in a first-round matchup in Buffalo with a similar matchup looming against Michigan in the second round.
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Other No. 9 seeds in USA TODAY Sports’ latest bracketology include the Georgia Bulldogs, who Clemson defeated 97-94 in overtime on Nov. 23, the Texas Longhorns, and Will Wade’s NC State Wolfpack. NC State handed Clemson its first ACC loss, an 80-76 overtime setback on Jan. 20.
CBS Sports projects Clemson basketball’s NCAA Tournament opponent
CBS Sports’ latest bracketology also sees Clemson in the No. 8 vs. No. 9 seed game, but the outlet has the Tigers as the higher seed. CBS Sports’ projection sees Brad Brownell’s team facing Mountain West frontrunner Utah State (24-6) in the first round of the Midwest Region.
The Aggies started conference play 13-2 but have lost three of their last four games entering the final weekend of the regular season.
How many ACC basketball teams will reach 2026 NCAA Tournament?
Using USA TODAY Sports’ latest bracketology, the ACC has eight teams projected to make the NCAA Tournament entering the final weekend of the regular season. That’s tied with the Big 12 for the third-most bids for any conference. The SEC leads the way with 11 projected bids, followed by the Big Ten with nine.
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Here’s a look at ACC teams projected to reach the NCAA Tournament in USA TODAY Sports’ latest March Madness outlook from highest to lowest seeds.
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Virginia Cavaliers (No. 4 seed, Midwest Region)
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Louisville Cardinals (No. 6 seed, West Region)
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Miami Hurricanes (No. 7 seed, South Region)
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NC State Wolfpack (No. 9 seed, South Region)
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SMU Mustangs (No. 11 seed, First Four)
Clemson basketball schedule
Clemson hosts Georgia Tech (11-19, 2-15) at noon ET Saturday at Littlejohn Coliseum. The game will be televised on ACC Network.
Here’s a game by game look at the Tigers’ 2025-26 men’s basketball schedule.
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Nov. 3: vs. New Hampshire (W, 88-38)
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Nov. 7: vs. Gardner-Webb (W, 97-59)
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Nov. 11: vs. Morehead State (W, 83-56)
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Nov. 15: at Georgetown (L, 79-74)
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Nov. 17: vs. North Alabama (W, 81-61)
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Nov. 21: vs. West Virginia (W, 70-67)
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Nov. 23: vs. Georgia (W, 97-94, OT)
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Nov. 28: vs. Alabama A&M (W, 92-56)
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Dec. 9 vs. BYU (L, 67-64)
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Dec. 13: vs. Mercer (W, 70-63)
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Dec. 16: vs. South Carolina (W, 68-61)
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Dec. 21: vs. Cincinnati (W, 68-65)
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Dec. 31: at Syracuse (W, 64-61)
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Jan. 3: at Pittsburgh (W, 73-68)
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Jan. 7: vs. SMU (W, 74-70)
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Jan. 13: vs. Boston College (W, 74-50)
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Jan. 17: vs. Miami (W, 69-59)
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Jan. 20: vs. NC State (L, 80-76, OT)
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Jan. 24: at Georgia Tech (W, 77-63)
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Jan. 31: vs. Pittsburgh (W, 63-52)
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Feb. 4: at Stanford (W, 66-64)
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Feb. 7: at California (W, 77-55)
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Feb. 11: vs. Virginia Tech (L, 76-66)
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Feb. 14: at Duke (L, 67-54)
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Feb. 18: at Wake Forest (L, 85-77)
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Feb. 28: vs. Louisville (W, 80-75)
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March 3: at North Carolina (L, 67-63)
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March 7: vs. Georgia Tech, Noon, ACC Network
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March 10-14: ACC Tournament (Spectrum Center, Charlotte)
Overall: 21-9.
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This article originally appeared on Clemson Wire: Clemson basketball among ESPN’s ‘should be in’ NCAA Tournament teams