Dawes, Tyson lead Clemson to 77-62 win over Pitt

Al-Amir Dawes and Hunter Tyson combined for 37 points off the bench to lead Clemson to a 77-62 win over Pitt to close the regular season.

Dawes posted one of the best games of his two-season career, pouring in 21 points on 7-of-10 shooting including five 3-pointers while also dishing out five assists.

Tyson was even more efficient, scoring 16 points on 5-of-6 shooting with two 3-pointers and a perfect 4-for-4 from the free-throw line.

The Tigers came out hot and raced to a 29-13 lead thanks in large part to Dawes’ hot shooting. Pitt finished the half on a 23-9 run to close the gap to 38-36, however, making several tough threes and consistently getting to the free-throw line.

Dawes and Tyson led the Clemson charge in the second half though, helping the Tigers stretch their lead out as the half progressed. They gradually built a lead of as many as 18 points with six minutes remaining on a jumper by Chase Hunter.

The Panthers trimmed the deficit to 10 in the final two minutes, but a Tyson layup followed by a Dawes 3-pointer snuffed out any hope of a miracle comeback.

Clemson did an impressive job containing Pitt star and ACC Player-of-the-Year candidate Justin Champagnie, holding the double-double machine to 13 points and a season-low four rebounds.

The Panthers, for their part, made 9 of 18 from 3-point range including a 3-for-5 effort from Ithiel Horton, but they simply couldn’t keep up with the Tigers’ offensive output.

Aamir Simms and Clyde Trapp chipped in 12 and 8 points, respectively, on Senior Day in what was likely the last home game of their careers.

Clemson finishes the regular season with a 16-6 record, including a 10-6 mark in conference play, and the Tigers will await their seeding and draw for the ACC Tournament next week.