Chase Hunter scored 15 points and Brevin Galloway added 14 as Clemson pulled away in the second half for a 76-66 victory over visiting Bellarmine.
Hunter Tyson had 10 rebounds for the Tigers (3-1), who overcame a test from a team that defeated Louisville in its season opener.
The Knights (2-2) saw their upset bid foiled when they went cold from the field late while the
Tigers were 13 of 28 (46.4 percent) from 3-point range. Bellarmine shot 42.9 percent from the field and went 9 of 22 (40.9 percent) from 3-point range.
Hunter was 4-of-5 from 3-point range alone for Clemson while Galloway went 4 of 7 from the field.
Bash Wieland led the way for Bellarmine with 16 points, going 5 of 9 from the floor. Juston Betz added 12 points for the Knights on 3-of-8 shooting, going just 1-of-5 from 3-point range.
Midway through the second half, Bellarmine took advantage of an extended Clemson scoring drought that lasted more than four minutes. The Knights used a 7-0 run to take a 44-41 lead, their first advantage of the game.
The Tigers battled back with Ian Schefflin scoring four consecutive points and Hunter hitting a 3-pointer to put Clemson up 59-51 with 6:42 remaining. The Knights never got closer than five points the rest of the way, as the Tigers pushed the lead to 74-59 with under two minutes to play.
Schefflin had a strong second half for Clemson, scoring 11 of his 13 points after the break. The sophomore was a perfect 5 of 5 from the free throw line. Tyson went 3 of 5 from 3-point range.
PJ Hall also scored 10 in just 19 minutes of action, giving the Tigers five different players in double figures.
–Field Level Media