CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Terrence Edwards scored 21 points, J’Vonne Hadley added 20 points and nine rebounds and No. 13 Louisville beat No. 10 Clemson 76-73 on Friday night in the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament semifinals.
Chucky Hepburn, the hero of Louisville’s dramatic 75-73 quarterfinal win over Stanford, added 12 points for the Cardinals (27-6).
Chase Hunter had 23 points for Clemson (27-6), while Ian Schieffelin had 14 points and 12 rebounds.
Louisville is seeking its first ACC title on Saturday night, but No. 1 Duke, which held on to beat North Carolina 74-71 in the other semifinal, stands in its way.
The Cardinals held Clemson without a field goal for more than six minutes in the second half to built a 67-52 lead with 3:50 left.
But the Tigers cut their deficit to two with 54 seconds remaining on a layup from Hunter, who had 19 second-half points. After Louisville was called for a shot-clock violation, Clemson had the ball and chance to tie or take the lead.
But James Scott blocked Hunter’s drive after switching off his man.
Hepburn made 1 of 2 free throws with 6 seconds left to make a three-point game and Hunter’s leaning 3-point shot from 25 feet at the buzzer missed.
Takeaways
Louisville: The Cardinals may have shown a vulnerability as the Tigers were able to turn them over repeatedly with a full court press down the stretch.
Clemson: The Tigers showed toughness battling back late in the fourth quarter and could prove to be a tough out in the NCAA Tournament.
Key moment
Scott’s block on Hunter’s layup was the game’s biggest play, although Clemson was left screaming for a foul.
Key stat
There were 41 fouls called in the game.
Up next
Louisville plays in it first ACC Championship in program history. The Cards will face Duke on Saturday at 8:30 p.m. with a conference title on the line. The game will be broadcast on ESPN.
