Tigers lose heartbreaker in overtime to FSU

Whitehorn had 18 points with 14 rebounds in the loss (Photo courtesy: Clemson WBB Twitter)

by CU Athletic Communications - Mon Mar 04 08:39:46 GMT-04:00 2024

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Ruby Whitehorn, Amari Robinson, and Danielle Rauch all had career days, and Day Harris dropped a game-high 22 points and the Clemson Tigers battled and were edged in overtime on the road by the Florida State Seminoles 79-82.

Despite a slow start to the game and trailing by as much as nine points early on, the Tigers rallied behind a pair of three pointers from Rauch to go on an 18-6 run to close the first period with a 22-19 advantage.

A strong defensive effort from both teams kept the scoring low in the second frame, but the Seminoles pulled ahead with a buzzer beating shot to give FSU a 33-31 edge as the squads headed back to the locker rooms.

The Tigers put on a show for the ages in the third quarter, recording the highest-scoring third period in program history. Harris, playing in the final regular season game of her career, led the charge for Amanda Butler’s team. She scored 12 points on 50% shooting from the floor and a flawless 6-6 from the charity stripe. Robinson and Whitehorn chipped in five and four points, respectively, and the Tigers closed their 30-point third quarter with a 61-53 advantage.

Heading down the stretch in the fourth quarter, a Nya Valentine three extended the Tiger lead to eight points at 71-63, but the Seminoles closed regulation on an 8-0 run to send the game to overtime.

With six seconds left, FSU connected on a shot to give them a 79-77 lead over the Tigers, but Butler and company called timeout to rally the troops and draw up their answer. Out of the timeout, Harris got the ball and got into the paint where she floated up a shot that found the bottom of the net to give her 1,499 career points and knot the game up at 79.

Following a FSU timeout, the Seminoles missed a shot which resulted in a Clemson rebound. The Tigers called timeout but didn’t have any remaining. FSU went to the line to shoot and make a free throw which proved to be the decisive blow. Florida State escaped with an 81-79 win on its senior day.

UP NEXT: Clemson will head to Greensboro for the ACC tournament which runs from March 6-10. The Tigers will be the 12 seed, and will play No. 13 Boston College at 1:00 p.m. That game can be seen on ACC Network. the winner will go on to play No. 5 Louisville.

FINAL SCORE: Clemson 79, Florida State 82 (OT)

RECORDS: Clemson 12-18 (5-13), Florida State (21-9, 12-6)

CLEMSON LEADERS:

Dayshanette Harris: 22 points

Ruby Whitehorn: 14 rebounds

Amari Robinson, Harris: four assists

NOTABLES:

Robinson’s 13 rebounds catapulted her past Lele Hardy for third-most in Clemson history. She now has 944 career rebounds

13 boards is a career-high for Robinson, who previously had grabbed 12 rebounds on four different occasions

Harris’ 22 points move her up to 1,499 points for her career

Whitehorn recorded the second double-double of her career, snagging a personal-record of 14 boards to go along with 18 points

Danielle Rauch set a new season high with 13 points (her previous high was seven, done on two different occasions), and tied her career high with a trio of three-point shots

Clemson’s 30 points in the third frame are the most the Tigers have ever scored in any third quarter in program history.