Clemson used its 81-70 win over NC State as a springboard for quite a stretch in Tigers’ basketball history.

Clemson topped NC State at home on Jan. 4, and then went on to snap the 59-game losing streak at North Carolina with a 79-76 overtime win Jan. 11. To show that wasn’t a fluke, CU then defeated Duke 79-72 on Jan. 14 for “The Triangle Sweep.”

Clemson was sitting at 0-3 in the ACC prior to the sweep and was staring down the barrel of likely not playing in the postseason. The Tigers (9-7 overall, 3-3 ACC) have a rematch with NC State at 2 p.m. today on RSN.

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The emergence of junior power forward Aamir Simms has helped Clemson turn its season around. He wasn’t a big part of the offense his first two years, but now the Tigers can run various sets through him, whether it’s hitting three-pointers or cutting to the basket for dunks and layups.

Alabama graduate transfer Tevin Mack, who also played at Texas, has done well as a stretch four, and sophomore wing John Newman has emerged this season. The trio has helped Clemson bounce back from losing six games in seven contests from Nov. 26-Dec. 31.

Rankings

In the NET rankings done by the NCAA, Clemson is currently No. 73 in the country. KenPom.com has Clemson at No. 75, and ESPN’s College Basketball Power Index (BPI) has the Tigers at No. 69.

The Tigers are ranked No. 86 in the old RPI formula used by the NCAA — according to RealTimeRPI.com.

Shooting

Clemson ranks 11th in the ACC in scoring at 69.4 points per game and are shooting 43.2 percent from the field, which is ninth in the league. Clemson is 10th in the ACC at 32.8 percent on three-pointers, and 11th in free-throw shooting at 69.5 percent. CU made 26 of 31 free throws for 83.9 percent against NC State in the previous meeting.

Simms leads the way even though he’s a post player at 40 percent on three-pointers. Six different players have made at least 14 three-pointers this season, with Mack making a team-high 28. Mack is shooting 33.3 percent from beyond the arc, but just 54.2 percent at the free-throw line.

Rebounding

The Tigers are essentially playing four perimeter players, so rebounding has been a struggle. Clemson is 12th in the ACC with 34.3 rebounds per game, and 14th in the league with 8.5 offensive rebounds a contest.

Simms leads the way with 7.6 rebounds per game, and Mack is right behind him with 5.3 boards a contest. Simms has a pair of double-doubles this season. Clemson out-rebounded NC State 34-30 in the first meeting, with four players grabbing at least four rebounds.

Defense

The Tigers rank seventh in the ACC in allowing 64.3 points per game. Opponents are shooting 41.0 percent from the field and 32.7 percent on three-pointers, with the latter category ranking eighth in the league, which is a vast improvement from three weeks ago.

NC State shot 44.1 percent from the field, but was just 5 of 21 from beyond the arc in the first meeting against the Tigers.

Depth

Clemson normally plays four reserves, but depth has been affected with freshman guard Chase Hunter out with an injury since Dec. 15. Also, UNC Asheville post transfer Jonathan Baehre has been limited to two games this season.

Tulsa graduate transfer Curran Scott is fifth on the team with 7.4 points per game and he’s shooting 32.6 percent on three-pointers, and has been a past starter. Sophomore center Trey Jemison gave the Tigers a nice boost in the last game against NC State. Sophomore forward Hunter Tyson and sophomore small forward Khavon Moore, a Texas Tech transfer, round out the reserves.

Junior center Aamir Simms has been sensational in helping Clemson turn its season around.

The 6-8, 240-pounder was ranked No. 93 overall in the country in the class of 2017 by Rivals.com, coming out of Palmyra (Va.) Blue Ridge. He averaged a solid 8.1 points and 4.6 rebounds per game last year, but has made a giant jump this season.

Simms is averaging career highs with 14.6 points, 7.6 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.2 steals per game. He has scored at least 20 points in three of the last four games, with his 17-point effort mixed in against NC State. Simms had a career-high 25 points, plus nine rebounds and five assists in the 79-72 win over Duke last Tuesday.

Simms has cracked double figures in all but three games this season, and he’s a legit threat out to the three-point line. He’s made at least two three-pointers in six games this season. He isn’t a big shot-blocking threat, but did come through with four blocks in the historic win over UNC.

NC State

PG — 11 Markell Johnson (6-1, 175, Sr., 13.1 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 6.8 apg, 1.9 spg)

SG — 24 Devon Daniels (6-5, 205, R-Jr., 11.1 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 2.2 apg, 1.6 spg)

G — 10 Braxton Beverly (6-0, 180, Jr., 7.9 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 1.6 apg)

PF — 0 D.J. Funderburk (6-10, 225, R-Jr., 13.1 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 0.4 apg)

C — 15 Manny Bates (6-11, 230, R-Fr., 5.9 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 0.3 apg, 3.1 bpg)

Clemson

PG — 0 Clyde Trapp (6-4, 194, Jr., 5.3 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 2.2 apg)

SG — 2 Al-Amir Dawes (6-2, 180, Fr., 8.7 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 2.9 apg)

G — 15 John Newman (6-5, 197, Soph., 10.2 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 2.2 apg, 1.3 spg)

F — 13 Tevin Mack (6-6, 227, Sr., 12.2 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 1.1 apg, 1.2 spg)

C — 25 Aamir Simms (6-8, 240, Jr., 14.6 ppg, 7.6 rpg, 2.6 apg, 1.2 spg)

30 Years since the last time Clemson defeated both North Carolina and Duke in consecutive, which just occurred.

43 Games missed this season due to injury, with junior guard Clyde Trapp, redshirt junior Jonathan Baehre, freshman point guard Chase Hunter, freshman wing Alex Hemenway and sophomore forward Khavon Moore all missing time.

178 Wins at Clemson for head coach Brad Brownell, which just passed Cliff Ellis (177 wins) for the all-time mark for the Tigers.

Clemson sophomore wing John Newman has become an integral component for the Tigers, especially in recent games.

Newman was a unranked three-star prospect coming out out of Greensboro (N.C.) Day, was known for three main aspects — athletic, talented defender and his teams always won. His father played at James Madison.

NC State evaluated him, but never offered, but he did pick up offers from Clemson, Boston College, Cincinnati, Georgia Tech, Providence, Virginia and Wake Forest among others.

Newman wasn’t ready for a major workload last year, but did play in 34 games and average 2.1 points and 1.8 rebounds per game. He has made a considerable jump with 10.2 points and 3.4 rebounds per game this season. He’s shooting 45.3 percent from the field and 34.0 percent on three-pointers.

Newman has been on a mini-tear the last three games against the Triangle teams. He’s a combined 16 of 27 from the field and 6 of 11 from three-point land for a combined 43 points over the last three games, playing against NC State, at North Carolina and vs. Duke.

Newman will likely face redshirt junior wing Devon Daniels and fifth-year senior wing C.J. Bryce, with the latter back after missing four games due to a concussion. The 6-5, 205-pound Daniels is averaging 11.1 points and 4.6 rebounds per game this season, and he had 15 points in the win over Miami on Wednesday.

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