Smith powers N.C. State past Clemson 59-57 to complete day of upsets in ACC tournament

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Smith leads N.C. State past Clemson 59-57 in ACC

GREENSBORO, N.C. — Tracy Smith had 19 points and eight rebounds, and North Carolina State continued Clemson’s misery in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament with a 59-57 victory in the first round on Thursday night.

Ending a day of upsets, the 11th-seeded Wolfpack (18-14) built a double-digit lead early in the second half and withstood a late rally to continue their surprising late-season surge. N.C. State, which has won four of five, will face third-seeded Florida State on Friday in the quarterfinals.

The sixth-seeded Tigers (21-10) got 17 points and eight rebounds from Trevor Booker, but he got little help. Clemson shot 39 percent from the field, 56 percent from the foul line and committed 15 turnovers in yet another early exit.

Clemson, the only original ACC school not to win the tournament, fell to 16-57 in the event with 43 of those losses coming in its first game.