Program history
Clemson
in the tournament.
Clemson appears in 16 tournaments in this archive, between 1980 and 2026, with an all-time record of 14–16.
2 of its 6 games decided by three points or fewer went its way.
Its biggest upset as the underdog came in 2024, when a 6th seed beat the 2nd-seeded Arizona 77–72. The reverse happened in 1987: as a 4th seed it lost to the 13th-seeded Southwest Missouri State 65–60.
Its longest run of consecutive appearances is 4, from 2008 to 2011. Its longest absence ran 10 years, between 1998 and 2008.
This archive carries no numeric seed before 1979. Since then it has entered as high as a 4th seed and as low as a 12th.
- 16 Appearances
- 14–16 All-time record
- 0 Titles
Season by season
| Year | Seed | Record | Coach | Conference | Finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 6 | 23–9 | Bill Foster | Atlantic Coast | Regional Runner-up |
| 1987 | 4 | — | Cliff Ellis | Atlantic Coast | lost in the Round 1 to Southwest Missouri State, 60–65 |
| 1989 | 9 | — | Cliff Ellis | Atlantic Coast | lost in the Round 2 to Arizona, 68–94 |
| 1990 | 5 | — | Cliff Ellis | Atlantic Coast | lost in the Regional semifinals to Connecticut, 70–71 |
| 1996 | 9 | 18–10 | Cliff Ellis | ACC | lost in the Round of 64 to Georgia, 74–81 |
| 1997 | 4 | 21–9 | Cliff Ellis | ACC | lost in the Regional Semifinal to Minnesota, 84–90 (OT) |
| 1998 | 6 | 18–13 | Cliff Ellis | ACC | lost in the Round of 64 to Western Michigan, 72–75 |
| 2008 | 5 | 24–10 | Oliver Purnell | Atlantic Coast Conference | lost in the round of 64 to Villanova, 69–75 |
| 2009 | 7 | 23–9 | Oliver Purnell | Atlantic Coast Conference | lost in the round of 64 to Michigan, 59–62 |
| 2010 | 7 | 21–11 | Oliver Purnell | Atlantic Coast Conference | lost in the round of 64 to Missouri, 78–86 |
| 2011 | 12 | 22–12 | Brad Brownell | Atlantic Coast Conference | lost in the round of 64 to West Virginia, 76–84 |
| 2018 | 5 | 25–10 | Brad Brownell | Atlantic Coast Conference | lost in the regional semifinal to Kansas, 76–80 |
| 2021 | 7 | 16–8 | Brad Brownell | Atlantic Coast Conference | lost in the round of 64 to Rutgers, 56–60 |
| 2024 | 6 | 24–12 | Brad Brownell | Atlantic Coast Conference | lost in the regional final to Alabama, 82–89 |
| 2025 | 5 | 27–7 | Brad Brownell | Atlantic Coast Conference | lost in the round of 64 to McNeese, 67–69 |
| 2026 | 8 | 24–11 | Brad Brownell | Atlantic Coast Conference | lost in the round of 64 to Iowa, 61–67 |
How the games went
| Round | W–L |
|---|---|
| Opening | 2–1 |
| Round of 64 | 6–10 |
| Round of 32 | 4–0 |
| Round of 8 | 0–2 |
| Semifinal | 2–3 |
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