Clemson basketball will face a familiar opponent in the ACC/SEC Challenge this year.
CBS Sports college basketball insider Jon Rothstein reported Wednesday that Brad Brownell’s Tigers will take on coach Nate Oats and the Alabama Crimson Tide at Coleman Coliseum in Tuscaloosa in the 2025 ACC/SEC Challenge. An official date and start time were not announced.
The matchup will be a rematch of teams who met twice during the 2023-24 season, including in the NCAA Tournament’s West Region final on March 30, 2024 in Los Angeles.
After defeating No. 11 seed New Mexico, No. 3 seed Baylor and No. 2 seed Arizona in the tournament, the Tigers reached the Elite Eight for only the second time in program history, and the first since 1980. Clemson fell to Alabama, 89-82, at Crypto.com Arena (Staples Center), denying the Tigers their first trip to a Final Four.
Prior to that, Clemson and Alabama met four months earlier on Nov. 28 in Tuscaloosa, an 85-77 Tigers victory in the 2023 ACC/SEC Challenge.
Last year, Clemson smothered No. 4 Kentucky in the ACC/SEC Challenge for a 70-66 win at Littlejohn Coliseum on Dec. 3 behind 11 points and 20 rebounds from Ian Schieffelin. Guard Jaeden Zackery led the Tigers in scoring with 13 points, and fans stormed the court after the victory.
Clemson finished 27-7 overall last season and 18-2 in ACC play and was a No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament. The Tigers fell to McNeese State, 69-67, in a first-round upset in Providence, Rhode Island. Clemson was ranked No. 23 in the final USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll.
Alabama went 28-9 overall and reached the Elite Eight before falling to Duke in the East Region final in Newark. The Crimson Tide were ranked No. 6 in the final Coaches Poll.
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