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CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) — Clemson gave its weary fans something to celebrate a night after losing the national championship game in football, getting a career-high 25 points from Aamir Simms in a 79-72 upset of No. 3 Duke. It was the highest-profile upset for the Tigers since beating No. 1 North Carolina on their home court in February 2001. And just like that day, students rushed the court at Littlejohn Coliseum. It was the first ACC loss for the Blue Devils. The Tigers also beat North Carolina in Chapel Hill for the first time in program history Saturday, ending a 59-game losing streak on the Tar Heels' home court.
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Pittsburgh forward Terrell Brown thought he had a game-tying tip-in with 21 seconds to play, but he was called for a foul on the play, allowing No. 11 Louisville to escape Pitt’s upset bid with a 73-68 overtime victory. Pitt guard Trey McGowens’ driving layup attempt bounced off the rim, and Brown put it back, appearing to tie the game, but he was whistled for an over-the-back foul against Louisville’s Malik Williams. Williams hit both free throws to put Louisville up by two possessions, securing the victory.
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) — Landers Nolley II and Tyrece Radford scored 21 points apiece for Virginia Tech as the Hokies broke open a tight game early in the second half for an 80-70 road victory over Wake Forest. Radford, a 6-1 redshirt freshman guard, punctuated an 18-6 run in the second half with a spectacular dunk that became a three-point play over Wake Forest 7-footer Olivier Sarr. The Demon Deacons suffered their third straight loss without standout guard Chandee Brown.
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — LSU has finished No. 1 in the AP Top 25 for the third time in school history, with Clemson No. 2 and Ohio State No. 3. The Tigers beat Clemson 42-25 in the national championship game Monday night and then received all 62 first-place votes from the media panel. LSU was No. 1 for the final eight weeks of the season and set a record by beating seven teams ranked in the top 10 at the time of the game. Georgia was fourth and Pac-12 champion Oregon was fifth. Florida was sixth and Oklahoma, which made the playoff, was seventh.
UNDATED (AP) — The final Associated Press Top 25 of the season has a familiar look. LSU is No. 1 after winning the national championship. Add Clemson, Ohio State, Georgia, Florida, Oklahoma and Alabama and you have seven of the preseason top 10 teams finishing in the top 10 five months later. For the first time since 2006 every preseason top 10 team finished the season ranked. The next AP Top 25 will be released in August.
UNDATED (AP) — Even if they don't meet again on the field, Clemson's Trevor Lawrence and Ohio State's Justin Fields will be two of the stories that will define the 2020 college football season. The quarterbacks will compete for the Heisman Trophy and maybe to be the first overall NFL draft pick. Everyone will be watching to see whether LSU has turned its matchup with Alabama back into a rivalry or was the Tigers' victory this season was a one-off led by a generational quarterback. And several coaches with lots to prove in 2020 will be sitting on various degrees of the hot seat.
UNDATED (AP) — LSU's championship game victory against Clemson drew nearly 26 million viewers to ESPN, up slightly from last year's final. ESPN osays viewership for the three-game College Football Playoff was up 4% from last season, when Clemson beat Alabama in the title game. The network's championship game megacast, which includes ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU and ESPNews, drew 25.6 million viewers. Last year's megacast had 25.3 million viewers.
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