CLEMSON — Clemson got a much needed win in ACC play Saturday at Littlejohn Coliseum.

In the victory over Florida State, freshman guard Del Jones made his time count, sinking three shots from beyond the 3-point line for nine total points off the bench.

“Del was great today,” Clemson point guard Chase Hunter said. “We needed him. We knew that they were gonna deny a little bit, so we needed some guys who can drive and make plays. He did that today.”

It wasn’t just his scoring that helped bring energy and a spark to the game, but it was also his playmaking. Jones had two assists and a steal along with a couple of rebounds for a well-rounded stat line.

Though he played just 16 minutes, Jones made a a significant impact in the Tigers’ win over the Seminoles.

With Clemson trailing 15-12 with 11:10 to play in the first half, Jones made two of his three 3-pointers during a 12-4 run that allowed the Tigers to take control of the game.

In the second half, after FSU went on a 7-0 run to cut what was an 18-point lead to 11, Jones ended the Seminoles’ comeback hopes by drilling a 3-pointer from the top of the key that pushed the lead back to 14 points, 61-57, with 7:56 remining on the clock.

Jones finished the night 3 of 5 from behind the arc.

“It’s not easy, because he doesn’t know if he’s going to play 15 minutes, five minutes, three minutes,” Clemson head coach Brad Brownell said. “There’s been a couple of games where he’s gone in, Stanford in particular, where he really wasn’t ready mentally.”

The Landover, Md., native chose the Tigers in 2024 over teams like Arizona State, Oregon and West Virginia. Though he has only performed in short spurts throughout the season, Jones has truly began to develop and contribute when given the opportunity.

“He really responded against Cal,” Brownell said. “He and I met and talked about it a little bit, and I told him leading into today’s game that I thought this was a game that his speed on both ends of the floor would be valuable, and that he was going to get a good opportunity today and he needed to take advantage of it, be ready.

“Today, he made three [threes], and he looked good doing it,” Brownell said. “Sometimes, you see one go in, and it just gives you confidence, and he really played well today.”