CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) — For all the success No. 12 Clemson has enjoyed this season, the Tigers have too often left people wondering what kind of team they truly are.

Yes, they've spent much of the Atlantic Coast Conference inside the top 15 and can point to several accomplishments, like their 74-47 blowout of fourth-ranked Duke, as evidence of their strength.

But then come the head-scratchers, the latest which came Wednesday night when the Tigers had a chance to inch closer to ACC leader North Carolina yet instead fell at home to unranked Virginia Tech.

"I think it was our mistake not playing as smart," Clemson long-range shooter Terrence Oglesby said.

Such mental lapses may have already kept a stellar season by the Tigers (22-5, 8-5 ACC) from turning into an extraordinary one. Instead of being only a game back of the first-place Tar Heels, the Hokie loss slid Clemson two games behind with three to play and into a tie for third with No. 23 Florida State.

Tiger coach Oliver Purnell points to his team's steady rise the past six seasons. Unless Clemson folds completely down the stretch, it should expect its second straight NCAA tournament appearance — something that hasn't happened since three straight trips from 1996-98.

"If I'm not mistaken, we're still in the (ACC's) top three right now," Clemson forward Trevor Booker said.

Still, it's easy to imagine where they might be without the breakdowns, potentially at the cusp of their first-ever ACC crown.

The goal, Booker continued, is finish high enough to get one of the ACC tournament's top four seeds, which means an extra day off before they play. "We'll go from there," he said.

Clemson shook off its slow starts of the past few games, opening up a 14-7 lead on Virginia Tech. Booker was dominant underneath in the opening half, making 6 of 9 shots for 15 points. But the Tigers couldn't break away from the Hokies and were up just 38-35.

"We didn't have a good working margin at the half," Purnell said.

So when Clemson's shots didn't fall after the break — 36 percent shooting compared with 50 percent in the opening half — it could not keep pace with Hokie stars Malcolm Delaney and A.D. Vassallo. The two combined for 47 points and went 8 of 16 on 3-pointers.

Vassallo was left fairly open on three of his baskets from behind arc, part of the mental errors Clemson falls into at times, Oglesby explained.

"Leaving Vassallo open, who in their right mind would do that," he said. "But we just got lost. In the helter-skelter of things, we just didn't cover our assignments like we should have."

Booker had trouble on the inside as well. He shot just 2 of 9 the last half and finished with 21 points.

Clemson doesn't have much time to patch up its mistakes. The Tigers head to No. 23 Florida State on Saturday, a team that is also coming off a loss and looking to shore up its spot in the ACC.

Clemson finishes at home against the Cavaliers next Tuesday and then at Wake Forest on March 8, the ACC's final league game of the season that could have serious impact on the tournament seedings.

The Tigers have done a good job this season bouncing back.

After the Florida State flop, Clemson responded with its first-ever victory at Boston College. A rout of Maryland followed the loss at Virginia. Senior K.C. Rivers expects a similar performance this time, too.

"I'm always confident in this team," Rivers said. "We've show a lot of progression when we lose and then we come back hungry for more."

Whether the Tigers can sustain that level for more than a came or two is what makes Clemson dangerous — both to opponents and its fans.

"We need to win all three, that's the bottom line," Oglesby said of Clemson stretch drive. "We really need to step up and practice and get better at the little things that we've been so good at during our wins this year."