The final score may not have been overly surprising, but Tuesday’s game between Clemson and South Carolina in Columbia was plenty meaningful.

The Tigers’ 98-87 handling of their instate rivals put Clemson at 13-0, and with two non-conference home games before they hit the rest of their ACC schedule, the Tigers have been put once again in stellar early-season position.

South Carolina’s Devan Downey once again proved himself to be one of the dynamic playmakers in all of college basketball, dropping 37 points on a Clemson squad that often simply lacked the foot speed and agility to stop him.

More than anything, this game, which was played at a frantic and breakneck pace, provided the breathless audience with a glimpse into this rivalry’s future. Thirty-six-year-old coach Darrin Horn exudes a youthful energy, coupled with a relentless pressure scheme. He is, quite frankly, very similar to Oliver Purnell.

And that’s what makes the future of this annual matchup so exciting.

Even Downey’s superhuman effort could not make up for Clemson’s overwhelming depth and offensive balance. But Horn’s team was able to successfully follow Clemson’s model for success by forcing the Tigers into numerous turnovers, and turning those turnovers into points.

Horn simply doesn’t have anywhere close to the talent, or more importantly the depth, to pressure the entire floor for the entire game as Purnell does. But Tuesday’s game did show that Purnell and Horn’s philosophy does in fact work, and makes for exciting basketball when matched against each other.

Horn is going to encounter one heck of a challenge in replacing Downey next season, but if he can bring in long, quick athletes capable of running up and down the floor, we may see more and more games like Tuesday’s.

Nothing is certain. The indicators of future success, the timeline on which that success comes – all are up for debate. Certainly Purnell did not get the Tigers to where they are overnight. Horn will benefit from playing a more favorable SEC schedule, but also may have difficulty reeling in players to compete on his squad rather than Purnell’s.

It will be interesting to see all of these variables play out.

What is certain is now Horn doesn’t have much choice but to acknowledge Clemson’s existence, because in the game of basketball, Clemson is still the university of South Carolina.

We’ll see if that changes.