Clemson stumbles into the ACC Tournament

It wasn't supposed to happen like this.

Trevor Booker and the heralded freshman class were supposed to contend for an ACC crown right away. Booker's senior leadership and the freshmen athleticism were going to usher in a new era for Clemson basketball.

As it stands, Clemson missed out on an opportunity for a 3rd seed and slipped to a 6th seed by virtue of losing at Wake and now have to play NCSU on Thursday night. They are the only team playing on Thursday with 20+ wins.The game is at 9pm. Should they defeat NCSU, they play FSU on Friday night at 9pm. Both games could go either way.

If the Tigers cannot regroup from the inconsistencies they demonstrated on Sunday, they will have an early exit. If they can take advantage of the neutral court site, where they have already had some success this season against UNC-Greensboro.

And as I said in November, hopefully, the UNCG game will help the Tigers prepare for the ACC tournament.

OP said this of the Tigers' focus going into the ACC tournament, 
"We don't need to think about the ACC title, we don't need to think about the NCAA first-round game or any of that stuff - we've got to get our focus squarely on N.C. State. If you win a couple, then you can change your mindset."

Despite the bloodied eye, Trevor Booker was named to the All ACC 1st team.
I don't feel the need to delve into his performance or lack thereof against Wake on Sunday. The refs clearly were letting them play down low. Booker needed to take advantage of this a little more.

I know he didn't get any calls, just a bloody eye.

From @TBook35 A Busted Eye...but no foul

That pretty much sums up the ACC season game against Wake.

The awards have been announced and everyone's favorite Terp is the ACC player of the year. And the Gary Williams is the Coach of the year. I can live with that, but that doesn't mean I have to like it.

Here is an interactive 2010 ACC Men's Basketball Tournament Bracket from The ACC:

The ACC tournament starts Today

from the Greenville News

I don't know if today's game counts as a home game for GT or not. They have no reason avoid playing at the top of their game. And for as bad as GT has been this year, they have several big, strong athletes. No team preview is necessary. The Tigers just need to win.

Right now, the line on the Tigers is -9.5.

Here is a Raymond Sykes profile
Tigers welcome a long ACC tourney stay
Tigers eye Shiny ending in ACC

The ACC Record Book is posted online for the first time by the ACC

If you sign up now, you can sign-up for FREE Fantasy ACC Basketball challenge- you have only about four hours.


I am going to have to figure out a way to skip out of work early today.

Go Tigers!

Clemson vs. Illinois in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge

Tomorrow marks the return of the ACC-Big Ten Challenge for the Tigers. They will be playing at Illinois. Watch the videos below to see OP and Trevor Booker discuss the upcoming game- both from the Greenville News.

The game will be nationally broadcast on ESPN2.
Follow the Game Stats here, complete with charts, graphs, etc.
You can listen to the Clemson radio broadcast on WCCP-FM.

And from the land of the Big Ten, here are four reasons the Illini will supposedly win the game. This is from an Illini fan website.

1. Clemson's lack of size: Booker is their biggest guy at 240, but he's not terribly tall at 6-7. Sykes, their center, is only 6-9 220. If we have two of Tisdale, Semrau, and Keller in the game, we have a considerable size advantage. Their guards, who shoot well, aren't particularly big. The only interesting match up is Rivers, who has length and is willing to shoot from outside. I could see either Brock matching up nicely against him.
They clearly underestimate Booker's size, ability, and drive this year. It is easy to average so many assists when you run three guards and two forwards.

2. Clemson has not played particularly well on the road or at neutral cites: two non-home games this year have been narrow wins against average (at best) opponents. They were able to hold off Temple for a 76-72 victory after Temple was down but climbed back to within 2 in the last couple minutes of the game. In their only game outside their home state, Clemson beat Charlotte by 1 point (71-70). Again, Clemson was up but saw the lead dwindle as the home team made a run. These two games were Clemson's lowest two point totals, leading me to believe that their shooting numbers drop away from home. Assembly Hall will certainly be the toughest environment they've played in this year.
I concede. This will be a difficult away game. I guess the best they can do is pretend the Orange is Clemson Orange.

3. They are 241st in the country in turn-overs: They avg. 14.1A and 16.4 TO per contest, compared to our 19.2A and 13.2TO. It's tough to win on the road when you don't protect the ball well.
I think our athleticism will match up with theirs nicely.What about rebounds, ppg, etc, etc.

4. Defense: Clemson lost their two best defensive players last year in Cliff Hammands [sic] and James Mayes [sic]. They use a full press defensive scheme, but it's tough to do that well when you lose your two best defenders. If Temple and Charlotte can drop 70+ on them, I feel we can too.
Yes, but we will drop 80+ on you. If Rivers is on tomorrow and Oglesby brings the outside game. Things won't be so easy for the Illini.

You can follow the Illini sentiments on the following sites:
InsideIllini.com- use your scout.com id here.
or
Illinilloyalty





Go Tigers!

Trevor Booker named ACC co-player of the week

On the heels of Booker's beastly performance this past weekend in Charleston, averaging 13 points, 13.7 rebounds, and 3 blocked shots per game, junior Trevor Booker was named ACC men's co-player of the week, along with Kyle Singler.

Yes, the season is young and the competition is just starting. However, the Tigers showed their new look this past weekend. And the most obvious change since last season is their adaptability and ability to shoot freethrows.

Maybe KC was right. Our FT% will not be a liability, but rather an asset.

TDP shows Oliver Purnell some love with a Contract Extension

OP is signed through 2014, a two-year extension on his previous contract that will move Purnell "into the top third in overall compensation" among coaches in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Financials will be announced in the future.

Nice work TDP.

You saw what needed to be done and you made it happen. OP is the classiest coach in the ACC. And beyond that, he wants to be here. He wants to make and leave his mark at Clemson. His contract extension signals an epic shift in Clemson Athletics. No longer is it acceptable to be just a good football school.

"We’re in the process of breaking the cycle here, but we’ve got to have a great leader to be able to do that," TDP said. "And we’ve got a great leader."

This widens the scope of the university and makes Clemson relevant beyond just the Southeast.

Congratulations OP!

Go Tigers!

Clemson post-loss performances

Our first loss of the season came to Ole Miss in PR. Both the Rebels and the Tigers were undefeated. We followed that loss with two wins against Samford on 12/29 and Alabama on 01/01.

Our only consecutive losses of the season came after the first loss to UNC on 1/6, followed by Charlotte on 1/9.
The second loss was almost expected, as we had just lost on a last second shot to Ellington. We were tired and unprepared.

The Charlotte loss was followed by two wins, FSU on 01/12, and NCSU on 01/15.

Our next loss came to Duke on 1/19, which we followed with a win against Wake on 01/22.
This marks the only time, save the first UNC loss, that we didn't follow with at least two wins after a loss, as we lost to Miami on 01/27.

The final games after the loss to Miami were as follows:
W; BC, 02/02
W; UVA, 02/07
L; @UNC, 02/10
W; GT, 02/14
W; NCSU, 02/16
L; FSU, 02/19
W; Miami, 02/17
W; Maryland, 03/02
L; GT, 03/06
W; VT, 03/09
W; BC, 03/14
W; Duke, 03/15
L; UNC, 03/ 16
?
?
?

So, except for the initial losses to UNC and Duke, we have performed fairly well after a loss. The brackets shape up well for us to do so again.

Stitt: Mr. Basketball- NC

VH- You're out. Time to move on with the new. I thought this deserved a post after I boycotted blogging the NIT.

I know I shouldn't, but I did. Anyway, get ready. The OP will only be updating on a need-to-know basis for the remainder of the year. When late October/ early November comes around, it will be on.


Thanks.

Go Tigers.

Clemson Basketball: Survives the Miami Hurricane

Clemson Athletic Website

• Firstly, congratulations on a much needed victory last night. Senior VH should be proud of his ten points and his rescue of the victory, his own senior night, and hopefully the resuscitation of the team.
  
• Secondly, we are not out of the NCAA tournament of tournaments yet. But we could be shortly if we don't win at VT and at least one in the new, Fla-centric TampACC tournament. A loss in either situation means, hopefully, NIT. Of this, VH said, "I don't want to play another home game. It'd be nice to travel somewhere," referring to the NIT top seeded teams playing at home. Down with the NIT.
• Thirdly, Sam Perry only played three minutes. It seems his shirt did not get in the way while he was on the bench. Take a look at his line:

Sam Perry...   0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 2 0 0 1 0 0 3

The only non-zeroes correspond to the following: 2, fouls; 1, turnovers; 3, minutes played. Well, Mr. Energy, you should have listened to me. Just think of the mobility and free range of motion you could have without the shirt. Your line might look more respectable.

Keep this in mind, dear Tigers. Now get ready for VT and the TampACC tournament.

Go Tigers!