Clemson Tops ODU For Cox Communications Classic Title

Nov. 12, 2006

NORFOLK, Va. (AP) – Vernon Hamilton scored 13 and Clemson beat a charging Old Dominion 74-70 Sunday night to win the Cox Communications Classic.

It was a homecoming for Clemson coach Oliver Purnell, a former Hall of Famer and coach at Old Dominion.

Cliff Hammonds added 12 for Clemson (3-0), and Sam Perry, Trevor Booker and K.C. Rivers each had 10.

Valdas Vasylius led Old Dominion (2-1) with 16, followed by Brandon Johnson with 15, Drew Williamson with 13 and Arnaud Dabi with 12.

Clemson led by 12 with 3:27 left to play, but the Monarchs scored seven straight over the next minute to bring it to 67-62. Abdi Lidonde’s 3-pointer brought Old Dominion to within three with 20 seconds left, but it was as close as they could get.

Clemson shot 50 percent on the night to just 37.3 percent for the Monarchs. The Tigers also won out in the paint, outscoring Old Dominion 37-28, and outrebounded the Monarchs 47-34.

Old Dominion took advantage of 21 Clemson turnovers, scoring 26 points compared to 12 for the Tigers.