Thursday 01/25/2001
Raycom / Jefferson Pilot
Jan. 25, 2001
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Virginia holds a 56-43 advantage in the series with Clemson, a series that dates to 1936 when Clemson won at Charlottesville, 45-34. That was the only meeting between the two teams prior to the formation of the ACC. Since 1955 Clemson and Virginia have met at least twice per season.
Virginia has won each of the last two meetings (both last year), but the teams have split the last 10 games. Clemson had won four in a row over Virginia in Littlejohn Coliseum by an average of 14 points prior to last year’s 98-91 win by the Cavaliers. That includes Clemson’s impressive 88-65 win in 1998-99, Larry Shyatt’s first year as Clemson head coach.
The Tigers don’t fare well in close games against Virginia. In fact, in the last 22 years, regardless of site, Clemson is 2-15 against the Cavaliers in games decided by five points or less. That includes six straight losses since a 65-62 Clemson win at Clemson in 1988, a game that was won on a baseline jumper by Elden Campbell in the last five seconds of the game.
For a period of time the series featured many close games. In the 1980s, 11 games were decided by five points or less, including nine that were decided by two or one point. In the 1990s, just five were decided by five or less.
University Hall has been a building of horrors for Clemson the last 22 years. Clemson has a 3-19 record in the building since 1979 and all three wins have come in special seasons. Clemson has a 17-15 lead in games played at Littlejohn Coliseum, however, and a 28-18 lead in games played on the Clemson campus.
Last year vs. Virginia Virginia 98, Clemson 91 January 15, 2000 at Clemson
Virginia held off the scoring of Will Solomon in gaining a 98-91 win over Clemson at Littlejohn Coliseum on January 15. Solomon scored 43 points, most by a Clemson player in 30 years, but it was not enough. Chris Williams and Donald Hand each had 18 points to lead Virginia, who nearly became the first team to score 100 points against the Tigers in six years.
Solomon made 14-21 shots from the field overall, including a career high tying 8-12 three-point shots. He added 7-10 free throws and had nine rebounds. Solomon had 14 points in the first half and 29 in the second. Pasha Bains and Adam Allenspach added 16 apiece for the Tigers, who scored 59 points in the second half on 60 percent shooting.
Turnovers were the big story for the Tigers, who played without starting point guard Edward Scott and reserve guard Dustin Braddick. Clemson had 25 turnovers compared to just eight for Virginia. Clemson won the battle of the boards by 18 (48-30) thanks to a career high 12 rebounds by Chucky Gilmore, and made 11-20 three-point shots, 55 percent.
Virginia led just 27-23 with 7:40 to go in the first half when the visitors went on a 23-9 run to end the first half. That included a 13-2 run to end the first half. Colin Ducharne and Stephane Dondon had a pair of field goals apiece during the run.
Virginia moved the lead to 22 at 64-42 just five minutes into the second half. Pasha Bains and Will Solomon then got Clemson back into the game with some outside shooting. First, Clemson cut the margin to 10 at 76-66 with five minutes left. Andrius Jurkunas then made it a five point game with 3:36 left on a three-point goal from the top of the key. It was a four-point game at 89-85 on a layup by Solomon with 50 seconds left. But the Cavs would not miss at the foul line. They were 26-32 from the line for the game, including 7-7 by freshmen Majestic Mapp and Stephane Dondon off the bench in the last five minutes.
Virginia 76, Clemson 62 Feb. 15, 2000 at Charlottesville Virginia used balance scoring and jumped to a 17-point lead in the first half, and defeated Clemson 76-62 in Charlottesville. Donald Hand scored 21 points and had six assists to lead Virginia, while Chris Williams added 16. Adam Hall scored 10 points and did a solid defensive job on Will Solomon, who scored 13 points on 4-13 shooting. He had scored 43 points against Virginia in the previous meeting, a game that Hall missed.
Clemson was led in scoring by Adam Allenspach, who had a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds. It was his first extended performance since suffering a back injury at Duke. Ray Henderson had nine points and eight rebounds. Clemson won the battle of the boards, 39-31, but committed 19 turnovers and shot just 2-12 on three-point shots.
Shyatt, Gillen Both Coached at Providence Larry Shyatt and Pete Gillen have a common school in their history. Both coached with the Providence Friars. Shyatt was an assistant under Rick Barnes from 1988-94 and was on the staff that won the only Big East Tournament Championship in the school’s history. Gillen was the head coach at Providence after Barnes left and took the Friars to the Final Eight of the NCAA Tournament two years ago. Gillen ended up coaching many of the players Shyatt had recruited to Providence, including first-round draft choice Austin Croshere.
Solomon’s 41-Point Game, 5th best in the Nation Will Solomon’s 41-point scoring game against Georgia Tech on January 24 ranks in a tie for the fifth highest scoring game in the nation this year. The top figure is the 44-point outing by Okechi Egbe of Tennessee-Martin against Bethel on November 20th. There have been two 43-point games and one 42-point outing across the country this year at the Division I level.
Four other players have had a 41-point outing this season. It was the highest scoring game by an ACC player this year, the second year in a row Solomon can make that claim. He had a 43-point game against Virginia last year on January 15th.
Solomon’s 41-point Outing Sixth Best in Clemson History Will Solomon’s 41-point scoring game against Georgia Tech was the sixth highest scoring performance in Clemson history. It was just the seventh game of 40 points or more by a Tiger player dating to 1912, the first year of Clemson basketball. Solomon, Bill Yarborough and Butch Zatezalo now each have two 40-point scoring games apiece.
Solomon is the only Clemson player since 1970 to have a 40-point scoring game. Butch Zatezalo was the last player before Solomon to do it.
Solomon made 13-22 shots from the field, 7-12 three-point attempts and 8-9 from the foul line in his 41-point game against Tech. He played all 40 minutes. The native of East Hartford, CT scored 26 points in the first half when he made 8-12 from the field, including 6 of his first 7.
J.O. Erwin has the Clemson single game scoring record with 58 points in just the second game in Clemson basketball history. Erwin had 29 field goals for 58 total points in Clemson’s 78-6 win that afternoon. It was actually the second game of the day for Erwin and the Tigers. Earlier at Furman, Erwin had 22 points in a win over Furman. Thus, he scored 80 points that day, the reason Clemson has a single day scoring record that is different from its single game scoring record in the Clemson basketball press guide.
Solomon on Hot Streak Will Solomon has scored 71 points over his last two games. He scored 30 at Wake Forest on January 21 and 41 against Virginia on January 24th. His shooting stats breakdown to 22-39 on overall field goals (.564), 12-23 on three-point shots (.522) and 15-18 on free throw shooting (.833) for the two games combined. The 71 points scored in consecutive games is a high for Solomon. The record for points scored in consecutive games by a Clemson player is 81, set by Butch Zatezalo during the 1968-69 season.
Zatezalo, scored 35 against North Carolina on February 15th, 1969, then scored 46 against Wake Forest on Feb. 18, 1969. He followed that with 25 against Maryland on Feb. 23, 1969, giving him 106 for a three-game period. That is the three-game record, so Solomon would have to scored 37 against Virginia to break the three-game mark.
Solomon Career Scoring Average 6th in Clemson History With his recent scoring burst, Will Solomon has moved to seventh in Clemson history on the points per game chart. Solomon has averaged at least 20 points a game over the last two years to raise his average to 15.33 for his 82-game career. He moved ahead of Elden Campbell on a per game basis with his 41-point scoring binge against Georgia Tech.
Solomon now ranks second among players who played during an era of freshman eligibility. Bill Yarborough is the only player who played four years that is above Solomon. All the others were not eligible until their sophomore years under NCAA rules during the 1953-73 period. (Note that Randy Mahaffey played part of a fourth season, but red-shirted due to injury).
Solomon has moved to 16th in Clemson history in total points scored (1257), second in career three-point goals (184), third in three-point goals per game (2.24), eighth in three-point percentage (.372), eighth in 20-point games (27), and seventh in scoring average.
Solomon Outstanding vs. Ranked Teams Will Solomon has been outstanding against top flight competition this year. In six games against top 20 teams he has scored 155 points, a 25.8 average. In those six games he has shot 49 percent from the field, 47.3 percent on three-point attempts and 81.8 percent from the foul line. All those figures are better than his stats against unranked teams. Solomon has five games of at least 30 points this year and four of them have come against Top 20 teams.
In his most recent outing against a ranked team, Solomon scored 30 points at ninth-ranked Wake Forest. He made 9-17 shots from the field, 5-11 on three-point shots and 7-9 from the foul line. He also added three rebounds and three steals. Earlier this year he scored 31 against a 10th ranked Seton Hall team, 32 against a 20th ranked Cincinnati team and 32 against a 17th ranked Maryland team. In the Seton Hall game he scored those 31 points in just 30 minutes.
Solomon Improved over Last Year Clemson guard Will Solomon was named first-team All-ACC last year as a sophomore, the first Clemson guard to be named first team in 20 years, the first sophomore or freshman to earn first-team honors from Clemson in 25 years. Based on his production so far this year, he will again be a strong candidate for the honor. No Clemson player in history has ever been first-team All-ACC in two different seasons.
Solomon has shown improvement in just about every area this year, including scoring and all three of the shooting percentages. He has done it while playing less time (36 minutes a game last year to 34.5 minutes a game this year). Additionally, his assist/turnover ratio is improved. As he did last year, his stats in ACC games are better than in non-conference games.
Solomon Had 6 Straight 20-point Games Clemson guard Will Solomon scored at least 20 points in six consecutive games between December 20 to January 2. The junior from East Hartford, CT averaged 26.2 points a game during the six games. The streak was stopped at Duke when he was held to 13 points by 6-6 Blue Devil forward Nate James.
Solomon talled 32 points in two of the games in the streak, both against ranked opponents. He had 32 in an eight-point loss to 20th ranked Cincinnati and also had 32 in Clemson’s 12-point loss to 17th-ranked Maryland. Playing well against top opposition is nothing new for Solomon. Last year he had a higher scoring average in ACC games than in non-conference contests.
Solomon’s streak of six consecutive 20-point games was the longest since Horace Grant had six straight during the 1986-87 season, the year he became Clemson’s only ACC MVP. Grant’s streak was stopped by North Carolina when he scored 19. The Clemson record for consecutive 20-point games is 19, held by the late Bill Yarborough. He scored at least 20 in the last three games of 1953-54 and the first 16 of the 1954-55 season. Yarborough averaged 28.3 points a game in 1954-55 and scored at least 20 in every game. His only non-20 point game was an 18-point outing.
Solomon has already established one Clemson streak record this year. He has scored in double figures in 48 straight games, every game last year and all 18 games he has played so far this season. He has a streak of 23 straight ACC games in double figures.The previous mark was by Vince Yockel, who had 36 in a row over two seasons in the 1950s. Solomon’s current 48-game streak is the longest active streak in the ACC. The ACC record book does not have a listing for consecutive games of double figure scoring. North Carolina’s Larry Miller had a 64-game streak in the 1960s.
Former Tiger Saves Nearly 400 Lives Will be Honored Saturday at Virginia Game Former Clemson forward Clarke Bynum was in the national news on December 30. The native of Sumter, SC saved the lives of 379 passengers on a British Airways flight from London to Nairobi, Kenya. Bynum, asleep two rows from the cockpit, was jolted awake when the plane went into a nosedive. The pilots were screaming for help and Bynum came to the rescue.
He wrestled a madman to the floor, allowing the pilots to straighten out the plane. The man apparently wanted to kill himself and everyone in the plane. Later, the pilots told Bynum the plane was just three seconds from crashing. Bynum, 39, is an insurance agent and was traveling to Uganda with a small interdenominational organization called the African Christian Trust Service.
Bynum’s heroics were documented in USA Today and other national news agencies and he was interviewed by Good Morning America and the Today Show.
Bynum lettered four seasons for the Tigers from 1980-84. He started 23 games and played in 92 games overall for his career. He averaged 5.0 points and 2.1 rebounds, shot 73 percent from the foul line and 45 percent from the field. He started the first nine games of the 1980-81 season, a Clemson team that finished the year with 20 wins and an NIT bid. He was named ACC Rookie of the Week for the last week of the regular season that year, then scored 14 points in the NIT game against Temple. He had his best game as a Tiger against Austin Peay on December 2, 1981 when he had 18 points, eight rebounds and eight assists.
Bynum played his best basketball for Clemson during the team’s eight-games in the FIBA International World Cup in Spain in the summer of 1981. He averaged a team best 20 points per game and shot 58 percent from the field for the tournament. He scored 30 points against tournament champion Real Madrid.
Bynum will be honored by Clemson on Saturday, prior to the Clemson vs. Virginia game.
Last Time Out Georgia Tech 111, Clemson 108 Will Solomon scored 41 points, the sixth highest single game and just the seventh 40-point scoring game in school history, but it was not enough as Georgia Tech outlasted Clemson 111-108 on January 24 at Clemson’s Littlejohn Coliseum. Clemson fell to 10-9 overall, 1-5 in the ACC, while Tech won its second ACC road game of the year and improved to 11-7 overall.
Clemson was playing without starting center Adam Allenspach, who missed his second straight game with a back ailment, and starting point guard Edward Scott, who missed the game with a case of the flu.
Alvin Jones had perhaps his finest all-around game at Tech as the senior had 26 points, seven rebounds and six assists in 30 minutes. Jones, a 61.5 percent free throw shooter entering the game, made 14-19 from the foul line for Tech. He was supported by Shaun Fein, who made 7-9 three-point shots and scored 23 in just 25 minutes. Halston Lane scored 17 points in just 21 minutes off the bench to provide support.
Both teams shot over 50 percent from the field overall and from three-point land. Both teams scored at least 50 points in each half. Tech made 17-31 three-point shots, a school record for three-point goals in a game, while Clemson made 14-28, the third most made three-point goals in Clemson history. The Tigers made 34-42 from the foul line, including 14 in a row to open the game, and 81 percent for the game. It was just the second time since 1969 that Clemson made 34 free throws, yet lost the game.
Tony Stockman supported Solomon with 20 points and six assists. He scored 18 points in the second half. Pasha Bains scored 12 points, all in the second half, on a perfect 4-4 shooting night. Starting center Ray Henderson added 12 points, including a career best 6-6 from the foul line.
Both teams scored in bunches. Tech scored 36 points in the first 10 minutes and had a 14-point lead. It was a 16-point lead at 48-32 at the 6:12 mark on a three-point shot by Lane. Tech made 13 of 20 three-point goals in the first half alone, but the Tigers scored 23 points in the last 7:21 to get within six at intermission. Solomon scored 26 points in the first half for the Tigers, but he could not counteract the three-point shooting by Tech. The Yellow Jackets had five different players made at least two three-point goals in the first half alone.
Clemson again fell behind by 16 in the second half, first at 92-76, then by a 97-81 score with 6:49 left. But, Clemson scored 27 points in the last 6:42 of the game. A Pasha Bains three-point goal with 1:23 left cut the margin to 105-104. It was 110-108 with 25 seconds left when Clemson got the ball back with a chance to tie, but Will Solomon’s jumper missed. Solomon had a three-pointer to tie with five seconds left, but the shot missed and Tech held on.
Clemson saw both of its top big men, Ray Henderson and Chris Hobbs, foul out, but Clemson still won the rebound battle, 36-27. Dustin Braddick had six rebounds to lead Clemson, four offensive. Tech scored 111 points, but starting point guard Tony Akins did not score before he fouled out.
Hobbs Pulling in the Rebounds Clemson freshman Chris Hobbs has taken over the team lead in total rebounds this year with 110. He had 13 at Wake Forest, his second highest total of the year. He had 15 in a game against The Citadel earlier this year, most by a Clemson freshman in five years. He has jumped ahead of Adam Allenspach in terms of total rebounds, but Allenspach, limited by a back injury, still has the per game lead.
Hobbs has been on a rebounding surge of late, he has led Clemson in that area in four of the last six games, all against ACC competition. He is now averaging 7.3 rebounds per league game, one of the top seven averages in league play.
How productive has Hobbs been when it comes to carom collecting? When comparing Hobbs against the great Clemson rebounders in history his freshman rebounds per minute figure stands second only to Tree Rollins. Rollins grabbed a rebound every 2.52 minutes his freshman season (1973-74), while Hobbs gets one every 2.82 minutes. Hobbs is ahead of the freshman pace set by such greats as Dale Davis, Elden Campbell, Horace Grant, Sharone Wright and Larry Nance.
His father, Greg Hobbs, is a videographer for Duke Medical Center. In his spare time, he has served as a videographer for Coach Mike Krzyzewski’s television show. Many times Chris tagged a long to watch the game. Both of his parents are North Carolina graduates.
Clemson Three-Point Shooting Improved Clemson is much improved this year when it comes to the perimeter aspect of the game. The Tigers are shooting 37.4 percent on three-point shots and limiting teams to 33 percent in that same category. Clemson is averaging 8.47 three-point goals per game, above the previous record rate of 7.06 per game set in 1993-94. They are shooting and making more threes and doing it at the third best percentage in school history.
Clemson’s 1986-87 team made 203 of 453 three-point attempts, a .448 figure, still by far the Clemson record and still the ACC mark for that category. Clemson’s 1991-92 team made 38.2 percent and the current 36.5 figure is third.
Leading the way in terms of three-point shooting is Will Solomon, who has made 65 three-point goals in 18 games, 3.61 per game. Solomon’s 3.61 per game figure is ahead of the 3.34 per game by Clemson’s entire team in 1989-90, the Tiger squad that won the school’s only ACC regular season championship.
Group Tickets on Sale The Clemson University Athletic Department Ticket Office is offering a limited number of group tickets for the following Men’s ACC Basketball games at $5.00 each. The minimum amount to order is twenty (20) per game. All group tickets are located in the Upper Arena of Littlejohn Coliseum.
What Clemson has Done Well
Where Clemson has Struggled
Clifton Showing Improvement After scoring just seven points in the first six games of the season, freshman forward Dwon Clifton has scored 68 in the last 12 games. That includes consecutive games of nine points. He had nine on 4-6 shooting in the win over NC State, then had nine points on 3-4 shooting at North Carolina. The native of Louisburg, NC has made 10 of his last 20 shots from the field, including five of his last eight three-points. Clifton has just four turnovers in his last 113 minutes of play.
Clifton had a highlight at the end of the North Carolina game when he had a rebound dunk after a running start from the foul line. The play was listed as the sixth best highlight of the day on ESPN/s SportsCenter.
Henderson Productive Rebounder Ray Henderson has stepped up his game of late, especially when it comes to rebounding. His playing time has increased due to the back problems that Adam Allenspach is dealing with at this time. The native of Charlotte, NC has collected 44 rebounds in his last six games, 7.3 per outing and all have come against ACC opponents.Henderson had a career high 13 rebounds at Duke in just 19 minutes, he followed that with 10 rebounds in the win over NC State. He added eight rebounds in just 23 minutes at North Carolina and seven in 29 minutes at Wake Forest. For the year, Henderson has 97 points and 90 rebounds.
For the season, Henderson is shooting a team best 56 percent from the field. He has made his last eight free throws, including 6-6 against Georgia Tech when he scored 12 points in 22 minutes.
Clemson’s Last Victory Clemson 72, NC State 69 Will Solomon scored 29 points, including 25 in the second half and all seven of Clemson’s points in the final 2:41, leading the Tigers to a 72-69 win over NC State on January 13. The victory was the first of the season in conference play for the Tigers, who have now won five of six against the Wolfpack. The win was the 10th of the year for the Tigers, equalling the win total of last last year for Larry Shyatt’s team.
Clemson improved dramatically on defense in its win over NC State. The Tigers had given up 219 points in their first two ACC games and had allowed 54 percent shooting. But, Clemson held the Pack to 29.9 percent shooting, tying for the best field goal percentage defense of the year, and best in an ACC game since February of 1998 when Florida State shot just 26.8 percent against the Tigers in Tallahassee.
Solomon scored 25 of Clemson’s 43 second-half points, but he did have significant support from his teammates. Freshman forward Chris Hobbs had a double-double, accumulating 10 points, 11 rebounds and three assists in 28 minutes. Ray Henderson, who started at center in place of the injured Adam Allenspach, had 10 rebounds and eight points in 26 minutes. Edward Scott had 10 points and just two turnovers in 38 minutes running the point. Dwon Clifton had nine points on 4-6 shooting in 22 minutes.
Scott was a key on defense, holding Anthony Grundy, NC State’s top scorer and a 49 percent field goal shooter, to 6-27 shooting. Damien Wilkins shot just 1-10 against the Clemson defense. Kenny Inge led the Pack with 19 points and 12 rebounds. The Pack made just 20-67 shots from the field, 8-32 on three-point goals. They entered the game shooting 42.5 percent on three-pointers. State played without Archie Miller, who was leading the nation in three-point percentage (.620) entering the contest.
The game was close throughout with few scoring runs. Over the first 35 minutes of the game the largest lead for either team was six points. The Pack had a 42-36 lead at the 16:05 mark when Kenny Inge made a conventional three-point play. The Tigers then went on a 20-8 run to take a 56-50 lead with 7:34 to play. Clemson expanded the lead to 60-52 at 5:53 when the Pack called timeout. Clemson’s largest lead was 65-56 with 3:22 to go.
But, NC State went on a 9-2 run, highlighted by a pair of three-point goals by Scooter Sherrill. Clemson led 71-69 with 16 seconds left, but Grundy was called for traveling with five seconds left. Solomon made one free throw and Clifford Crawford’s 40-foot three-point attempt missed at the buzzer.
Allenspach Questionable for Virginia Clemson’s only senior on the roster, Adam Allenspach, did not play in Clemson’s win over NC State. He played just seven minutes and did not score at North Carolina, then missed the Wake Forest and Georgia Tech games altogether. The 7-1 center, who has played 110 games in his Clemson career, has missed time due to inflamation of the Sacroilliac Joint (where hip meeds the spine). The problem caused back spasms and a loss of motion and mobility. He is day to day and would be classified as questionable for the Virginia game.
Allenspach had surgery this past summer to repair a herniated disk. He has been troubled by the back problems off and on since last year. He first went down due to the injury last year at Duke when he collapsed just six minutes into the game due to the pain.
Allenspach has had many highlight moments this year. He was still tied for first in the league in double-doubles with six heading into the Wake Forest game. He had four in succession until the streak came to an end against Cincinnati during a game in Puerto Rico.
Allenspach had scored 17 points and grabbed 12 rebounds vs. Wofford Dec. 16 and had 15 points and15 rebounds at South Carolina, then 20 points and 10 rebounds vs. Winthrop. The last Tiger to post four consecutive double-doubles was Sharone Wright, who last did it his sophomore year in 1992-93.
For the season, Allenspach is still third on the club in scoring and first in rebounding per game. He has averaged 10.1 points and 7.1 rebounds per contest and leads the team in blocked shots with 12. The rebounding average is still eighth in the league. For his career, he has averaged 6.6 points, 4.4 rebounds and has shot 70.1 percent from the foul line, one of the top percentages in history for a Clemson center.
Allenspach Achieved Triple Leadership at South Carolina Adam Allenspach pulled off a rare achievement in Clemson’s loss to South Carolina in December. The 7-1 center led the Tigers in scoring (15), assists (4) and rebounding (15). Leading Clemson in scoring and rebounding is not an earth shattering accomplishment for Allenspach, but adding in assists makes it an unusual accomplishment. In fact, he also led Clemson in blocked shots in the game, meaning he led the Tigers in four important categories.
Leading Clemson in all three areas in the same game is rare. Below is a list of Clemson players who have done it in the last 31 years (since assists were kept as an official stat). Terrell McIntyre did it twice in his career. Allenspach was the first to do it as a center since Sharone Wright against UT Arlington in 1993-94. David Angel is the only other center to do it and he did it twice.
Here is a list of Clemson players who have led Clemson in scoring, rebounding and assists in the same game:
Scott Running the Offense Clemson point guard Edward Scott has scored in double figures in three of his last four games and four of his last six. He has averaged 10 points a game during the six-game stretch. He has a 6.7 career average. Scott has improved his offensive production of late, hitting 10 of his last 29 three-point goals (.355) after hitting just one of his first 19 threes to open the season.
Scott has done a good job running the Clemson offense. He has 84 assists and 47 turnovers. He has already surpassed his assist total for all of last year when he had 69 assists in 789 minutes. This year he has 84 assists in 592 minutes. Overall, Scott has six double figure scoring games this year, he had five all of last year.
The native of Eastover, SC (near Columbia) has improved his assist/turnover ratio from 1.30 to 1.79 so far this year. He has had more assists than turnovers in 15 of the 18 games. He has averaged a turnover every 12.6 minutes of play so far this year, a solid figure for a point guard who plays 32 minutes per game.
Scott missed the Georgia Tech game on January 24 with a case of the flu. He should be back for the Virginia game.
Clemson Could Break Record for Ranked Opponents Clemson has played six top 20 opponents so far this year and Clemson is 0-6 in those games. But, the Tigers have played well in four of those games, having a chance to win each contest with under two minutes left. Clemson lost to 10th ranked Seton Hall 79-78 on November 21 in the second game of the season, then lost to 20th ranked Cincinnati by 88-80 on December 21 in San Juan. Maryland, ranked 17th at the time, downed the Tigers, 104-92 on January 2. Third ranked Duke defeated Clemson 115-74 on January 7. Clemson lost to sixth ranked North Carolina on January 17, by a 92-65 score. Clemson trailed Wake Forest by just five points with two minutes left before losing by eight.
Clemson had the ball for a final shot to beat Seton Hall. Clemson trailed by just two against Cincinnati with four minutes left, and by just six with two minutes left. Clemson trailed Maryland by just four (96-92) with two minutes remaining.
Playing against top flight competition will be the norm this year. The ACC is filled with top 20 teams and it appears Clemson will play at least 10 conference games against ranked teams. Combined with the two non-conference games against top 20 teams, Clemson should play 12 regular season games this year against top 20 teams. That would be a first in Clemson history if that happens.
Clemson has played 10 top 20 teams in a season four previous years. It first took place in 1979-80 when Clemson had a 6-4 record against top 20 teams on the way to a NCAA Final Eight finish. Clemson also played 10 top 20 teams in 1980-81, 1994-95 and 1996-97.
The record for most top 25 teams played in a season is 13, set in 1996-97. Clemson had a 5-8 record against ranked teams that year. That was Larry Shyatt’s last season as associate head coach at Clemson.
Clemson been known to upset ranked teams in the past. Clemson has 68 win over ranked teams (AP or USA Today/Coach’s), including at least one every year since 1986-87. Clemson had one win over a ranked team last year, a 59-42 win over 21st ranked NC State in a game played at Clemson.
Stockman Wins Paw Competition Clemson Head Coach Larry Shyatt has created an individual competition within his team that is geared toward improving the team’s overall performance. He has devised a system for earning “Tiger Paws” throughout the year. He has divided the season into three parts, pre-ACC, ACC regular season, and postseason.
Players can earn Tiger Paws by individual hustle plays, deflections, taking charges, reaching a minimum amount of rebounds, field goal shooting, three-point and free throw percentage minimums or making a game-winning play. Each member of the team receives a paw when certain team goals are reached within a game.
For the pre-ACC part of the schedule, the champion was Tony Stockman with 21 Tiger Paws. Will Solomon was second with 20, while Edward Scott had 18 and Adam Allenspach had 17. Everyone started fresh with the ACC regular season schedule.
Individual Goals in earning a Paw 1. Hustle Plays–must accumulate a total of 10 of the following in a game: first to the floor, charges taken, ball pressure deflection, steal or blocked shot.
2. Rebounding–Must have 8 rebounds for a forward or center, 4 rebounds for a wing or guard.
3. Assist/turnover ratio–Must have a 2/1 ratio for a forward or center, 3/1 for a guard or wing.
4. Shooting Percentages–Must shoot 50 percent field the field (min 4 attempts), 40 percent on three-point shots (min 3 attempts), 80 percent from the foul line (min of 3 attempts).
5. Cluch performance–Making a game winning play on offense or defense.
Stockman Scores 23, Nets ACC Honors Freshman guard Tony Stockman scored a season best 23 points in his first collegiate start on Dec. 16 against Wofford. The effort, which also included three rebounds, three assists and three steals, earned Stockman ACC Rookie of the Week honors on Dec. 18. Stockman connected on 9 of 17 shots from the field, including a 4 of 7 mark from long range. The 23 points were the most points by a Clemson freshman since Terrell McIntyre scored 29 points in a home win over Florida State on Feb. 17, 1996.
Stockman had another 20 point game in his first ACC start. He tallied 20 points, including 10-12 from the foul line in the 111-108 loss to Georgia Tech. He scored 18 points in the second half.
Stockman has shown an ability to score in the clutch. Against Charleston Southern, he scored 14 of the Tigers final 23 points, including six points in the final five minutes of play. Stockman ranks second on the Clemson team in that stat. In games decided by 10 points or less, he has scored a total of 24 points in the final five minutes of those games, second to Will Solomon’s 31.
For the year, Stockman is second on the team in scoring with a 12.4 average, even though he has played just 25 minutes per game. His 43 three-point goals rank second on the Clemson team and is second best by any freshman in Clemson history. His 82.6 percent free throw shooting is best.
Stockman is having the best season by a Clemson freshman guard since Terrell McIntyre in 1995-96. In some ways, Stockman’s stats are even better. And, he has averaged six less minutes per game than McIntrye played as a freshman.
Freshmen of Influence Clemson’s freshman class for the 2000-01 season was ranked among the best in the nation. It has certainly had an impact on this year’s team. Tony Stockman is second on the club in scoring with a 12.4 average, including a 22-point outing at Duke on January 7. He had 20 points against Georgia Tech, his fifth 20-point game of the season. Stockman’s 12.4 average is best among freshmen in the ACC. Stockman has 43 three-point goals so far this season, already second best in history by a Clemson freshman. Andrius Jurkunas has the record with 51 in 1995-96.
Chris Hobbs has four double-doubles so far this year fifth in the ACC in that area. The freshman from Chapel Hill has averaged 6.1 rebounds per game, second in the league among freshmen. His .500 field goal percentage is also second on the team. He had a double-double in his first ACC game, 11 points and 10 rebounds against Maryland on January 2. He had another against an ACC opponent in the win over NC State on January 13. His 15 rebounds in the win over The Citadel were the most by a Clemson freshman since Tom Wideman had 17 at NC State in 1995-96.
Finally, Dwon Clifton, a freshman from Louisburg, NC, has moved into the starting lineup. He is averaging 3.9 points and 2.8 rebounds per game. He is a capable rebounder, as his 12 rebounds against Washington showed this year. He had a season high nine pointson 4-6 shooting in the win over NC State. He added nine points in the game at North Carolina.
Free Throw Shooting at a 14-year High One area of improvement for Clemson this year is free throw shooting. The Tigers have made 71.5 percent from the foul line this year. Clemson has not been a good free throw shooting team over the years. In fact, no Clemson team has bettered 70 percent over a season since 1986-87 when Horace Grant was a senior, helping the Tigers to a 71.6 percentage. The closest Clemson has come to a 70 percent season from the line was 1994-95 when the Tigers finished at .696. Clemson has made at least two thirds of its free throws just four of the last 13 seasons.
If the season ended today, Clemson’s .715 figure would be the best since the 1986-87 season and the ninth best in history. The Clemson record for free throw shooting took place in 1981-82 when Bill Foster’s Tigers made .734 of their free throws.
Clemson has had balance from the line this year. Tony Stockman leads the way with an 82 percent mark, while Will Solomon is at 80. Freshman center Chris Hobbs, who gets to the line often, has made .714 from the line. Edward Scott is at 79 percent. Center Adam Allenspach, a 74 percent shooter from the line last year, is a 66.1 so far this year.
No Clemson team in history has ever led the ACC in free throw shooting. Clemson has made at least 80 percent from the line in each of its last two games, majing 51 of 62.
Clemson Offensive Numbers Up The Tigers are trying to run a more up-tempo offense this season, and are averaging 79 points per game this year, up from the 64.4 scoring average of last year. Clemson has not averaged at least 79 points a game since the 1989-90 season when Clemson’s only ACC championship team in history averaged 79.3 a game.
The 108 points Clemson scored against Georgia Tech was the most points scored by a Clemson team since December 1, 1993 when the Tigers scored 120 in the 120-103 win over Charleston Southern. The 108 points scored in the loss to Tech was the most points in history in a Clemson loss.
Clemson has scored at least 80 points in nine games this year, including three in a row at one point. Clemson reached the 80 point mark just twice all of last year and just eight times in 35 games Shyatt’s first season at Clemson.
So far this year Clemson has three players averaging in double figures. Clemson had just two games all of last year in which they had four players score in double figures. Will Solomon and Adam Allenspach were Clemson’s only two players to average in double figures last year. Solomon and Allenspach are joined by freshman Tony Stockman in double figures this season. The Tigers had at least three players score in double digits in every game this season up until the Washington game when only Solomon and Allenspach scored more than 10 points. The Tigers got back on track vs. Charleston Southern with four players in double figures. Clemson has had eight games in which four players have scored in double figures. That happened just twice all of last year.
Clemson’s shooting percentage is 44 percent, up from 40.4 last year.
Clemson has Shown Comeback Ability Clemson has shown an ability to comeback from large deficits so far this year. In fact, in consecutive victories on December 28-30, Clemson overcame deficits of at least 15 points to gain victory. That is the first time in history Clemson has been down 15 at some point, then gained victory in consecutive games.
The Tigers trailed Charleston Southern 24-9 on December 28, then rallied for an 87-77 win. Two days later at Coastal Carolina, Clemson trailed 37-19 in the first half, and 41-28 at intermission. Clemson won that contest 81-68. Clemson has play-by-plays on a consistent basis back to the 1977-78 season. That was the third best Clemson comeback on record, topped only by a 20-point comeback against The Citadel in 1978-79 and a 19-point comeback in the NCAA Tournament against LaSalle in 1990.
Seven times since the 1977-78 season Clemson has overcome a 15-point deficit to gain victory. Two of the seven have taken place this season, and they were executed just 48 hours apart.
In four other games this year Clemson has trailed by double digits, then rallied to take the lead or come within two points late in the game before losing.
Clemson was six points down in the second half against NC State, then came back to win by three points.
Shyatt to Coach in Maccabiah Games Clemson Head Coach Larry Shyatt has been selected to coach the United States team in the 2001 Maccabiah Games in Israel. The games will be held next July 7-27. Shyatt has already started his preparation for the Games and had an August camp in New York for prospective players, who will mainly be players of Jewish heritage from college programs at all NCAA levels. The team will hold a pre-tournament camp at Clemson this summer prior to going to Israel. For more information on the team and the tournament, contact Andy Solomon at The Citadel. He will be the press officer for the team for the event.
Shyatt is in his third year as Clemson’s head coach, his fourth as a Division I head coach overall. He led Wyoming to a 19-9 record and the NIT in 1997-98. In his first year at Clemson he took the Tigers to the NIT Championship game, a first in Clemson history. The Tigers won 20 games that year and Shyatt became just the fourth coach in ACC history to win 20 games in his first year at a league school. Last year Clemson had a 10-20 record. Six players missed a combined 26 games due to injury during last year.
Shyatt has coached the ACC scoring champion each of his two years at Clemson. Terrell McIntyre led the league with a 17.9 average in 1998-99, then Will Solomon paced the conference with a 20.9 mark last year. Solomon continues to lead the league this year. Shyatt is in his second tour of duty at Clemson. He was Rick Barnes top assistant from 1994-95 through the 1996-97 season. His last year he helped the Tigers to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament and a #8 final national ranking in the USA Today poll, the highest final ranking in Clemson history.
Gilmore Has Torn ACL, Will Miss Season Starting Clemson forward Chucky Gilmore sustained a torn ACL on his right knee during a workout on Aug. 28. Examination by Clemson physicians revealed that Gilmore must have surgery to repair the injury. It is the second injury sustained by Gilmore since the end of last season. He sprained his medial collateral ligament on his left knee in May while playing in a pickup game in his hometown of Fayetteville, NC.
Gilmore, a 6-8 forward, started 23 games and played in 27 of Clemson’s 30 contests a year ago. He averaged 3.7 points and 6.1 rebounds per game last year. The rebound average was second best on the Clemson team.
Clemson Announces Four Men’s Basketball Signees Clemson Head Coach Larry Shyatt announced the signing of four players to national letters of intent during the early signing period. The Clemson newcomers for the 2001-02 season include Sharrod Ford, a 6-9, 210-pound forward from Accokeek, MD, Olu Babalola, a 6-6, 245-pound forward from London, England, Chey Christie, a 6-4, 170-pound wing player from Biloxi, MS, and 6-10 Steve Allen, a center from Fort Lauderdale, FL.
“We are excited to add these quality players to our program,” said Shyatt, who is in his third year as Clemson’s Head Coach. “We covered some important needs. It is a balanced class with one player at each area of the team. This gives us back-to back top 20 recruiting classes and gives us some depth as we look to the future.” Hoop Scoop currently ranks Clemson’s class as #11 in the country.
Christie is the brother of former Clemson starting forward Tony Christie. One of the top scorers in the state of Mississippi, he is currently at Biloxi High School in Biloxi, MS. He opened his senior season with a 30-point game. Last year as a junior, Christie averaged 25.4 points and 7.1 rebounds per game. He shot 55 percent from the field and 78 percent from the foul line. He is ranked as the 37th best player in the nation according to Hoop Scoop.
Babalola is a native of London, England, but is playing at St. Augustine Prep in Richland, NJ this year. Last year he averaged 18.8 points and 11.2 rebounds per game. He shot 58 percent from the field and averaged 2.8 rebounds a game. He was a third-team All-State selection in New Jersey last year.
Ford is an inside player at Hargrave Military academy in Chatham, VA. He played his previous four years at Gwynn Park High in Brandywine, MD. Last year he shot 58 percent from the field, averaged 15.8 points and 11.9 rebounds per game. He also blocked 6.6 shots per game, including a season high of 11 in one game. He was named a first-team All-Metro selection by the Washington Post.
Allen averaged 12.3 points, 9.6 rebounds and 2.5 blocked shots a game at Dillard High School. He was a first-team all-county and all-conference player. He shot 59 percent from the field and 72 percent from the foul line as a junior.
Five Former Tigers in the NBA Five former Clemson players are currently on NBA rosters. Four of the five would be considered starters for their respective teams. The list of former Tigers in the pros is led by Horace Grant, who is in his 14th year in the league. He is a starting forward with the Los Angeles Lakers and is the only former Tiger to win an NBA Championship ring. He did that with the Chicago Bulls 1991-92-93.
Dale Davis and Elden Campbell led Clemson to the ACC regular season championship in 1990 and they are both still starters in the NBA. Davis, who was inducted into the Clemson Ring of Honor in September, is averaging 7.0 points and 7.2 rebounds a game with the Portland Trailbazers this year. He was named to the NBA All-Star team last year when he was playing for the Pacers.
Campbell, who was inducted into the Clemson Hall of Fame last year, is the starting center with the Charlotte Hornets. He is averaging 12.5 points and 7.9 rebounds a game this year for the Hornets. They played against each other in Charlotte on January 11. Campbell had 23 points and 10 rebounds, while Davis had eight points and 15 rebounds.
Chris Whitney and Greg Buckner, who both came to Clemson from Hopkinsville, KY, are both in the NBA. Whitney has been starting of late with the Washington team and has scored in double figures in 10 straight games. He has had three double-doubles in that time. He had 14 points and 13 assists in a recent victory over Minnesota, then had 27 points and 11 assists in a win over Boston. Whitney is fifth in the NBA in free throw percentage. Buckner was an off and on starter for the Dallas Mavericks until he was injured in December. He is averaging 7.2 points and 5.7 rebounds a game so far for Don Nelson’s Mavericks.
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