Friday 03/03/2000
March 3, 2000
CLEMSON, S.C. – The home team has won 23 of the last 26 meetings between the two teams, including Clemson’s 70-58 win in Littlejohn Coliseum earlier this year. Clemson has not won in Atlanta since the 1996-97 season, a 55-53 win that was “Senior Day” for Tech. Clemson has not swept Tech since that season.
Clemson will be attempting to sweep Georgia Tech and NC State in the same season since the 1986-87 season, Horace Grant’s senior season.
Clemson has already ruined an opposing team’s Senior Day. The Tigers won their last road game at NC State, 66-63 in the final home game in Raleigh last Sunday.
In fact, he last win for both Clemson and Georgia Tech is a 66-63 win over NC State. Tech defeated the Pack in Raleigh by that same score for their most recent win.
The winner of this game will play in the 7 vs. 8 game at the ACC Tournament March 9 in Charlotte at 7:00 PM. The loser will meet Duke in the second game that night.
Will Solomon now has 582 points for the season, a record for a Clemson sophomore. He needs just 18 points to become just the fifth player in school history to score 600 points in a season. He also has 85 three-point goals, third highest total for a season in Clemson history. He has scored in double figures in every game this year and is attempting to become the first Tiger to score in double figures in every game since Butch Zatezalo in 1969-70.
Clemson freshmen Ray Henderson, Edward Scott and Pash Bains shot a combined 10-13 from the field and scored 27 points against Duke on March 1. Henderson has led Clemson in rebounding four of the last seven games even though he has not played more than 21 minutes in any of those games.
Andrius Jurkunas has made 24 of his last 51 three-point goals and is now third in school history in that area (142).
Clemson vs. Georgia Tech Alexander Coliseum Saturday, March 4, 2000 (1:00 PM)
Series Record: Clemson leads 48-46at Atlanta: Tech leads 33-17at Clemson: Clemson leads 31-11at Alexander: Tech leads 19-11Last Meeting: Clemson 70, Georgia Tech 58Television: JP (Bob Rathbun, Gil McGregor)
Upcoming Clemson Schedule: Mar. 9 at ACC Tournament (at Charlotte), TBA
First Meeting At Clemson, Feb.2, 2000 Clemson 70, Georgia Tech 58
Andrius Jurkunas and Dustin Braddick both scored career highs in leading Clemson to a 70-58 victory over Georgia Tech on February 2. It was the 24th time in 28 meetings in Littlejohn Coliseum that Clemson had gained victory over the Yellow Jackets. Clemson led by as many as 20 points in the second half.
Jurkunas scored 21 points, the first 20-point game of his career, and hit 7-12 shots from the field. He also made 4-7 three-point goals and tied for the lead in rebounding with seven. It was the second time in four games that Jurkunas has led Clemson in both categories in the same game. He made just 3-9 shots from the line or he would have had a 25-point game.
Braddick scored 14 on 4-5 shooting and also had seven rebounds, three assists and three steals in another fine all-around game for the 6-5 forward who did not play against North Carolina the last time the two teams met. Will Solomon had 15 points in the second half and 17 for the game. He also had a team best five assists. Ray Henderson led the bench with six points on 3-4 shooting.
Clemson held Georgia Tech in check, allowing just 34.5 percent shooting, including just 7-29 three-point shots. The Tigers were playing without Adam Allenspach for the first time in 55 games. The 7-1 center was out with a bulging disk, forcing Clemson to go with a small lineup. But, Clemson won the rebound battle 40-38.
Tech jumped out to a 7-2 lead early. Jones scored the first two baskets for the Yellow Jackets, then never scored another field goal. Clemson held Jason Collier, the second leading scorer in the league entering the contest, to 10 points and just three field goals. He took six shots in the first six minutes, then got just four shots the last 34 minutes.
Clemson went on 13-4 run to end the half and held a 23-18 lead at intermission. It was just 27-23 with 17 minutes left when Clemson went on a 13-3 run over four minutes to take a 14-point lead. It was 54-34 in favor of Clemson with 7:53 left. Tech never got the deficit under double figures the rest of the game.
Clemson center Adam Allenspach missed the first meeting with a bulging disk. He had suffered the injury against Duke in the previous game.
Clemson vs. Georgia Tech Series
Clemson holds 48-46 advantage in the series with Georgia Tech. That includes a 33-11 lead in games played at Clemson and a 24-4 margin in games in Littlejohn Coliseum. Tech last defeated Clemson at Clemson since the 1992-93 season when Tech ruined Chris Whitney’s “Senior Day” game by a 66-59 score.
Clemson has not only won the last seven games played at Clemson, but five of the seven have been by double digits. That includes a 70-58 Tiger win earlier this year. Clemson won the 1997-98 meeting at Clemson 76-62 behind 30 points from Greg Buckner on his “Senior Day”. Clemson has won 13 of the last 14 games played at Clemson between the two teams.
This has been a home team series, perhaps the most home team dominated series in the ACC the last 15 years. The home team has won 23 of the last 26 meetings. Two of the road wins in the series came in the same year. In 1992-93, Clemson won at Tech, 83-80, then lost at home, 66-59. The last win for the road team in the series took place in 1996-97 when Clemson won in Atlanta, 55-53. Since the 1981-82 season Clemson’s only wins in Atlanta have taken place in 1996-97, 1992-93, 1986-87 and 1984-85.
The teams have each won on their home court in 10 of the last 12 years. The only season series sweep in the last 12 years took place in 1996-97 when Clemson won both games. Thus, Clemson will be looking for just its second series sweep against Tech since 1986-87. The Horace Grant led Tigers swept Tech that year, but won in Atlanta by just 67-66 on a late basket by Michael Tait.
Clemson has not swept NC State and Georgia Tech in the same year since 1986-87. That Horace Grant led Clemson team finished 10-4 in the ACC that year and had five series sweeps.
Clemson vs. Georgia Tech
Clemson at Tech Senior Night
The Clemson vs. Georgia Tech game in Atlanta will be the third of three consecutive “Senior Night” games for the Tigers. Clemson won at NC State last Sunday to ruin the Senior Night game for Justin Gainey and the Wolfpack. The Tigers had their own senior night game on Wednesday and Duke defeated the Tigers 92-78. Now Clemson will attempt to ruin the Senior Day game for Tech’s Jason Collier and Jason Floyd and Head Coach Bobby Cremins, who will be retiring from the Tech program this year.
Clemson has an 11-27 lifetime record in opposing Senior Night games. Clemson has a 1-5 lifetime record at Georgia Tech in Senior Night games with the only win coming in 1996-97, the last time Clemson played a Senior Night game at Tech.
Clemson was 0-2 in “Senior Games” last year, losing at Maryland and at Duke. Clemson had just one Senior Night road win in the decade of the 1980s, at Duke in 1984 in Bill Foster’s final ACC Road game as Clemson head coach.
Clemson is now 1-5 at Georgia Tech, 3-3 at Virginia, 2-7 at Maryland, 0-4 at North Carolina, 3-0 at NC State, 2-6 at Duke, and 0-2 at South Carolina. Clemson has never been Senior Night for Florida State. Clemson defeated two teams on “Senior Night” games in the 1961-62 season. That was also the only year Clemson went to the finals of the ACC Tournament. That remains the only year Clemson has won two opposing “Senior Night” games.
Clemson Wins on Opponent Senior Nights
Last Year at Tech Georgia Tech 66, Clemson 62
Clemson missed five field goal attempts that would have tied or won the game inside the last 20 seconds, and Georgia Tech went on to a 66-62 victory over Clemson on January 28, 1999 at Alexander Memorial Coliseum in Atlanta.
Clemson trailed 63-62 with 20 seconds left and had control of the ball. Terrell McIntyre took an open 16 foot jumper from the right side, but the shot came off the rim. Georgia Tech’s Alvin Jones made one free throw, giving Clemson another chance. The Tigers took four shots inside the last 16 seconds, but all four came off and the Tigers fouled with 0.4 seconds left. Tech made both free throws to make it a four-point victory .
Clemson won the rebound battle 48-28, the first time in history Clemson had won the rebounding by 20, yet lost the game. Clemson had 17 turnovers to just 10 for Tech and the -7 turnover margin hurt Clemson. The Tigers shot just 38.5 percent from the field, 21.4 percent on three-point shots. Tech shot just 44 percent from the field and 56 percent from the line, yet won the game.
Clemson was led by freshman Will Solomon, who had 20 points, four rebounds and two steals, the most points by a Clemson freshman since 1995-96 when McIntyre had 20 against North Carolina in the ACC Tournament. McIntyre scored 13 at Tech and moved into sixth place in Clemson history in career scoring, but the senior made just 5-20 field goals and 1-8 on three-point shots. Clemson had another fine game from Harold Jamison, who had 14 points and 11 rebounds. He shot 6-7 from the field. Tom Wideman had eight points and 10 rebounds, including eight off the offensive boards. Tech was led by Jason Collier, who scored 25 points and had 11 rebounds.
The two teams struggled at the outset, in fact the score was 0-0 for the f irst five minutes. Tech scored on a layup by Tony Akins with two seconds left in the first half to take a one-point lead. Clemson pulled ahead 48-40 with a spurt by McIntyre and Solomon, holding that eight-point lead with 10 minutes left. But, after Jamison picked up a fourth foul, Tech got eight of the next nine rebounds and tied the game at 50. The contest was close the rest of the way until Tech took a 63-58 advantage with 1:47 left. Clemson closed the gap to 63-62, but Clemson could not get over the hump.
Solomon Chosen to NABC All-District Team
Clemson guard Will Solomon has been named first-team All-District 5 by the National Association of Basketball Coaches. The team is composed of Division I teams from North Carolina and South Carolina, plus ACC teams Virginia, Maryland and Georgia Tech. Florida State is the only ACC team not included in the District.
Solomon leads the ACC in scoring this year with a 20.8 average, a figure that ranks 18th in the nation. He has scored in double figures in every game this year, the only ACC player to do that, and he also leads the league in three-point goals per game. His 20.8 average is the highest by a Clemson player since 1986-87 when Horace Grant led the Tigers with a 21.0 average.
The native of East Hartford, CT has scored 32.38 percent of Clemson’s points this year and is attempting to become the first ACC player in 30 years to score a third of his team’s points. He has scored at least 25 points in a game 10 times this year, including a career high 43-point performance against Virginia on January 15.
Solomon was joined on the first team by Chris Carrawell and Shane Battier of Duke, Terence Morris of Maryland, and Ed Cota of North Carolina. The second team was composed of Jason Collier of Georgia Tech, Robert O’Kelley of Wake Forest, Juan Dixon of Maryland, Lonny Baxter of Maryland and Jody Lumpkin of College of Charleston.
Solomon Has All-Around Stats
Clemson guard Will Solomon has received much notority for his scoring this year. The sophomore has a 20.8 average and 11 games of at least 25 points, including the 26-point performance against fourth ranked Duke. Solomon also had nine assists and six rebounds in that game.
For the year, Solomon has 583 points, 117 rebounds and 87 assists. He obviously needs just 17 points and 13 assists to reach the 600 point and 100 assist mark for the year. If he does that he will be just the eight ACC player in the last 10 years to record 600 points, 100 assists and 100 rebounds in the same year. No ACC player did it last year. North Carolina’s Shammond Williams did it in 1997-98, but it took hims 38 games to do it. Walt Williams turned the feat in 1991-92 in just 29 games, while Kenny Anderson of Georgia Tech did it in 1990-91 in just 30 games.
It is interesting to note that all seven of the players to accomplish this in the last 10 years are in the NBA with the exception of Childress.
ACC Players with 600 Points, 100 Assists, 100 Rebounds (In Last 10 Years)
Last Game Duke 92, Clemson 78
Shane Battier scored 26 points, including 20 in the first half thanks to six three-point goals, leading Duke to a 92-78 victory over Clemson on March 1. Duke, ranked fourth in the nation in both polls coming in, ran its recrd to 23-4 with the win. The Blue Devils outrebounded Clemson 40-36, just the fifth time Clemson has been outrebounded this year.
Will Solomon led Clemson with 26 points, six rebounds and a career high nine assists. He played all 40 minutes. Solomon got support as three Tigers scored in double figures. Freshman Ray Henderson scored 10 and led the Tigers in rebounding with seven in a productive 19 minutes.
Clemson was much improved in many areas since the 34-point loss at Duke earlier in the year. Clemson shot 46 percent from the field for the game, including 18-36 in the second half. The Tigers shot 9-22 from three-point range, 40.9 percent. Clemson’s 9-19 free throw shooting was a disappointment.
Battier was on fire in the first half. The junior made six consecutive three-point shots at one juncture and scored all 20 of his first half points in an 11 minute span. He led Duke to a 45-29 lead at halftime.
The Blue Devils advanced the lead to 20 points in the second half and still had an 18-point lead with 5 minutes to go. But, Clemson shot the ball well down the stretch and cut the lead to eight points four times. But, Duke made its last 11 free throws of the game, and Andre Buckner made a key steal with a minute left as the Tigers were striving to cut the margin to six points.
Future Looking Brighter
The play of Clemson’s freshmen against fourth ranked Duke gives reason for optimism about the program’s future. Rookies Ray Henderson and Pash Bains were a combined 10-13 from the field against the Blue Devils and scored 27 points. Scott was 4-5 from the field, including a season best 3-3 on three-point shots. Henderson also was 4-5 from the field and his seven rebounds in just 19 minutes left the Tigers. Bains made 2-3 shots from the field and also had a pair of rebounds in his 11 minutes.
Clemson underclassmen scored 72 of the 78 points against the Blue Devils and had 33 of the 36 rebounds. In fact, sophomores and freshmen had 61 of the 78 points and 27 of the 36 rebounds.
Turnovers on the Decline
One of the reasons for Clemson’s improved play over the last month (in addition to having a healthy team), has been the reduction in turnovers. Since committing a season high 30 turnovers at Duke in late January, Clemson has had 100 turnovers in the last eight games, an average of 12.5 per game. That includes three of the top 20 turnover games in Clemson history. The Tigers had just six against North Carolina, seven against Florida State and five against Maryland in recent home games. The Tigers had just 14 in the second meeting with Duke, more than a 50 percent reduction.
The health of guard Edward Scott has a lot to do with the improvement in this area. Scott, a freshman who averages 32.5 minutes a game, has 49 turnovers in 22 games this year, including just 27 in 13 ACC games. Clemson has averaged 18 turnovers a game in the games Scott has missed due to injury (6) and 14.6 in the games he has played. That includes 12.5 in games he would be terms healthy, or the last eight games.
Fewest Turnovers in Game, Clemson History
Assist/Turnover Ratio Among the Best vs. FSU
Clemson had its best ball handling game of the year in the win over Florida State. Clemson had 24 assists and just seven turnovers in the 26-point victory. That was the high assist mark of the season for a single game by Clemson and the second lowest turnover total. Those two extremes led to a 3.43 assist/turnover ratio, the third best single game ACC mark in Clemson history.
The only two games better in league play both took place against NC State. In 1992-93 season, Clemson had 25 assists and just five turnovers for a 5.0 figure in an ACC Tournament victory over NC State. In 1983-84 in a game at Clemson, the Tigers had 23 assist and just six turnovers (3.83) in a win over the Pack.
Overall, Clemson’s 3.43 assist/turnover ratio against Florida State was the 10th best in school history, best since the 1997-98 season when Clemson had 29 assists and just eight turnovers in a win over Western Carolina. Clemson had a 15/5 ratio in the loss to Maryland.
Clemson Wins at NC State
Andrius Jurkunas scored a career high 23 points, including 17 in the second half, leading Clemson to a 66-63 victory at NC State on Sunday, Feb. 27th. Clemson overcame a 10-point deficit with just six minutes to play to gain the victory, and snapped a 14-game ACC road losing streak in the process. Jurkunas had a career high six three-point goals in the game in just seven attempts.
In addition to his scoring, Jurkunas made two free throws with 14.6 seconds left to give Clemson a 64-63 lead, then he defended Anthony Grundy on the Pack’s last possession. Jurkunas deflected Grundy’s shot, Will Solomon picked up the loose ball and sped for a clinching layup and 66-63 victory.
Solomon had a fine all-around game with 13 points, eight rebounds andsix assists. He also defended Grundy for much of the game and the Pack’s top scorer made just 3-16 shots from the field, 0-6 on three-point attempts. Freshman guard Edward Scott had 10 points, six assists and four reboinds. Adam Allenspach had six points and eight rebounds.
Clemson had 14 turnovers in the game, but just four in the second half. The Tigers shot 50 percent in the second half to 35.7 by NC State. Clemson made 11-19 three-point goals in the contest and scored on 71.4 from the foul line. Clemson also won the rebounding by seven, 38-31.
Clemson trailed most of the game. After the Pack had a 32-26 lead at intermission, Clemson cut the margin to one at 32-31 with a 5-0 burst to start the game. The margin stayed between one and three points for the next 10 minutes. NC State then took a 59-49 lead with 7:09 left on a second straight three-point goal by Damien Wilkins.
Clemson then went on a 13-0 run, its second longest run of the season, to take a 62-59 lead on a rebound goal by Chucky Gilmore. NC State shot just 1-12 from the field down the stretch, but State took the lead at 63-62 with just 33 seconds left on a free throw by Kenny Inge. On Clemson’s next possession, Jurkunas was fouled, and made two free throws to give Clemson the lead.
With Solomon’s final score, Clemson went on a 17-4 run to end the game. Clemson ended its 17-point win at Clemson earlier this year with a 17-4 run.
Clemson Win at NC State Landmark
Busy Time for Jurkunas
This is quite a time for Clemson senior forward Andrius Jurkunas. His Tiger career is concluding after five years with the program. He will receive his degree in May. A couple of weeks ago he learned his wife, Jill, was pregnant, an item he kept secret from Head Coach Larry Shyatt and his teammates until this past Sunday. She is due in October.
After his career high 23 points and career high six three-point goals led the Tigers to victory at NC State, he told Shyatt and his teammates the good news. Jurkunas was married last summer and in the wedding party were Shyatt and his wife Pam. Shyatt has a picture with Jurkunas, both in tuxedo, behind his desk in his office in the Jervey Athletic Center.
Jurkunas first came to Clemson in August of 1995 and was a member of the same recruiting class with Terrell McIntyre, Tom Wideman, Harold Jamison and Tony Christie. Entering his final regular season game on Saturday, he ranks third in Clemson history in career three point goals with 142, trailing only Chris Whitney and Terrell McIntyre. He has 772 career points and 437 career rebounds. He is one of just three ACC players with over 100 career three-point goals and 75 career blockedshots. He scored 19 points in the second half of Clemson’s NCAA tournament game against Georgia in 1996, still a school record for points scored in a half of an NCAA Tournament game.
Jurkunas Key to Clemson ACC Wins
As Andrius Jurkunas goes, so go the Clemson Tigers, at least that has been the case in ACC play this year. Jurkunas has averaged 17.8 points a game in Clemson’s ACC wins this year and just 6.8 in Clemson’s 11 league losses. With his 6-7 three-point performance at NC State on Feb. 27, he is now 17-26 on three-point shots in Clemson’s ACC wins this year, a .653 figure. He is also shooting 24-38 from the field overall in Clemson’s four ACC wins this year.
Jurkunas was outstanding in Clemson’s win over Florida State on Feb. 12. He had 16 points, including 5-7 on three-point goals. He also had six assists and no turnovers and held Ron Hale to 1-12 shooting from the field.
Jurkunas vs. the ACC
Allenspach Chasing Free Throw Record
Clemson starting center Adam Allenspach has made 76 of 103 free throws this year, including 20 of his last 24. That .738 free throw percentage would be the third best in Clemson history by a center if the season ended today. The .778 mark by Ed Brinkley in 1958-59 is the all-time Clemson standard for a Tiger center (minimum of 30 attempts). Allenspach’s mark is the best since Brinkley’s 77.8.
Allenspach has made 143-201 for his career .711, also one of the best figures in Clemson history for a center. Allenspach is shooting .744 in league play this year, contributing to Clemson’s 68 percent figure as a team in league play.
Clemson’s Center Best Season Free Throw Marks
Allenspach Has Six Double-Doubles
Clemson center Adam Allenspach had consecutive double doubles in losses to Virginia and Maryland. This was the first time in his career that the 7-1 center has had consecutive double-doubles. He had 20 points and 10 rebounds against Maryland and scored 15 points and had 10 rebounds in Clemson’s loss to Virginia on Feb. 15. The performance against Maryland was Allenspach’s sixth double-double of the season, more than any other Tiger. It was his first double-double since he suffered a back injury at Duke on January 29.
He scored 24 points in Clemson’s loss to Appalachian State on January 19. That was his career high scoring effort and it was in fact the highest scoring game for a Clemson center since Sharone Wright scored 25 points at Wake Forest on Feb. 22, 1994. Allenspach connected on 7-11 field goals and 10-12 free throws.
His free throw shooting stats are also a career high. He made his last nine free throws of the Appalachian State game and is now shooting 74 percent from the line for the year. Allenspach had five straight double figure scoring games and was averaging 16 points a contest prior to the Duke game in Durham when he went down with a bulging disk in his back. He had his first double figure scoring game in the win over Florida State since he hurt his back at Duke. Allenspach scored 12 points in the win over the Seminoles. He missed the first meeting against Georgia Tech.
Season of Improvement by Adam Allenspach
Solomon Chasing Scoring Marks
Will Solomon set a Clemson record for points scored by a sophomore when he had 13 against NC State in Raleigh. He now has 583 for the season, breaking the mark of 552 by Butch Zatezalo in 1967-68.
Solomon is chasing an overall single season Clemson record. He has averaged 3.04 three-point goals per game this year, ahead of the Clemson record of 2.90 per game by Chris Whitney in 1992-93. Solomon has 583 points this season, already fifth best in Clemson history for a single season. He would have an outside chance at the Clemson single season points record if the Tigers could win a game or two in the ACC Tournament.
Solomon’s average of 20.8 would be seventh best in Clemson history if the season ended today. The record is 28.3 by Bill Yarborough in 1954-55. Butch Zatezalo (3 seasons), Vince Yockel and Horace Grant are the other Tigers to average at least 20 points a game over the course of a season.
Clemson Single Season Scoring Leaders
Clemson Single Season Points/Game Leaders
Clemson Single Season Three-Point Goals
Clemson Single Season 3Pt Goal/Game Leaders
Clemson With More Field Goals
Despite a 10-18 record overall and 4-11 mark in ACC play, Clemson has scored 12 more field goals than the opposition in overall games and has six field goals more in ACC games. Clemson has shot better than the opposition (40.6 to 40.2 ) overall. Clemson is second in the ACC in field goal percentage defense.
In the 15 league games Clemson has 351 field goals to 345 for the opposition. The big difference comes at the foul line. Clemson’s ACC opponents have made 263 free throws in the 15 games, and Clemson has attempted just 253.
There is also a big difference in three-point goals for the season. Opponents have made 48 more three-point goals overall for the season than Clemson and that represents 144 more points. Clemson has been outscored by 120 points for the season.
Henderson Coming on Strong
Ray Henderson has not played more than 21 minutes in any of the last seven games, yet he has led Clemson in rebounding four of those contests. The freshman who has suffered from various injuries this year, has scored 45 points and had 42 rebounds over the last eight games. He had 10 points, his season high, and seven rebounds, including five offensive, against 4th ranked Duke. He played just 19 minutes. Henderson had eight rebounds, his second highest total of the season, in the win over Florida State. He did that in just 18 minutes and added seven points.
On a per minute basis, Ray Henderson has been Clemson’s most productive rebounder this year. He has averaged a rebound every 3.21 minutes this year, best on the Clemson team. He had five rebounds in just six minutes against North Carolina on Feb. 6, then had six rebounds in 15 minutes at Wake Forest. The burly freshman has been hampered by injury all year and thus his stamina is not at a high rate.
The native of Charlotte, NC, had a productive 22 minutes of play at North Carolina in January and it was the first game in which he opened the eyes of the ACC media. Henderson had a season best and team high nine rebounds in those 22 minutes, including four off the offensive boards. He also made 3-5 shots from the field and did not have a turnover in 22 minutes. He also had an effect on the production of Brendan Haywood. The 7-1 North Carolina center had just 10 points and got just four field goal attempts in the game.
He did play 16 minutes in the win over Georgia Tech and scored six points in 3-4 shooting. He also played strong defense against Alvin Jones of Georgia Tech.
What Clemson has Done Well
Where Clemson has Struggled
Jurkunas Trails only Whitney, McIntyre
Clemson senior Andrius Jurkunas recorded a career high six three-point goals at NC State to lead the Tigers to a 66-63 victory on Feb. 27. With that performance he moved ahead of David Young into third place on Clemson’s career three-point goals list. Now with 142 career three-point goals, the 6-9 forward trails only former All-ACC point guards Chris Whitney and Terrell McIntyre in that category.
Jurkunas became Clemson’s career three-point goal leader among forwards when he made a pair of three-point goals against Wofford on November 21. Tony Christie had the previous record at 106.
Jurkunas had 51 three-point goals as a freshman and as a junior. Injury problems on 1996-97 gave him shooting problems all year and he made just 3-38 from long range. He made just 14 of his first 60 (.233) to start the season when he had the broken thumb on his shooting hand. Now healthy, Jurkunas has made 38 percent of his three-point attempts in ACC play this year, sixth best in the ACC. He has made 23 of his last 51 three-point attempts, a .451 shooting mark.
Clemson Career Three-Point Goal Leaders
5. Bruce Martin 4 88 336 129 6. Merl Code 4 97 371 125 7.Andre Bovain 4 108 326 107
Jurkunas stands 6-9 and is an unusual player in that he is capable of defending on the inside, but he is also a capable scorer on the outside. Jurkunas is one of just four players in ACC history standing 6-9 or taller to make over 100 three-point goals in a career. The others to do it are Tom Gugliotta of NC St, Michael Maddox of Georgia Tech, and Danny Ferry of Duke.
Jurkunas has 77 blocked shots to go with his 142 career three-point goals. He entered 1999-2000 as one of just 10 players in ACC history with at least 100 three-point goals and at least 50 blocked shots. No player in ACC history has had at least 100 three-point goals and 100 blocked shots. Michael Maddox, who played at Georgia Tech, came the closest with 133 three-point goals and 93 blocks.
ACC Players with 100 Career 3s and 50 Blocked Shots
Head Coach Larry Shyatt
Clemson Head Coach Larry Shyatt had a 20-15 record in his first year as Clemson Head Coach. He guided Clemson to the Championship of the NIT, a 61-60 loss to California. The 20 victories were a record for a Clemson coach in his first year and he was just the fourth coach in ACC history to win at least 20 in his rookie year with an ACC program.
Shyatt was the head coach at Wyoming in 1997-98 and posted a 19-9 ledger and berth in the NIT. Thus, he had a 39-24 record as a head coach entering this year. This is his 25th year in college coaching, his third as a head coach. In 15 of his last 16 years the team he has coached (head or assistant) has gone to the NIT of the NCAA.
Shyatt has also had assistant coaching stints at Utah, Cleveland State, New Mexico and Providence in addition to his three years as associate head coach at Clemson under Rick Barnes. Shyatt enters this game with a record of 30-33 at Clemson and he is 49-42 overall.
Clemson Has Young Roster
Clemson has one of the youngest teams in the nation with only one senior and one junior with previous Division I experience listed on its roster. This is the youngest Clemson team since the 1987-88 season when Grayson Marshall was the only senior and Jerry Pryor was the only junior among scholarship players. That Clemson team finished 14-15, but did qualify for the NIT.
This year’s Clemson team has one senior, Andrius Jurkunas, and one junior, Adam Allenspach among scholarship players. Walk-on Michael Crocker is a junior, but is in his first year with the program.
The young veteran Clemson players have been asked to step up their play considerably from last year. The five players returning from last year have made large jumps in terms of playing time and scoring. Will Solomon scoring average is triple what it was last year, from 6.3 points to 20.8 and is the largest increase in the ACC.
Eighty-nine percent of Clemson’s scoring and 88 percent of its rebounds have come from underclassmen this year.
Clemson 3-Pt Streak at 306 Consecutive Games
Clemson has a streak of 306 consecutive games with at least a three-point goal. The streak dates to the 1990-91 season when the Tigers were 0-7 from long range in an 81-55 loss at Wake Forest. Clemson was also 0-17 that year in a home loss to UNC Charlotte.
Clemson has made at least two three-point goals this year in every game. Clemson had its best three-point shooting game of the year against Florida State on Feb. 12, hitting 12-20 contributing to a 26-point win. In the first meeting against Virginia, Clemson hit 11-20, for 55 percent. Will Solomon made 8-12 from long range in that game.
Clemson has made 21 of its last 41 three-point attempts over two games, .512 pace. Will Solomon leads the team with 85 and is on a record pace in terms of three-point goals per game (3.04). Solomon has made 25 of his last 56 three-point goals, and his .374 percent from long range is fifth in the ACC. He is shooting 40.7 percent on three-point goals in ACC play.
Tigers Have 10 Healthy Scholarship Players
College basketball teams begin practice on October 15, but it took until February 4 for Clemson to have its full roster of scholarship players available for a practice. On that Friday, Adam Allenspach returned to practice after missing the Georgia Tech game with a bulging disk.
Clemson had played 21 games with at least one scholarship player injured and unable to play. The North Carolina game on Feb. 6 was the first time Clemson had all 10 scholarship players healthy. The Tigers looked like it also, taking the Tar Heels to the wire before losing. Clemson has now had 10 healthy scholarship players the last six games.
The absence of healthy scholarship players has hurt Clemson’s preparation in games this year. Many practices prior to games Clemson has had just six healthy scholarship players. Clemson played at Maryland with just six scholarship players.
Clemson Defense Still Strong
Clemson has struggled on offense, but the defense has been outstanding so far this season. So far this year, Clemson opponents are shooting just 40 percent from the field overall and are averaging just 68.6 points per game. The 40 percent is second best in the ACC and would be the third best by a Clemson team in the last 40 years if the season ended today.
Duke, North Carolina and Maryland are the only Clemson opponent to shoot over 48 percent against Clemson. Duke hit 52.4 against the Tigers on January 29 in Durham and North Carolina shot 52.2 against Clemson in Littlejohn Coliseum. NC State shot just 30 percent against Clemson in the Tigers victory in January.
Defense has been a hallmark of Larry Shyatt coached teams. Clemson opponents scored just 64.7 points a game last year and shot just 41.1 percent from the field. The Tigers led the ACC and ranked in the top 20 in the nation in scoring defense last year.
Clemson top Field Goal % Defense Seasons (Last 40 Years)
Seven Tigers in the NBA
For the first time in history, Clemson has seven former players in the NBA in the same season. The list includes four former Clemson centers, a point guard, a two guard and a small forward. The previous high for former Tigers in the NBA was six.
Leading the way has been Dale Davis, who is in his ninth year with the Indiana Pacers, his seventh year as a starter. He was chosen to the NBA All-Star team for the first time.
Through 55 games, Davis was averaging 10.7 points and 9.9 rebounds per game. He was seventh in the NBA in field goal percentage through games of Feb. 28 with a .510 figure. He was also seventh in the league in rebounding and 19th in double-doubles with 16. What is most impressive is his much improved free throw percentage (.696).
Elden Campbell is the highest scorer among former Clemson players in the NBA. Campbell was averaging 12.3 points a game in 32 minutes a game for the Charlotte Hornets. He was also pulling in 7.5 rebounds a game and was 16th in the league in blocked shots. He had a season high 27 points against Washington Wizards on Feb. 5, including 15-18 Ft.
The veteran of Clemson’s group in the NBA is Horace Grant. A rookie with the Chicago Bulls in 1987-88, he played on three World Championship teams with that franchise. After a four-year stint with the Orlando Magic, he is now with the Seattle Supersonics. He has started all 53 games this year and averaged 35 minutes per game. He is averaging 7.6 points and 7.7 rebounds per game.
Chris Whitney is in his sixth year with the Washington Wizzards as a backup point guard. He had 17 points in his third game of the season and also had a double-double this year against Seattle. Whitney is a career 80 percent free throw shooter. He had 13 vs. Charlotte on Feb. 5.
Devin Gray replaced Charles Barkley on the Houston Rockets when the future Hall of Famer was injured in December. He has played in 13 games for the team. Greg Buckner joined the Dallas Mavericks after the first of the year. He was averaging 20 minutes a game before Dennis Rodman joined the team. Harold Jamison has played in one game for the Miami Heat. The 1998-99 Clemson senior is currently on injured reserve.
Clemson Players in the NBA (Through Games of Mar. 1, 2000)
* – Denotes Assist Average
Allenspach, Gilmore Strong Defender in Middle
Clemson 7-1 center Adam Allenspach and 265-pound forward Chucky Gilmore have proven to be large obstacles for opposing centers so far this season. A look to the stats shows us that opposing starting centers have averaged just 6.5 points and 5.4 rebounds a game against the Tigers this year. They have shot just under 45 percent from the field and have just 43 offensive rebounds. Lonnie Baxter had a 25-point game against Clemson on Feb. 22 and that is the only game over 14 points by an opposing center this year.
Allenspach has averaged 11.8 points and 7.2 rebounds per game for the first 28 games, all as a starter, so he is obviously winning the war at his position. He had 20 points and 10 rebounds against Baxter. Gilmore has contributed 6.3 rebounds per game. Allenspach has 14 double figure scoring games and six double-doubles. No opposing starting center has a double-double against the Tigers, in fact, only six opposing centers have scored in double figures, and only two have had double figures in rebounds.
Opposing Centers vs. Clemson
Wisconsin-GB 3-8 2-2 2-5 28 9 Oregon St. 2-9 4-6 1-5 30 8Penn State 0-1 0-0 0-1 14 0 Char. So. 1-2 1-2 1-3 16 3 S.C. State2-6 4-4 1-8 33 8 S. Carolina 0-1 1-5 5-6 16 1 Winthrop 4-7 0-0 1-336 8 G. Washington 0-1 0-0 1-2 20 0 Furman 0-2 3-4 1-5 18 3 N.Carolina 3-4 4-6 2-9 23 10 Wake Forest 1-3 1-6 3-10 31 3 at FloridaSt. 0-3 2-2 3-8 32 2 Virginia 5-8 4-6 3-6 21 14 Appalachian State6-8 0-0 1-4 35 12 at Maryland 4-11 2-3 3-9 35 10 NC State 1-4 0-01-3 22 2 at Duke 1-3 1-2 1-2 13 3 Georgia Tech 2-3 3-5 1-7 33 7 N.Carolina 3-4 5-6 3-8 31 11 at Wake Forest 1-2 0-0 1-2 13 2 FloridaState 1-2 0-0 1-2 14 2 at Virginia 3-6 3-6 0-4 30 9 Maryland 8-149-12 2-9 34 25 at NC State 2-3 0-0 2-3 28 4 Duke 3-6 2-2 5-10 27 8Totals 60-132 60-93 50-151 713 181 Averages .455 .645 5.4 25.4 6.5
Clemson Near Record Pace in Rebound Margin Clemson Leads ACC in Rebound Margin
If the season ended today, this would be the third highest rebound margin by a Clemson team in school history. The Tigers are +5.2 in overall games so far this year. Clemson has been out-rebounded just six times all year, a sign of the hustle and drive of Larry Shyatt team. The Tigers are 21st in the nation in rebounding this week.
Clemson has won the battle of theboards in 22 of its 28 games this year and has had a double figure advantage in 10 of the 28 games, including at Duke on January 29 by +12. Clemson was +18 on the boards against Virginia on Jan. 15. Clemson had a positive rebound margin in its last seven games last year, so the Tigers have outrebounded the opposition in 29 of their last 35 games. Larry Shyatt has been Clemson’s head coach for 63 games and the Tigers have been beaten on the glass just 12 times.
The Clemson record for rebound margin in a season is +7.4 rebounds per game set by last year’s team. That team broke the record of +5.8 set by the 1975-76 Clemson team that was led by Tree Rollins. Three other Clemson teams have been at +4.9 rebounds per game for a season. The Clemson team of 1989-90 led by Dale Davis and Elden Campbell had a +4.5 rebound margin per game.
Clemson’s Top Rebound Margin Teams
Six Tigers Have Missed 26 Games due to Injury
Clemson had not had a full compliment of scholarship players for a single practice, never mind a game until Friday February 4th. That certainly has hindered Clemson’s preparation for games, as walk-ons, managers and even graduate student manager Bruce Martin have helped out in practice. When Adam Allenspach missed the Georgia Tech game he was the sixth different player to miss action this year due to injury. Clemson players have missed a combined 26 games this year and at least one player missed each of the first 21 games this year. That does not include the seven games Pasha Bains missed at the start of the season due to the NCAA transfer rule.
Here is the injury rundown so far this year:
Clemson Downs Florida State by 26
Will Solomon scored 33 points, including 15 consecutive points at one stretch late in the game, leading Clemson to a 84-58 win over Florida State on Feb. 12 at Littlejohn Coliseum. Andrius Jurkunas added 17 points, six assists and no turnovers, while Adam Allenspach added 12 points.
It was Clemson’s top game of the season in terms of ball handling. The Tigers had 24 assists and jsut seven turnovers and that 3.43 assist/turnover ratio is the third best in Clemson history in an ACC game. Adam Allenspach had a carer high four assists, while Solomon had four assists and just one turnover in his 36 minutes.
Damous Anderson scored 28 to lead Florida State, but he was the only Seminole in double figures. Ron Hale, who came into the game fourth in the ACC in scoring with a 17.4 average, had just six points and made just 1-12 shots from the field. Jurkunas gets the credit for stopping Hale as he guarded the 6-8 Florida State guard for 32 minutes.
Clemson also got strong efforts from Ray Henderson. Gilmore, playing on his 20th birthday, was 3-4 from the field and scored six points. Henderson was Clemson’s leading rebounder for the third straight game and finished with eight in just 18 minutes. He also scored seven points.
Clemson jumped out to a 12-point lead in the first half, 35-23, then started the second half with a 18-6 run to take a 24-point lead with 13 minutes left. Clemson led by as many as 30 points late in the game. Solomon made 6-6 from the field, including three-three-point goals to score 15 straight points from the 6:01 mark to the 2:07 mark. Clemson shot 63.3 percent in the second half on 19-30 and that included 0-3 by walk-ons who played the last two minutes.
Clemson had a 56.4 percent shooting for the game, best in an ACC game and best since the Tigers made 57 percent in the season opener against East Tennessee State. Clemson also shot a season high 12-20 on three-point goals and also made 83 percent from the foul line.
Shyatt ACC Wins Have been Routs
Clemson gained its eighth ACC win under Larry Shyatt with the 84-58 triumph over Florida State on Feb. 12. The 26-point margin was Clemson’s high water mark in an ACC game this year, but just the third best under Shyatt. Clemson defeated Florida State by 33 at Clemson last year and also stopped Georgia Tech by 28 at home a year ago.
When Clemson gains victory in ACC play over the last two years it has been by a large margin. The average victory margin in Clemson’s nine ACC wins the last two years have been by 18.33 points. The losses have come by 14 points.
Clemson won a close ACC game at NC State on Feb. 27th. The Tigers have played well in close games this year and are now 5-3 in games decided by six points or less.
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