Clemson vs. TCU Post-Game Notes

Nov. 16, 2008

* This was the first meeting in men’s basketball between Clemson and TCU since the Tigers claimed a 125-62 victory on Nov. 26, 1977 at the IPTAY Tournament. It was the only previous game played between the two schools.

* With the 70-58 win on Saturday, the Tigers advance to the championship game of the inaugural Charleston Classic to face Temple. Head Coach Oliver Purnell has an all-time record of 3-8 versus the Owls, having played Temple throughout the years in the Atlantic-10 Conference as coach of the Dayton Flyers.

* Clemson will attempt to win its 25th regular season tournament on Sunday against Temple. The Tigers have claimed two regular season tournament championships in the past three years under Purnell. Clemson won the 2005 San Juan Shootout in a true eight-team format, and then won the 2006 four-team Cox Classic to start the season.

* The Tigers posted 14 blocked shots as a team in the win over TCU, tied for the third-best single-game total in Clemson history. The school record remains 16 by the 1989-90 team, led by Oliver Purnell.

* For the second straight game, Clemson’s defense was a highlight in the tournament. The Tigers held the Horned Frogs to 37.7 percent shooting and forced TCU into 22 turnovers as well. For the tournament, the Tigers have forced 45 turnovers and opponents are shooting just 34.6 percent from the floor.

* For the second straight game, Clemson had an outstanding mark from the free throw line as a team in the second half. The Tigers were 18-24 (75%) in the second half against Hofstra, and then sank 13-16 (81.3%) in the final period against TCU.

* K.C. Rivers passed current NBA player Will Solomon on Clemson’s all-time list for three-point goals after a 2-5 performance Saturday. He has three in the tournament and 215 for his career, one better than Solomon, who played at Clemson from 1998-2001. Rivers now ranks third in school history in career three-pointers, behind only Terrell McIntyre and Cliff Hammonds.

* With 28 points through two games in the tournament, Rivers now finds himself 18th in Clemson history with 1,259 career points. He entered the season in a tie for 19th among the school’s career scoring leaders.

* Trevor Booker had seven blocked shots in Saturday’s win over TCU, the second-highest single-game blocked shot total in the junior’s career. He had eight at home against North Carolina as a freshman. Booker now has an even 150 blocks in his career, an average of just over two per game.

* Booker has averaged 12.5 rebounds per game through two rounds of the Charleston Classic. Booker has reached double figures in terms of total rebounds in 16 career games.

* Booker went over 500 career rebounds with Saturday’s effort. He now has 506 for his career. He needs 20 caroms to move into Clemson’s top 25 among career rebounders.

* Terrence Oglesby has averaged 14.5 points per game in the tournament and has shot 5-9 from behind the three-point line. Oglesby played a career-high 32 minutes in Saturday’s win over TCU.

* Tanner Smith has made several key defensive plays for the Tigers through two games this season. On Saturday, the freshman wing player had four steals and two blocked shots en route to a big second half defensively for the Tigers. Smith has played 32 minutes through the first two games of the tournament, most among Clemson’s first-year players.