Postgame Notes – March 4, 2007

March 5, 2007

Landmark Victory

Clemson had a 1-70 record the last 20 years in ACC road gamesagainst teams that finished the year with a winning record in theACC. Virginia Tech finished the year with a 10-6 league mark sothat Clemson record improved to 2-70 with the Tigers 75-74 win onSunday. The only Clemson win in the previous 20 years on the roadagainst an ACC team that finished the year with a winning recordwas at Maryland in 1996-97. Virginia Tech entered the game ranked21st in the nation according to AP and USA Today. Clemson had lost35 consecutive road games against top 25 opponents and 43consecutive games away from home against all opponents (road andneutral site). Again, the last road win over a top 25 team hadtaken place at Maryland in 1996-97. Clemson defeated Virginia Techon the Hokies’ Senior Day. Clemson had a 12-35 record all-time onopponent Senior Days heading into this game. But, the Tigers havenow beaten Virginia Tech on Senior Day each of the last two years.This marks the first time Clemson has beaten a team on Senior Dayin consecutive years since the Tigers ruined Virginia’s Senior Daythree consecutive years from 1960-61 through 1962-63. Today’svictory was the fourth ACC win by five points or less this year.That is the most league wins by five or less since the 1989-90Clemson team won the ACC regular season title with a 4-3 record insuch games. Clemson had 10 of its 16 league games decided by fivepoints or less, the most in school history. Clemson had six of itseight ACC road games decided by five points or less, tied for themost in school history for a season.

Other Accomplishments

Clemson finished the ACC regular season with three league roadwins. This marks the first time since the 1996-97 season thatClemson has won at least three road games in a season. The Tigerswere 4-4 that year under Rick Barnes. It is just the fourth time in30 years that Clemson has won at least three ACC road games in thesame year. The others are 1986-97, 1989-90 and 1996-97. Clemsonfinished the regular season with a winning record on the road, 6-5.It is the first time Clemson has had a winning overall road recordsince 1996-97 when the Tigers were 6-4. It is the fourth time inthe last 30 years that Clemson has had an overall winning roadrecord. Clemson finished the ACC regular season with seven ACC winsfor the second straight year. The last time Clemson had back toback seven-win ACC seasons was 1996-97 and 1997-98. Clemson now hassix wins over the RPI top 50. Entering today, Clemson had more RPItop 50 wins than eight of the top 25 teams in the AP poll,including Kansas, Texas and Memphis. K.C. Rivers scored the gamewinning shot with 18 seconds left according to the official play byplay. It marked the third time this year Clemson had won a gamewith a field goal inside the last 20 seconds of play. CliffHammonds scored a game winner at Florida State with 2.8 secondsleft and James Mays scored a game winner at home against GeorgiaTech with 2.2 left in the very next game. Like today’s game, thatMays shot gave the Tigers a 75-74 victory. This is the first timesince the 1986-87 season that Clemson has had three game winningfield goals inside the last 20 seconds in the same season. Todaymarked the second time in three years Clemson has had a late gamewinning shot against Virginia Tech on a Senior Day. Sharrod Fordhad a dunk at the buzzer at Clemson to give the Tigers a 66-64 winon March 1, 2005. Today’s victory also evened out a loss toVirginia Tech last year from a final score standpoint. Last yearVirginia Tech won at Clemson in overtime by a 75-74 score thanks toa three-point shot at the end of regulation by Zabian Dowdell.Clemson won two close games to end the regular season, a 74-70victory over Miami (FL) in overtime, and a 75-74 win over VirginiaTech on Sunday. It marks the second time this year Clemson has wontwo games in the same week by four points or less. Today marked thefirst time since February 4, 1987 that Clemson had won an ACC roadgame by one point. The Tigers downed Maryland 80-79 in that game 20years ago in College Park.

Individual Accomplishments

Cliff Hammonds went over the 1,000-point mark with his 17points today. He needed 15 and went over the 1,000 point mark on akey three-point shot with 2;11 left that gave Clemson a 73-72 lead.Hammonds and Vernon Hamilton both are now over 1,000 career points,marking just the second time in history Clemson’s startingbackcourt has each had at least 1,000 career points. The only otherbackcourt combo it do it at the same time is Terrell McIntyre andGreg Buckner in 1997-98. James Mays had two steals today, givinghim 61 for the season. He broke the Clemson record for steals in aseason by a Clemson frontcourt player. Devin Gray had the recordwith 60 in 1992-93. Mays already has the Clemson record for assistsin a season by a frontcourt player with 79, 10 more than AndriusJurkunas had in 1999-00. K.C. Rivers recorded 22 points in today’sgame on 8-11 field goal shooting, including 5-7 three-point shots.Rivers scored Clemson’s last five points, including what proved tobe the game winner with 18 seconds left. It was Rivers fifth20-point game of the year, his first since he had 20 in the winover Georgia Tech on January 6. His five three-point goals werealso his high total in an ACC game this year and his top mark sincehe had six against Western Carolina on December 23. Clemson is now20-4 when Rivers scored in double figures and 1-5 when he does not.