Tigers Claw Past Bulldogs, 77-74

Dec 20, 2003

CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) – Sharrod Ford converted a three-point play with one minute remaining, and Shawan Robinson made a short baseline jumper with 24 seconds left to lead Clemson to a 77-74 victory over South Carolina State on Saturday.

The game featured 16 lead changes and eight ties, and neither team led by more than six points.

Chris Hobbs led Clemson (5-4) with 18 points. Eleven of Robinson’s 16 points, including three 3-pointers, came in the final nine minutes.

South Carolina State (3-3) was led by Thurman Zimmerman with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Shawn Wiggins had 16 points, Brandon Trapp added 13 and Demeco Heath scored 11 for the Bulldogs.

Brian Mason’s inside basket gave South Carolina State a 65-63 lead with 5:13 remaining. Hobbs tied the game at 65, but Mason made one free throw to give the Bulldogs their final lead at 66-65 with 4:26 to play.

A 3-pointer by Robinson and a layup by Chey Christie gave Clemson a 70-66 lead with 2:34 left. Christie finished with nine points and eight assists.

Zimmerman tied the game at 70 with two free throws and an inside bucket with 1:13 left. After Ford converted a three-point play, Zimmerman made two more free throws to cut the Clemson lead to 73-72 with less than a minute to go.

Robinson’s short jumper at 24 seconds and two free throws by Olu Babalola with 6.5 seconds remaining secured the win for the Tigers.

Clemson shot 55 percent from the field, while the Bulldogs shot 43 percent.

The Tigers committed just 15 turnovers, breaking a streak of four games in which they had turned the ball over at least 19 times.