Tigers suffer another heartbreaking loss as they go cold from the field |
CLEMSON – Another day, another heartbreaking loss for the Tigers.
Jack Clark’s desperation three-pointer bounced off the back of the rim, and the clock hit zero as Virginia outlasted Clemson 66-65 in Littlejohn Coliseum Saturday afternoon. The Cavs hit a put-back with 36 seconds remaining to push their lead back to four at 66-62, and Clemson rushed the ball over midcourt and called timeout. The Tigers got back on the scoreboard with 7.2 seconds remaining when Hall was fouled on a 3-pointer. He hit all three foul shots to make it 66-65, and the Tigers quickly fouled the Cavs on the inbounds play. Dante Harris missed the free throw, and the Tigers pushed the ball up the court, but only Clark could shake free, and he missed as Virginia celebrated. Clemson once again had an offensive funk late in a game, failing to hit a shot from the field over the last 5:36. PJ Hall scored 19 while Joe Girard added 14, Ian Schieffelin added 13 and Chase Hunter scored 12. Clemson committed just four turnovers but was out-rebounded 38-33, outscored on the bench 21-5, and in the paint 30-22. Clemson falls to 14-7 overall and is now 4-6 in league play, while Virginia improves to 17-5 overall and 8-3 in the ACC. The first half was a half of runs for both teams. The score was tight and back-and-forth early as both teams struggled to find their range, and the Cavs led 18-16 after a Chase Hunter layup with just over nine minutes to play in the half. However, the Tigers then went four minutes without a basket, and the Cavs used a 9-0 run to take a 27-16 lead at the five-minute mark. Brownell called a timeout, and the Tigers came out firing, with Josh Beadle and Joe Girard hitting back-to-back 3-pointers to make it 27-22. With Virgina now in a three-minute drought of its own, Beadle hit a driving layup that cut the Cav advantage to 27-24 with just under three minutes to play. However, the Cavs outscored Clemson 7-2 the rest of the way and took a 35-26 lead into the half. The Cavs kept a working margin for much of the first ten minutes of the second half. Virginia vaulted out to a 12-point lead at 38-26, but the Tigers started to chip away. Hall hit two free throws with just over 15 minutes to play that trimmed the Cavaliers' lead to just five at 42-37. Two minutes later, he hit another free throw, and the Tigers were back within two at 42-40. The Cavs quickly pushed the lead back to six, staying in that range over the next six minutes. Chase Hunter was fouled on a drive to the basket with 7:52 to play and hit both free throws to make it 54-51 Virginia. The Tigers forced a stop on the other end and Girard drained a 3-pointer that looked like it was from 25-feet out to tie the score at 54-54 with a little over six minutes remaining. The Cavs quickly retook the lead, but Hall then drained a 3-pointer, and the Tigers led 57-56, their first lead since 8-7 early in the contest. With 2:11 to play and the Cavs ahead 60-59, Virginia’s Isaac McKneely hit a 3-pointer and was fouled. He hit the free throw to complete the four-point play, and it was 64-59 Cavs. Schieffelin hit a free throw to make it 64-60, and following another stop, Chase Hunter hit two free throws to pull the Tigers to within two at 64-62 with 1:07 to play. Clemson plays at UNC Tuesday night at 7 pm and heads to Syracuse next Saturday for a noon matchup.
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