Clemson Tames Black Bears, 73-61 |
ANDERSON - Every time Clemson has been challenged so far this season, Larry
Shyatt's team has been equal to the task. Form held true again Saturday afternoon at the Civic Center of Anderson, where the Tigers stuffed a second half run by Maine to defeat the visiting Black Bears, 73-61. It was Clemson's fourth consecutive victory to open the season, and fourth straight game it has held the opposing team to less than 50 percent shooting (45.5 percent). "We had two very good defensive halves, although when our breakdowns occur it drives me mad," said Clemson head coach Larry Shyatt. "For instance, when someone doesn't slide over and take a charge when they could have been there with one more step. That didn't happen a lot, but it happened some. It gives us something to play with the next six days." Clemson led by as many as 18 points on more than one occasion Saturday, including a 48-30 margin after a Sharrod Ford layup with 18:18 left in the game. But while the Tigers were in a 5-for-18 shooting slump to open the second half, Maine put together a nearly nine-minute run that cut the lead to 56-48 with 8:39 to go. But after a timeout, the Tigers - with Shawan Robinson replacing Olu Babalola in the lineup - responded with an 13-4 run to push the lead back to 17, 69-52. Robinson, the freshman guard from Raleigh, N.C., scored seven points during the run. Robinson finished with 10 points in 18 minutes, one of six different Clemson players to reach double figures on the afternoon. "Shawan needed this game," Shyatt said. "Julian (Betko) had been playing much better in practice, so I think Shawan needed this for some confidence. He hit some big shots for us." The Tigers had built a 44-30 halftime lead thanks in part to some unexpected offensive production from Babalola. The sophomore forward had 12 points in the first half, hitting 4-of-6 shots from the floor - including two straight 3-pointers to open the game - and both his free throws. He didn't score in the second half, but Shyatt was quick to praise Babalola's contribution because it came against a markedly different defensive strategy than the Tigers had seen so far this season. "This is the first team that has come in here with a completely different plan; rather than trap Edward Scott in the full (court), they trapped him in the half. I thought he was excellent deciding when and when not to attack. "Babalola put together a really good first half. He was high level intensity, and really charged on defense." Point guard Ed Scott led Clemson with 17 points, while Ford, Chey Christie and Ray Henderson all added 10. Henderson had a game-high 12 rebounds, including eight on the offensive boards. Kevin Reed topped Maine (1-5) with 18 points, while Justin Rowe added 12. NOTES - Clemson won the rebounding battle 38-31, including 16-13 on the offensive boards. The Tigers also committed just 11 turnovers, to 17 for Maine. - The inevitable scoring drought came in the second half for Clemson. After shooting 54.8 percent (17-of-31) in the first half, the Tigers hit just 12-of-31 (38.7) after the break. Clemson also hit 9-of-14 free throws, but just 4-of-8 in the second half. - Clemson turned Maine's 17 turnovers into 23 points. The Black Bears shot 8-of-27 (29.6 percent) from 3-point territory.
VISITORS: Univ. of Maine 1-5
Dan Scott covers Clemson University for the Florence Morning News. He also hosts SportsTalk from 10 a.m.-Noon, Monday-Friday, on WCCP-Fm, 104.9. Click here for Dan Scott's SportsTalk discussion board.
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