Tigers bounce back in blowout fashion over Florida State |
CLEMSON - Another appointment with the Florida State Seminoles was just what the doctor ordered for a slumping Clemson men’s basketball team.
Brad Brownell’s Tigers snapped a three-game losing streak and rendered a sixth loss in the last seven to FSU with a 94-54 decision Wednesday in Littlejohn. The 40-point margin of victory was the largest this season and a program-best in ACC action (previously 34 points at home against Duke in 1975 and Boston College in 2008). The previous highest margin in conference play under Brownell was 27 last season versus Pitt at home. With the victory, Clemson (19-7, 11-4 ACC) equaled the program’s most conference wins in a regular season (11), tying campaigns from 1952 (Southern Conference) and 2018. The Tigers set the tone early with the most points they’ve scored in a first half this season. PJ Hall scored half of Clemson’s first 18 points and later helped extend the lead to 17 with a corner 3-pointer with under nine to go in the half. Chase Hunter picked up the pace from there to bounce back from shooting woes in the previous three games. Hunter had made 10-of-42 shots and just 1-of-16 3-pointers over that stretch, but he connected on his first six shots Wednesday – three from beyond the arc – for a team-best 16 points at the break. Hunter scored 26 points, including the go-ahead free throw in the 82-81 win at Florida State (8-19, 6-10) earlier this year. "I think it was just staying confident," Hunter said of his key to bouncing back. "Staying confident in myself and just playing my game." "Today, the shots just fell for me." "When he plays like that, it really helps our team," Brownell added. The Tigers led 47-26 after 20 minutes, shooting 60 percent as a team. Clemson led 16-2 in the first game with FSU and held a 16-3 edge early on Wednesday. Hall finished with a team-best 20 points on 8-of-10 shooting, while Hunter finished with 18 on 7-of-9 shooting. "I think they've done a tremendous job with how they've orchestrated their team," Seminoles head coach Leonard Hamilton said. "Much more physical than we were tonight...I think Brad has done a great job of putting the pieces together. Evaluating the personalities of how he wants to coach and wants to play...They made very few mistakes. Executed their offense...Every time we faltered, Clemson made us pay." The Seminoles were missing leading scorer Matthew Cleveland (14 PPG; back spasms). The Tigers hit double-digit 3-pointers for the seventh time this season (12). Clemson came into the game tagged as the last team in ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi’s projected NCAA Tournament field. A win over the Seminoles is qualified for just the lowest tier of the NCAA’s NET quadrant system, at Tier 4, however. Clemson completed its first regular-season sweep of the Seminoles since the 2009-10 season. The Tigers also notched a fifth win in the last seven in the series against FSU. "Terrific performance by our team. Played really good on both ends. Shot it really well, which always helps," Brownell said. "Just a terrific performance. Every once in a while you have a performance like this...I'm pleased with our guys and how we bounced back and now we've got to take it on the road." The Tigers now sit a half-game back of third place and a full-game back of Virginia and Pitt, which are tied for first in the ACC standings. "We're still in it. We're right there," Brownell said. "It's where you want to be. You want to play meaningful games in March. That's what this team has done. I told my team this week, I put up a calendar from Richmond to Duke and we were 7-0 and worked really hard in that time and a lot of that time was in the break when we were going 2-a-days (on practices). I just kinda reminded our guys, the reason you're still playing from special things right now is because that five-week period -- you guys, alls you thought about was Clemson basketball. We really poured into and had an incredible five weeks. "You get back to school and a lot of things happen and distractions of that and injuries and all that that can sidetrack you, in a long season you can get sidetracked -- it happens to most teams. But you're still in a position to play for something special. But we need to have a good week. We've started well in the first half of that and now we have to play well on Saturday." Clemson heads back on the road to ACC last-place Louisville on Saturday (7 p.m./ACCN), who lost to Clemson by 13 on Jan. 11 in Littlejohn. AND ONE @ian_schieffelin #ClemsonGRIT pic.twitter.com/VcrCp4Op10 We see you, Chase!!@chunt3r2 knocks down his second three pointer of the half and now has 14 points #ClemsonGRIT pic.twitter.com/iHPT3iiRiJ
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