Game 22: Clemson at Virginia Notes |
Game 22: Clemson Tigers vs. Virginia Cavaliers
Tipoff: 8: 07 PM Site: University Hall (9,500) City: Charlottesville, VA TV: Raycom/ Jefferson Pilot Tim Brant, Play-by-Play Billy Packer, Color Radio: Clemson Tiger Sports Properties (Jim Phillips, Tim Bourret) Clemson Head Coach: Larry Shyatt (College of Wooster, 1973) Overall (Sixth season): 87-88 .497 At Clemson (Fifth season): 68-79 .463 vs. Virginia: 3-6 .333 Clemson Staff: Darren Tillis (Paul Quinn College, 1996; fifth season); Bobby Hussey (Appalachian State, 1963; fifth season); Matt Driscoll (Slippery Rock, 1992; fifth season). Assistant to the AD/ Basketball Operations: Bruce Martin (Clemson, 1994). Strength Coach: Shannon Patterson (Taylor, 1996). Athletic Trainer: J. "Raz" Razayeski (Georgia Tech, 1994). Virginia Head Coach: Pete Gillen (Fairfield '68) Overall (18th season): 358-186 .658 At Virginia (5th year): 84-58 .592 vs. Clemson: 6-3 .667 Virginia Assistants: Walt Fuller, Alexis Sherard, Rod Jensen CLEMSON (13-8, 3-7 ACC) Virginia (14-9, 5-6 ACC)
14 Chey Christie 6-4 178 So. G 22 Todd Billet 6-0 192 Jr.
Notes
° Edward Scott has scored 46 points over his last two
games, including 25 in a victory over North Caro-lina
on Feb. 15. It was his sixth 20-point game of
the season, and 13th of his career. Scott became
the sixth Clemson player in history to start 100
games when he started against Duke on Feb. 9.
He needs five rebounds to become the ninth player
in ACC history to reach 1000 points, 500 assists
and 400 rebounds in a career.
° Clemson shot 55 percent from the field, including 43
percent from three-point range in the win over North
Carolina. Clemson also had a 42-27 advantage in
rebounding, including a 23-7 advantage in the sec-ond
half.
° Senior Tomas Nagys is coming off a perfect shoot-ing
game, 3-3 from the field and 8-8 from the line, in
the win over North Carolina. He scored 15 points,
four under his career high of 19. Nagys had the 19
points at Virginia two years ago. Nagys is 11-19
from the field and 15-18 from the foul line in his career
against Virginia.
° Clemson won the first meeting with the Cavaliers, a
78-77 victory. It was Clemson's first one-point victory
in any game since the 1991-92 season. Olu
Babalola made two free throws with 5.7 seconds
left to give Clemson the victory.
° Clemson has three ACC wins this year and all three
have been by three points or less. This is the first
time since the 1988-89 season that Clemson has
won three ACC games by three points or less in the
same season.
° Clemson has improved its perimeter defense in
recent weeks. Over the last four games opponents
are just 25-90 on three-point shots.
° When Clemson defeated North Carolina 80-77 on
Feb. 15 it gave head coach Larry Shyatt a 3-2 record
at home against the Tar Heels. He is the only
Clemson coach with a winning home record against
the Tar Heels.
° Sophomore forward Olu Babalola has scored 23
points over the last two games. He has made 8 of
his last 15 field goals. He had a career high tying
eight rebounds in the win over North Carolina.
° Sharrod Ford, who has had 11 points and nine re-bounds
against North Carolina, has made 7 of his
last 9 field goals. He is shooting 59 percent for the
year, best on the Clemson team among players who
have taken at least 50 shots.
° Clemson scored 80 points against North Carolina,
its top scoring game in 2003. The Tigers scored 48
points in the second half, its high scoring half in an
ACC game since last year's 118-115 game with
Wake Forest. The Tigers scored 48 points in the
second half of that game.
SERIES NOTES
Overall: Virginia leads 59-45
At Virginia: Virginia leads 35-14
at Clemson: Clemson leads 30-19
at neutral: Virginia leads 5-1
This Year: Clemson 78, Virginia 77
Jan. 18 at Clemson Streak: Clemson has won 2 of 3
Virginia has won 5 in row at Charlottesville
Last Year at VA: Virginia won 85-71
Larry Shyatt
° Just the fourth coach in ACC history to lead a
program to 20 wins in his first season (20-15 in
1998-99) with a program.
°Led Clemson to a 9-0 start to the 2002-03 season,
Clemson's best start since 1995-96.
°Has 3-2 record vs. North Carolina in games at
Clemson, only Tiger coach with winning record at
home vs. Tar Heels. Also Clemson's winningest
coach against the Tar Heels on career basis.
°Led Clemson to the NIT championship game of
1999, the first time Clemson has been to the finals
of a postseason tournament (non-conference)
°Has coached a guard who has made an All-ACC
team each of his five years at Clemson. That
includes ACC scoring leaders Terrell McIntyre
(1998-99) and Will Solomon (1999-00).
°Has coached 16 players at Cleveland State, New
Mexico, Providence and Clemson who have gone
on to play in the NBA. The list includes former
Clemson players Greg Buckner, Harold Jamison,
Devin Gray and Will Solomon.
°Has coached with a Division I program that has
gone to postseason play 15 of the last 19 years.
°Named Western Athletic Conference Mountain
Division Coach of the year at Wyoming in 1997-98,
his only year as head coach at that school.
°Has been an assistant coach at Utah, Cleveland
State, New Mexico, Providence and Clemson prior
to his head coaching career.
°Associate Head Coach of Clemson's 1996-97 team
that reached the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament
before losing to Minnesota in double overtime. That
Clemson team defeated five top 25 teams that year
and was ranked as high as #2 in the nation, the
highest ranking in Clemson history.
°Has upset a top five team each of the last two
years, including victory over a #1 North Carolina
team in 2000-01. It was just the second time in
history that Clemson has beaten a #1 team.
*His 2001-02 Clemson team led the ACC in
rebounding, the first time Clemson had done that
since 1984-85. Has coached three of the top 10
rebounding teams in Clemson history.
Shyatt Year by Year as a Head Coach
Year School Rec Post 1997-98 Wyoming 19-9 NIT-First Round 1998-99 Clemson 20-15 NIT-Finals 1999-00 Clemson 10-20 2000-01 Clemson 12-19 2001-02 Clemson 13-17 2002-03 Clemson 13-8
Totals at Clemson 67-79
Overall 87-88
Clemson Downs North Carolina Edward Scott scored 25 points and
Tomas Nagys added 15 off the bench thanks to perfect shooting from the field and the line,
leading Clemson to an 80-77 victory over North Carolina on Feb. 15. It marked the third time
in five years Clemson has defeated the Tar Heels in Littlejohn Coliseum, the first time
Clemson had gained three wins over the Tar Heels in that time period since 1977-80.
Each team placed four players in double figures. Joining Scott and Nagys in
double figures for Clemson were forward Olu Babalola and center Sharrod Ford, who scored
11 points apiece. Ford also had nine rebounds and shot 5-6 from the field, while Babalola hit
4-6 shots and added a career high tying eight rebounds.
Raymond Felton led North Carolina with 19 points and seven assists against just
one turnover. Jackie Manuel added 16, including 14 in the second half, while Rashad
McCants scored 15 and Jawad Williams added 14.
Clemson overcame a five-point halftime deficit, just the fourth time in the last
51 years that Clemson has overcome a halftime deficit to defeat the Tar Heels.
Clemson shot 55 percent from the field for the game, including 44 percent on three-point
goals. The Tigers won the rebound battle 42-27, including a 23-7 advantage in the second
half. Scott scored 18 points in the second
half on the way to his 25-point performance. Nagys was 3-3 from the field and 8-8 from the
foul line in his 23 minutes of play. The Tigers scored 48 points in the second half, its top
scoring output for a half in an ACC game all year and its third best half of the season.
North Carolina led most of the first half and held a 37-32 lead at intermission. The
Tar Heels had 14 offensive rebounds in that first half and forced 12 Clemson turnovers.
The Tar Heels took 41 shots in the first half to just 19 by Clemson. The Tar Heels took 22
three-point shots in the first half. North Carolina increased the
advantage to 39-32 at the open of the second half and looked like they were going to take a
commanding lead. But, Clemson freshman Shawan Robinson, a freshman from Raleigh,
and Scott connected on consecutive three-point goals to bring Clemson back to within one
point.
The two teams exchanged the lead for most of the second half. Over the last 15
minutes of the game, Clemson's largest lead was three points and North Carolina's was five.
For the game there were 17 lead changes and 13 ties.
North Carolina held a 71-67 lead with 5: 39 left. But, Nagys scored two free throws
and Robinson made his second three-point goal of the game with 4: 24 left to put the Tigers up
72-71. It was 75-75 with two minutes left before Babalola hit a jumper with 1: 37 left to give
Clemson a two-point lead. North Carolina tied the game on the next possession on two free
throws by Felton. Clemson then took a 79-77 lead on
two more free throws by Nagys with 51 seconds left, who had rebounded a Scott miss.
After a North Carolina failed possession, Scott made one of two free throws. Felton had a shot
to tie the game with one second left, but it missed and Clemson had a three-point victory.
Shyatt Winningest Tiger Coach vs. Tar Heels When Clemson defeated North
Carolina on Feb. 15 it gave Tiger Head Coach Larry Shyatt a 3-2 record against the Tar Heels
in Littlejohn Coliseum. Shyatt is the only coach in Clemson history with a winning record
over the Tar Heels in Clemson's home arena. Shyatt defeated the Tar Heels his first year by
15 points, by 10 points over a number-one ranked North Carolina team his third year, and
then the three-pointer last Saturday in his fifth year.
Shyatt also has the best overall winning percentage by a Clemson coach
against North Carolina. Shyatt is 3-8 for his career against North Carolina, a .273 winning
percentage. He is ahead of Bobby Roberts, who was 4-13 during his Clemson career that
covered the 1963-70 era. That computes to a .235 winning percentage.
Shyatt is one win away from tying the Clemson coaching record for overall victories
over the Tar Heels. Roberts and Cliff Ellis both had four wins over North Carolina. Roberts got
two wins at Clemson and two wins in Charlotte at the North-South Doubleheader. Ellis had all
four of his wins over North Carolina in Littlejohn Coliseum.
Nagys Pitches Perfect Game
Clemson senior Tomas Nagys had his best game of the season and one of the top all-around
games of his career in the Tigers victory over North Carolina on Feb. 15. Nagys came
off the bench to score 15 points and pull down six rebounds in just 23 minutes. He made 3-3
field goals, 1-1 from three-point land and 8-8 from the foul line. Five of his six rebounds were
offensive. The point total was his high figure for the year and his best since he scored 18 in the
ACC Tournament against Florida State last year.
Nagys has been very productive this season. He has made 24-36 field goals for
66.7 percent and has missed just six of his 35 free throw attempts, a 83 percent accuracy rate.
Last week in two games against rivals South Carolina and North Carolina, Nagys scored 23
points and had 13 rebounds in 42 minutes of play. Two weeks ago he had nine points and
four rebounds in 23 minutes in Clemson's win over Georgia Tech.
In each victory he scored two free throws inside the last 90 seconds of the game
that proved to be key to the Clemson victory.
Scott Scored 46 Points Last Week
Clemson senior guard Edward Scott
had one of his most productive weeks as a Clemson basketball player. In a loss to South
Carolina and a victory over North Carolina the native of Eastover, SC scored 46 points, had
five assists and seven rebounds. He made 14-32 field goals, including 6-9 three-point
attempts and 12-15 free throws. His 25-point outing in the three-point
win over North Carolina was one of the most impressive of his 105-game career. It was his
second highest scoring game this year, as he connected on 9-17 field goals, including 3-4
three-point goals. He scored 18 points in the second half to help Clemson overcome a five-point
halftime deficit. It marked just the second time in his career that he had back-to-back 20-
point scoring games.
Scott Ranked in Many Categories Senior guard Edward Scott is now
ranked in the top 10 in seven statistical categories in Clemson history. His list includes
a number-two ranking in minutes/ game and a number-three ranking in total assists.
Scott's 46 points last week moved him to 19 th in Clemson history in scoring. He
now has 1088 points, a 10.4 average. He has 554 total assists, an average of 5.3 per game.
He is one of just two players in Clemson history to average at least 10
points and five assists per game over the course of a career, given a minimum of two
years and 50 games played. Chris Whitney averaged 14.6 points and 6.1 assists for his 58
games as a Tiger between 1991-93. He is the only other Clemson player to accomplish this
double.
Scott on Clemson Career Lists
°2nd in Minutes/ Game 35.2
°3rd in total assists 554
°3rd in assists/ game 5.3
°5th in total minutes played 3701
°5th in assist/ turnover ratio 1.88
°6th in games started 102
°8th in three-point goals 112
°11th steals 118
°19th in scoring 1088
Clemson Frontcourt Makes a Difference Clemson's four inside players
combined to shoot 10-13 from the field, score 32 points and pull in 24 rebounds Clemson's
80-77 victory over North Carolina on Feb. 15. It was not a surprise that post players Sharrod
Ford, Tomas Nagys, Ray Henderson and Chris Hobbs had such a strong game in a Clemson
victory. In Clemson's 13 victories this year the
foursome has shot 64 percent from the field (151-236) and scored 35.7 points per game. In
the eight losses this year, the foursome has shot just 46.4 percent (64-138) and scored just
21.5 points per game. In the first meeting against Virginia this year, the foursome had a
strong game, shooting 12-19 from the field. They combined to score 31 of Clemson's 78
points in the 78-77 Tiger victory.
Clemson vs. Virginia Series
°Virginia holds a 59-45 advantage in
the series with Clemson, a series that dates to 1936 when Clemson won at Charlottesville, 45-
34. That was the only meeting between the two teams prior to the formation of the ACC. Since
1955 Clemson and Virginia have met at least twice per season.
°Virginia had won four straight meetings prior to the Clemson win at Littlejohn
last year. Virginia has just an 8-7 lead over the last 15 meetings, including Clemson's 78-77
win earlier this year at Clemson. ïLarry Shyatt has three wins over Virginia, the
78-77 win earlier this year, the 68-52 win earlier last year over a top five Virginia team, and a 88-
65 win at Clemson in 1998-99, his first year as Clemson coach.
°Clemson's win over Virginia earlier this year was noteworthy. Clemson won the
game 78-77, the schools first one-point victory since the 1991-92 season when it defeated
Florida State 68-67 in a game at Clemson.
Clemson had lost nine consecutive games decided by one point. It was also a landmark occasion in that Clemson had posted a
3-15 record in games decided by five points or less over the last 30 years against Virginia prior to that game.
°For a period of time the series featured many close games. In the 1980s, 11 games were decided by five points or less, including nine
that were decided by two or one point. In the 1990s, just five were decided by five or less.
Tigers 3-21 at University Hall since 1978-79 University Hall has been a building of horrors for Clemson the
last 24 years. Clemson has a 3-21 record in the building since 1978-79 and all three wins have come in special seasons.
The Tigers won in 1987 (on Valentine's Day) by a 94-90 score thanks to a late three-point goal in overtime by Horace Grant, the only
three-point goal of his career, and with the help of a late four-point play by Anthony Jenkins. Clemson finished with a school record 25 wins that
year. In 1990, Clemson gained victory 76-70 behind Dale Davis and
Elden Campbell. Cliff Ellis's Tigers claimed the school's only ACC regular season championship that year. In 1996-97, the Tigers defeated
a 25th-ranked Virginia team, 62-52. That Clemson team, went on to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament and won 23 games.
There have been some unusual shooting games for Clemson in the building. The two worst shooting games in Clemson history have
taken place in University Hall. In Cliff Ellis's final season, the Tigers shot just 15-63 in the building, .238, the worst shooting performance in
Clemson history, in a 50-44 loss. A storm hit the Charlottesville area the day before the game and prohibited Clemson from arriving on Friday for
the Saturday game. Clemson went to the Anderson Airport at 8: 00 AM on Saturday, flew to Charlottesville, went straight to the arena for the
12: 00 Noon game, shot 24 percent, and returned to Clemson by 6: 00 PM.
The next year, Rick Barnes's first season, Clemson made just 12-50, and the .240 is the second worst field goal percentage in
Clemson history. In 1993 at Virginia, Clemson scored just 16 points in the first
half on 6-36 shooting, then scored 66 in the second half, the highest scoring second half in Clemson history in an ACC game, but still lost 100-
82. In 1984 at Charlottesville, Clemson shot .675 from the field on
27-40 shooting, but still suffered defeat 77-70. That is the second highest field goal percentage in school history in a loss. Clemson was
16-20 from the field at the half in that game (80 percent), but still trailed at intermission by seven (40-33).
First Meeting between Clemson and Virginia
Clemson 78, Virginia 77
January 18, 2003
Sophomore forward Olu Babalola made two free throws with
5.7 seconds remaining, leading Clemson to a 78-77 victory over Virginia on January 18, 2003 at Clemson's Littlejohn Coliseum. It was the first
time in 11 years that Clemson had won a game by a point and just the fourth time in the last 30 years that Clemson defeated Virginia in a game
decided by five points or less. The contest was played at a high level offensively as both
teams shot at least 55 percent from the field, the first time that had happened in a Clemson game since 1998. The two teams combined for
just 23 turnovers in the contest. Clemson had three players in double figures, while three others
scored nine. Chey Christie led the way with 16 points, including six inside the last five minutes of play. Edward Scott added 13 points and
eight assists, while Sharrod Ford made 5-7 shots and scored 10 points. Virginia was led by junior guard Todd Billet, who had narrowed his
college choices to Clemson and Rutgers coming out of high school. The transfer in his first year with the Cavaliers scored 25 points on 7-11 three-point
shooting. Travis Watson, who entered the game averaging a double-double, had 12 points and eight rebounds. Elton Brown had 16
points in just 18 minutes. Virginia made 29-49 shots from the field for 59.2 percent. It
was the highest opponent field goal percentage in a Clemson victory since an NC State game in Raleigh in February of 1998.
Clemson made 31-56 from the field for 55.4 percent. It was the sixth time this year that Clemson had reached the 50 percent mark, more
than any other ACC school. Clemson won the points in the paint statistic 46-30, the 13 th straight game Clemson has had the upper hand in
that area.
Clemson jumped out to a 10-6 lead early as Clemson made 4-6 to open the game. Virginia opened just 2 for 6, but then made eight of
its next 11 and held a 27-18 lead at the 6: 52 mark on a driving layup by Billet. Clemson then made nine straight field goal attempts and 10 of its
last 11 of the half to cut the margin to 43-42 at intermission. Edward Scott nailed a 25-foot three-point goal at the buzzer to end the half. Both
teams shot over 64 percent in the first half. Clemson missed its first seven shots of the second half, but
by the first media timeout held a 47-45 advantage. The game went back and forth in the second half. Clemson took a 55-50 lead at the 12: 03
mark on a layup by Chris Hobbs, but Virginia came right back with five points in23 seconds to tie the game again.
There were 10 ties and 13 lead changes for the game overall, including three ties and five lead changes inside the last five minutes.
Clemson tied the game at 74 with 1: 33 left on a drive and jumper by Christie. Edward Scott then stripped the ball from Watson and the ball
went out of bounds off the senior forward's foot. Christie then made another shot from the paint with 49 seconds left to give Clemson a 76-74
lead. But, on the next possession, Billett answered with a three-pointer
with 33 seconds left. Clemson held the ball for a last possession. Scott missed a jumper, but Babalola got the offensive
rebounds and went back towards the basket. He was fouled by Brown. Babalola, who was 1-3 from the line in the game prior to his final trip to
the stripe, then made both free throws to give Clemson a one-point lead. A 20-foot jumper by Keith Jenifer was a bit long and Christie claimed the
rebound and the victory.
Two Active Tigers Have Career Highs vs. Cavs
Two veteran Clemson frontcourt players have registered their
career highs against Virginia, one in a game at Clemson, one in a game at Charlottesville. Both took place in the same year.
Chris Hobbs scored 28 points on 10-13 field goal shooting and had nine rebounds in a loss to Virginia at Clemson in 2000-01. He did
that in just 31 minute of play. It was the most points by a Clemson freshman since Terrell McIntyre scored 29 against Florida State in 1995-
96. Hobbs, a 46 percent free throw shooter this year, made 8-9 in that game from the line. Hobbs, a 63.5 percent career free throw shooter, is
19-22 from the line over his career against Virginia. Tomas Nagys registered his career high against Virginia in the
2000-01 season, his sophomore year, in a game at Charlottesville. He played a productive 21 minutes and scored 19 points on 5-7 shooting.
He was also 7-8 from the foul line and added a career high nine rebounds. Nagys, a 70 percent career free throw shooter, is 15-18 from
the foul line over his career against the Cavaliers.
Last Year at Virginia
Virginia 85, Clemson 71
February 10, 2002 at University Hall
Virginia used a 15-0 run during a three-minute spurt in the
second half and went on to an 85-71 victory over Clemson in Charlottesville on Feb. 10, 2002. The Virginia victory avenged
Clemson's 16-point win at Littlejohn Coliseum on January 8. The 10 th ranked Cavaliers won the points off turnover statistic 25-11, the exact
margin of the final outcome. Clemson was led in scoring by Jamar McKnight with 18 points.
He had scored 25 points against the Cavaliers in Clemson's win over a fifth-ranked Virginia team earlier in the season. Chris Hobbs added 15
points, his high point total since January 15, while Chey Christie added 14 points, his high figure since December 2.
Edward Scott played 39 minutes with a stomach virus and had eight points, eight assists and a game high seven rebounds. Clemson
starters Tony Stockman and Ray Henderson were held to five points total between them.
Clemson shot a solid 48.2 percent from the field, 33 percent on three-point shots and 69 percent from the line. The Cavaliers shot 48.1
percent from the field, but hit 26-33 free throws. Virginia made 10 more free throws than Clemson attempted, and held the rebound advantage
34-30. The turnover margin was just 15-11, but as said above, Virginia scored 25 points off the 15 Clemson turnovers while Clemson averaged
just one point for every turnover it forced. Virginia was led by Roger Mason, Jr with 23 points, while
Travis Watson scored 20 and had 10 rebounds. Chris Williams, who did not score in the game at Clemson, added 18 points and four assists.
Virginia jumped out to a15-5 lead early, but Clemson battled back to make it a 27-25 game on a three-point goal by Christie. It was a
one-point game at 33-32 on a three-point goal by Jamar McKnight with
4: 30 to go in the half. Virginia led 44-39 at intermission behind 12 points by Mason and Watson, who made just his second three-point goal of the
year. Five different Virginia players made at least one three-point goal in the first eight minutes. The Cavs had shot 2-25 from long range in the
first meeting. Clemson tied the game at 50-50 with 15: 05 left on a three-point
goal by McKnight. Virginia called timeout and turned up their pressure. The Cavs went on a 15-0 run to take a 65-50 lead. Williams had five and
Mason had four during the run in which Clemson committed four turnovers. Clemson never closed to within double figures the rest of the
way.
Shyatt, Gillen Both Coached at Providence
Larry Shyatt and Pete Gillen have a common school in their
history. Both coached with the Providence Friars. Shyatt was an assistant under Rick Barnes from 1988-94 and was on the staff that won
the only Big East Tournament Championship in the school's history. Gillen was the head coach at Providence after Barnes left and took the
Friars to the Final Eight of the NCAA Tournament in 1997. Gillen ended up coaching many of the players Shyatt had recruited to Providence,
including first-round draft choice Austin Croshere.
Scott Over 100 Career Starts
Clemson senior point guard Edward Scott became just the
sixth player in Clemson history to start 100 games in a career when he started at Duke on Feb. 9. He will make his 103rd when the Tigers take
on Virginia in Charlottesville on Feb. 18. Scott, who came to Clemson after an outstanding career at
Lower Richland High in Columbia, SC, joined Greg Buckner (122), Terrell McIntyre (112), Tree Rollins (110), Tom Wideman (109), and
Vincent Hamilton (105) as the only Tigers in history with at least 100 starts. Tuesday's game will be Scott's 106th career game overall, as he
has come off the bench just three times in his career, all as a freshman in 1999-00.
Entering the game on Tuesday, Scott has started and played in 63 consecutive games dating to January 24, 2001 when he missed a
game against Georgia Tech due to the flu. He has started each of the last 92 games that he has played in. The last time he came off the bench
was at NC State in 1999-00, a game Clemson won in Raleigh. Scott is one of the ironmen of Clemson basketball and the
ACC. He leads the conference in minutes per game with 38.4 this year, as he has played the complete game nine times this year, more than any
other ACC player. For his career he has played the complete game 16 times and averages 35.2 minutes per game and a total of 3701 minutes.
He is now fifth in Clemson history in total minutes played trailing only Terrell McIntyre (4200), Grayson Marshall (4064), Greg Buckner (3954)
and Vincent Hamilton (3906).
Clemson Defense Improved
Since its worst defensive performance of the year at NC State,
Clemson has come back strong on that end of the court against Georgia Tech and Duke. The Tigers allowed NC State to shoot 57 percent from
the field, including 68 percent in the second half of its 22-point loss in Raleigh. The Tigers used a zone defense much of that game and the
Pack hit 14-31 three-point goals. In the last four games Clemson has been predominantly a
man-to-man team. As a result, the opposition has made just 25 of 90 three-point attempts, a 27.7 percentage. The opposition is 95-232
overall, .409. Duke scored its lowest output of the season (65) and Tech made just 2-15 three-point shots. Duke's .339 field goal percentage
against Clemson was its worst in at least three seasons. For the season, Clemson opponents have made just 42.5
percent from the field and 33.9 percent on three-point shots. This is much improved over last year's overall percentage on defense of 43.6
percent from the field and 37 percent on three-point attempts, respectively.
Scott Chasing 1000-500-400 Club
Only eight players in the 50-year history of the Atlantic Coast
Conference have reached 1000 points, 500 assists and 400 rebounds in a career. Reaching this level in all three categories is certainly a
statistical documentation of a player's all-around abilities and contribution to his team in many areas.
Clemson's Edward Scott has reached two of those levels as he has 552 assists and 1063 points for his 105 games as a Clemson player.
He went over the 1000-point mark against Wake Forest in January. He
went over 500 assists earlier in the year and now needs just five rebounds to reach 400.
Maryland guard Steve Blake reached the club in his team's loss to Virginia at home. The non-active players who have reached this
club are Johnny Dawkins and Danny Ferry of Duke, two members of the ACC's 50-year Anniversary team, Delvon Arrington of Florida State, Ed
Cota of North Carolina and three Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, Tony Akins, Drew Barry and Brian Oliver.
Robinson Continues Production
One of Clemson's most productive players has been freshman
guard Shawan Robinson. The native of Raleigh has shot 50 percent from the field and 49 percent on three-point goals this year. He has also
made 7-10 free throws for 70 percent. He has averaged 4.6 points per game in his 12.3 minutes per game. Only Edward Scott has a better
points-per-minute figure than Robinson. Robinson is trying to become the first Clemson freshman to
shoot at least 50 percent from the field and 70 percent from the foul line since 1986-87 when Elden Campbell did it. Clemson's single season
three-point goal percentage record is .515 by Michael Tait in 1986-87. Clemson uses a minimum of 20 made three-point goals to qualify.
Robinson has made 20-41 so he has qualified for the list. His .488 percentage would be third best in Clemson history if the season ended
today. Robinson has been consistent throughout the year. He is also
shooting 50 percent from the field in ACC games, 44 percent on three-point shots.
If the season ended today, he would be the first perimeter player (given a minimum of 50 field goal attempts) to shoot at least 50
percent from the field since Greg Buckner shot .537 in 1997-98.
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