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Clemson Basketball: How can the Tigers turn it around?

By Shawn Spencer

DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 05: Teammates Marcquise Reed #2 and Shelton Mitchell #4 of the Clemson Tigers react after a play against the Duke Blue Devils during their game at Cameron Indoor Stadium on January 05, 2019 in Durham, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 05: Teammates Marcquise Reed #2 and Shelton Mitchell #4 of the Clemson Tigers react after a play against the Duke Blue Devils during their game at Cameron Indoor Stadium on January 05, 2019 in Durham, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /
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The Clemson basketball team has started out conference play with three-straight losses. How can the Tigers turn it around?

It’s not too late, but time is certainly running out.

Clemson basketball couldn’t find a way to win any of its first three games in ACC play. The Tigers lost by 20+ against top-four teams Duke and UVA and weren’t able to find a way to beat the zone in a tough loss to Syracuse on the road.

The path isn’t any easier as we move forward, either.

Clemson (10-6, 0-3 in ACC play) will now face Georgia Tech at home Wednesday before going on the road to face two top-15 teams in Florida State and NC State. The Tigers then will get Pittsburgh and Wake Forest at home before going on the road to face Georgia Tech for a second time.

That will bring us to the midway point of the conference season.

So, what will it take for the Tigers to turn it around?

The bright side is that it’s still early. There’s still plenty of time to find a way to get things rolling and still make the NCAA Tournament.

Unfortunately for Clemson, though, there are a ton of tough games left on the schedule and the Tigers just aren’t playing well.

Clemson is struggling from three-point range and there just doesn’t seem to be much continuity offensively. Defensively, the Tigers have been inconsistent and are currently one of the worst three-point defending teams in the nation.

You’ve got to get those things fixed and they need to be done quickly.

As far as the schedule goes, you can go ahead and mark this upcoming Georgia Tech game as a ‘must-win,’ in my opinion. After that, it’d be really good to see the Tigers split FSU and NC State. After that, you need to find a way to win both Pitt and Wake Forest.

If you were able to go on the road and beat Georgia Tech for a second time, you’d be sitting at 5-4 after the first nine.

Next. 2018 Final Positional Grades: Quarterbacks. dark

To me, that’s the road. At the very least, the Tigers need to be 4-5 at the nine-game mark, but you’d really rather see 5-4. To make the NCAA Tournament, typically you need to have at least a 10-8, most of the time 11-7 record in ACC play, especially with the non-conference that Clemson played this season.

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