Earlier today, I questioned who would step up for Clemson Men’s Basketball in the absence of Alex Hemenway’s 9.8 points per game and 32 minutes per game on the court.
The answer on the first part of that was undoubtedly Hunter Tyson, who blistered North Carolina State for 31 points and 15 rebounds in the Tigers 78-64 win on Friday afternoon in Littlejohn Coliseum.
On a day when the balance of the Tigers lineup was iffy from the field, Tyson ripped the cords to the tune of 9-13 overall and 4 of 5 from three-point range, not to mention 9 of 9 from the line.
The second part of the question is a little murkier as both Dillon Hunter and Josh Beadle had their moments, but also showed their lack of experience at times.
Clemson moves to 11-3 on the season and 3-0 in the ACC, in what was likely Clemson’s 2nd most impressive win of the season, behind the Penn State win.
Both teams struggled on the offensive end in the first half, leading to a 28-21 lead at the break for Clemson, but Tyson came out on fire in the 2nd half as Clemson built a 13-point lead.
North Carolina State made several runs, but the Tigers had the answer each time, usually on a play by Tyson.
Clemson Men’s Basketball used a tight rotation, with big bench contributions to defeat the Wolfpack
Clemson played only 9 players on the evening and you could tell they were ragged at times, but Ben Middlebrooks contributed 10 points and 5 rebounds off the bench, while Ian Schieffelin contributed 6 points and 3 rebounds.
Overall Clemson shot 41.7% from the field, 30% from three and 91.7% from the line.
With the help of Tyson’s big day on the boards, Clemson outrebounded the Wolfpack 34-27 for the game, while the Tigers committed only 7 turnovers.
The schedule gets no easier for Brad Brownell’s team as they head to Blacksburg, Va. to take on the Hokies Wednesday night and follow that up with a game at suddenly relevant Pittsburgh next Saturday.
Both of those games are scheduled to be televised on ESPNU.