For most of the first half against TCU in the Coca-Cola Arena in Toronto on Saturday, Clemson Men’s Basketball showed little resemblance to the team we saw over the first eight games of the season.
The Tigers seemed to bend to the Horned Frogs desire to play at a frenetic pace, turning the ball over 10 times (28.6% of possessions), giving up 11 points off those turnovers and allowing 9 fast break points.
Clemson was a putrid 23.1% from three-point range in the first stanza.
Yet, somehow, some way the Tigers led by one at the break.
That’s what this team does.
Whatever Brad Brownell was selling at halftime, the Tigers bought and dominated the second half on their way to a 74-66 win and 9-0 start.
Clemson controlled the second-half tempo from the outset, forcing long possessions from TCU, a team that came into the game in the top 25 in tempo, frustrating the Frogs with their defense and discipline.
Let this sink in Tiger fans: On a night where one of their stars went scoreless on a 0-7 shooting night and the team shot below par overall and from three-point range, Clemson beat a top 50 team on a neutral court and it wasn’t close for a good portion of the second half.
The Tigers were also playing shorthanded, without Alex Hemenway and Jack Clark, but Brownell once again managed the fouls and lineups well.
Joe Girard led the Tigers with 21 points, while P.J. Hall added 17 and Ian Schieffelin added 14 to lead Clemson on offense.
Schieffelin and R.J. Godfrey dominated the glass in the second half, with Schieffelin finishing with 7 offensive rebounds and Godfrey with 3.
7 offensive rebounds for The Schieff tonight, but I’d be remiss I’d I didn’t mention R.J. Godfrey with 10 boards in 23 minutes, including 3 on the offensive end.
— Seldom Used Reserve (@seldomusedres) December 10, 2023
Godfrey finished with 10 total rebounds to Schieffelin’s 9, as the Tigers outrebounded TCU by 5 for the game.
The Tigers finished shooting only 41% from the field and 26% from three, but as has been the case through the first nine games of the season, found a way to win.
We all know how the NET Rankings treated Clemson last season, but in the last 12 days the Tigers have beaten No. 14 Alabama and No. 42 Pittsburgh on the road, No. 29 South Carolina at home and No. 46 TCU in a neutral setting.
Next Saturday the Tigers travel to No. 62 Memphis.
The Tigers are sure to move up in the various polls and rankings with this win and perhaps even more if they can manage a road win next week in Memphis.
Consider this your friendly reminder that a 19 game gauntlet of ACC teams lies ahead and there will be bumps in the road.
That said, this team is a fun watch, unlike the plodding, offensively challenged Brownell teams of the past.
They have multiple scoring options, good size and depth when healthy.
It’s been a heck of a ride so far, but if Tiger fans learned anything last season, it’s for a team like Clemson college basketball is a marathon, not a sprint and every game matters when the calendar turns to March and the committee commences with their hocus pocus.