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Game Notes: Clemson vs. Georgia Tech
Game 23: Clemson vs. Georgia Tech
Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2002 7:00 PM (EST) Littlejohn Coliseum (11,020) Clemson, SC
TV: None
Radio: Clemson Tiger Sports Properties
Cumulative Stats in PDF Format
Game Notes in PDF Format
Player Bios and Stats in PDF Format
500th Game in Littlejohn Coliseum Wednesday Night
Here are some facts about Littlejohn Coliseum through 499 games:
First basket: On Nov. 30, 1968, a jumper by Dave Thomas of Clemson at the 18:37 mark of the first half against Georgia Tech. Named in Honor of: J.C. Littlejohn, a long time Clemson University employee who form many years served as the school's business manager. Record Crowd: 13,863 on Jan. 9, 1980 for a Clemson vs. Duke game. Duke was ranked #1 that night and Clemson pulled off an 87-82 upset in overtime. Longest Clemson Winning Streak: 29 from Jan. 7, 1989 until a Dec. 15, 1991 loss to UNC-Charlotte. Longest Shot by Clemson Player: Halfcourt by Walker Holt vs. Appalachian State, Jan. 19, 2000
Clemson vs. Georgia Tech Series
Earlier This Season Hobbs had a double-double as he added 10 rebounds to his point total. The 25 points tied his season high and his 10 rebounds tied a season high. He connected on 9-15 field goals in the contest. His only disappointing stat line was free throws, where he made just 7-13. McKnight was a perfect 5-5 on field goal attempts in the second half on the way to the second highest point total of his career. He also added a career-high eight rebounds in his productive 32 minutes. Edward Scott added his second straight double-double with 12 points and 11 assists. He also added six rebounds as he continued to grab over five rebounds per game for the season. Tony Stockman scored 11 points and added five assists. Clemson starters scored 79 of the 83 points. Tony Akins led Tech with 20 points, while Marvin Lewis scored 19. Lewis made just 4-13 shots from the field. Clemson shot 51 percent from the field and won the rebound battle, 43-35. Clemson also outscored Tech on fast break points 18-6, and won the second-chance points by a 15-8 margin. The two teams went back and forth over the first half. Clemson had a 29-23 lead on a steal and dunk by freshman Olu Babalola. But, Tech went on a 9-0 run and held a 32-29 lead with 1:13 left on a jumper by Robert Brooks. The score was tied at 34 when Edward Scott hit a 25-foot three-pointer with four seconds left in the half, giving Clemson a 37-34 lead at intermission. His longest career made field goal ended an 0-18 slump from the field for Scott over three games. Scott's shot seemed to give the Tigers momentum as it went into the locker room. Clemson went on a 14-6 run to open the second half to extend the advantage to double figures, 51-40 with 15:21 left. The margin grew to 14 points at 57-43 on a layup inside by Hobbs, who scored nine points in the first eight minutes of the second half. Tech closed the margin to three points at 70-67 with five minutes left, but that was as close as the Yellow Jackets could get. A three-point goal by Scott with 3:10 left gave Clemson a seven-point lead and the margin grew back to 10 points with 40 seconds left on a free throw by Ray Henderson. Tony Akins hit a three-point goal at the buzzer to bring the margin back to seven points.
Clemson Wins at Tech in Football and Basketball Earlier this year Clemson defeated Georgia Tech on the gridiron at Grant Field, 47-44, in overtime. At the end of the first half of that game, Clemson quarterback Woodrow Dantzler scored on a 38-yard run on the last play of the half, giving Clemson momentum going into the locker room. Edward Scott recorded the basketball version of that play when he made a 25-foot three-point shot to end the first half of the basketball game on Jan. 5. Clemson went on to win the basketball game by a touchdown, 83-76.
Last Year vs. Tech at Littlejohn Clemson was playing without starting center Adam Allenspach, who missed his second straight game with a back ailment, and starting point guard Edward Scott, who missed the game with a case of the flu. Alvin Jones had perhaps his finest all-around game at Tech as the senior had 26 points, seven rebounds and six assists in 30 minutes. Jones, a 61.5 percent free throw shooter entering the game, made 14-19 from the foul line. He was supported by Shaun Fein, who made 7-9 three-point shots and scored 23 points in just 25 minutes. Halston Lane scored 17 points in just 21 minutes off the bench to provide support. Both teams shot over 50 percent from the field overall and from three-point land. Both teams scored at least 50 points in each half. Tech made 17-31 three-point shots, a school record for three-point goals in a game, while Clemson made 14-28, the third most made three-point goals in Clemson history. The Tigers made 34-42 from the foul line, including 14 in a row to open the game, and 81 percent for the contest. It was just the second time since 1969 that Clemson made 34 free throws, yet lost the game. Tony Stockman supported Solomon with 20 points and six assists. He scored 18 points in the second half. Pasha Bains scored 12 points, all in the second half, on a perfect 4-4 shooting night. Starting center Ray Henderson added 12 points, including a career best 6-6 from the foul line. Both teams scored in bunches. Tech scored 36 points in the first 10 minutes and had a 14-point lead. It was a 16-point lead at 48-32 at the 6:12 mark on a three-point shot by Lane. Tech made 13 of 20 three-point goals in the first half alone, but the Tigers scored 23 points in the last 7:21 to get within six at intermission. Solomon scored 26 points in the first half for the Tigers, but he could not counteract the three-point shooting by Tech. The Yellow Jackets had five different players make at least two three-point goals in the first half alone. Clemson again fell behind by 16 in the second half, first at 92-76, then by a 97-81 score with 6:49 left. But, Clemson scored 27 points in the last 6:42 of the game. A Pasha Bains three-point goal with 1:23 left cut the margin to 105-104. It was 110-108 with 25 seconds left when Clemson got the ball back with a chance to tie, but Will Solomon's jumper missed. Solomon had a three-pointer to tie with five seconds left, but the shot missed and Tech held on. Clemson saw both of its top big men, Ray Henderson and Chris Hobbs, foul out, but Clemson still won the rebound battle, 36-27. Tech scored 111 points, but starting point guard Tony Akins did not score before he fouled out. The 108 points were the most by the Tigers in the Larry Shyatt era, the most by any Clemson team since the Tigers scored 120 in a 120-103 win over Charleston Southern in 1993-94. That is the only game in Clemson history in which more points were scored by both teams combined.
Last Time Out Duke also had five players in double figures. In fact, 93 of Duke's 98 points were scored by the starters. All-American Jason Williams had his best ever game against Clemson with 28 points and seven assists to go with six rebounds. Mike Dunleavy added 22 points and seven rebounds. Chris Duhon scored 15 and Dahntay Jones added 16. Both teams played at a high level offensively. The Tigers hit 48.7 percent from the field, including 51.4 percent in the second half when Clemson outscored the Blue Devils 49-48. Duke shot 49.2 percent from the field and hit 11-28 three-point goals, including 9-20 in the first half. Clemson won the rebound battle 39-35, but the Tigers committed 20 turnovers. The two teams were tied in the first nine minutes of the game at 18-18. Duke then went on a 16-4 run to take a 34-22 lead with 6:53 left. Duke got consecutive three-point goals by Daniel Ewing, Jason Williams and Mike Dunleavy to highlight the streak. Duke got the lead to 50-35 with 16 seconds left, but the Tigers scored four points in the last second on a field goal by Sharrod Ford, then a followup by Hobbs when Ford missed a free throw in his attempt at a three-point play. Clemson battled back from the 11-point halftime deficit to tie the score at 60 with 13:54 left. Edward Scott and Tony Stockman combined to score 17 points over the first six minutes of the second half to get Clemson back in the game. Clemson took a 66-65 lead with 11:23 left on a layup by Tomas Nagys. Duke took the lead back by six points at 75-69 before Clemson cut the margin to 77-76 with five minutes left. But, the Tigers went cold, missing five straight field goal attempts once the clock got inside the five-minute mark. Duke went on a 13-2 run to take a 90-78 lead with 1:41 left. A dunk by Dahntay Jones with 3:26 left was a key during the streak. Clemson scored 10 points in the last 1:31, but it was not enough as Duke gained the 10-point victory, its 20th win of the season.
Clemson Has Played Well vs. Duke and Maryland
McKnight Stats Much Improved Last year, McKnight scored just 68 points and had 25 rebounds all year in 20 games. This year he has 262 points and 87 rebounds in 20 games. He missed two games due to injury earlier this year and played just two minutes in a third. He averaged 3.4 points and 1.3 rebounds per contest year ago. Thus, McKnight has tripled his scoring average and rebound average between his junior and senior seasons. McKnight might have played his best game as a Tiger when Clemson defeated Georgia Tech in Atlanta on Jan. 5. The native of Zachery, LA who was playing in front of family and friends who had made the trip from Louisiana, had 22 points and eight rebounds in 32 minutes of play. He made his last five shots from the field and shot 9-12 overall. He added to his growing fan base with a 25-point performance against fifth-ranked Virginia. McKnight made 9-20 shots from the field, 3-7 on three-pointers and scored 18 points in the second half. He scored six of Clemson's final 10 points down the stretch. He did not have a turnover in his 33 minutes of work and added seven rebounds, one off his career high. Most junior college transfers make improvement from year one to year two. But, McKnight is doing it at a record pace. Billy Williams holds the Clemson standard for scoring average improvement for a junior college transfer from his first year to his second. Williams average went from 5.6 a game in 1977-78 to 13.2 in 1978-79, a 7.6 points per game improvement. He went on to average 17.6 a game and earn first-team All-ACC honors in 1979-80. McKnight stands at a 9.7 points per game improvement this year over last season, so he is ahead of Williams improvement rate. The overall Clemson record for improvement in scoring from one season to another is held by Will Solomon, who improved by 14.6 points a game from his freshman year to his sophomore year. That is an ACC record.
Jamar McKnight Improvement Chart Category 2000-01 2001-02 Points/Game 3.4 13.1 Rebounds/Game 1.3 4.4 Field goal % .429 .480 3Pt FGs/Game 0.45 1.79 3pt Goal % .391 .407 Minutes/Game 9.4 24.7
Clemson Enters February Clemson is just 7-33 over the last five years in January, including this year. That includes a 2-6 record in January 1998, a year Clemson went on to make the NCAA Tournament. Clemson has had a better record in February than January each of the last four years. Larry Shyatt hopes the trend continues this year. The same holds true when comparing the first half of the ACC schedule to the second half. This year the end of the first half coincides with the change from January to February. Over the last four years Clemson is 6-26 in games played in the first half of the ACC schedule, but 12-20 in the second half of the league schedule. In other words Clemson has a winning percentage 100 percent better in the second half than the first half. Clemson has had an improved or at least the same record in the second half as compared to the first half 35 of the previous 48 seasons. Clemson has had at least the same record in the second half as compared to the first half in each of the last four years and 10 of the last 12.
Three-Point Shooting Has Been Important North Carolina made 11 three-point goals in its win over Clemson last Sunday, while the Tigers made just five. The six made field goals from three-point range equaled the scoring difference in the game. The same was true in the Duke game on Feb. 2 as the Blue Devils made 11 three-point goals to just six for the Tigers, a 15-point difference, a key to the 10-point Duke victory. When Clemson defeated Virginia this year the Cavs made just 2-25 three-point goals compared to 8-19 for the Tigers. When Wake Forest defeated Clemson in Winston-Salem the Deacs made 9-20, while Clemson was just 3-12. When N.C. State downed Clemson in Littlejohn the Wolfpack made 15-31 threes compared to 5-12 for Clemson. Clemson made 15-28 threes at Maryland, a big reason Clemson was in the game the entire time at College Park. The team with the higher three-point goal percentage has won seven of the last eight Clemson games. Clemson is last in the ACC in three-point shooting, hitting just .316 for the season.
Clemson Schedule Notes
Clifton Has More Steals Than Turnovers This year Clifton has 22 steals, third best on the team and just 16 turnovers. He has a 25/16 assist/turnover ratio for this year.
Character Building Return Trip from Florida State When the plane first arrived in Greenville at 11:30 the bus driver and air crew met and asked each other, "Where is the team?" When the error was discovered, the plane returned to Tallahassee and picked up the Clemson team at 1:30 AM. The team had been waiting at the Tallahassee airport since 10:45 PM. The plane arrived at Greenville at 2:30 AM. The team arrived at Littlejohn Coliseum at 3:30 AM and the Clemson players were back in their rooms a little before 4:00 AM. This is the second year in a row the Clemson team has had to "survive" a rough trip returning from a road game just prior to meeting North Carolina. Last year, after a loss at N.C. State, a game that had begun at 9:00 PM, the team actually boarded the plane in Raleigh, then was told it would have to bus to Clemson due to fog in Anderson and Greenville. The team left the airport in Raleigh at 12:45 PM and arrived back in Clemson at 5:30 AM. Clemson did not have a hangover from that trip, and upset the #1 ranked Tar Heels 75-65 the following Sunday.
Christie and Buckner Return to School Buckner, who has started half the games this year with Dallas and is shooting over 50 percent from the field, played for the Tigers from 1994-98. He was back at Clemson this past summer and will return at the conclusion of the NBA season to finish his degree. Both Buckner and Christie had big contributions to wins over North Carolina in their careers. Buckner made the most famous dunk in Clemson history in the 1996 ACC Tournament when he dunked with six seconds left to give Clemson a 75-73 victory. It is Clemson's only ACC Tournament win over the Tar Heels. Christie scored 15 points in Clemson's 15-point win over a ninth ranked North Carolina team in 1998-99, his senior season.
Clemson at Maryland Review Tony Stockman led the Tigers with 22 points, including 6-13 on three-point goals. Edward Scott contributed 20 points, eight assists and seven rebounds in playing all 40 minutes. The scoring total was his top effort in an ACC game as a Clemson player. Jamar McKnight scored 10 points in the game's first five minutes and finished the game with 19. He also had six rebounds, added a career-high four assists and was 3-4 on three-point shooting. Ray Henderson added his eighth double-double of the season as he collected 11 points, 13 rebounds and three blocked shots. Chris Hobbs had 12 points and nine rebounds to round out Clemson's double-digit scorers. Maryland was led by Juan Dixon with 23 points, while Lonny Baxter added 21. Chris Wilcox was the top Terp overall with 17 points and a game high 14 rebounds. Drew Nicholas added 14 points and six assists off the bench. Steve Blake scored just three points, but had 13 assists in running the Maryland offense. Byron Mouton scored 14 points, including 4-6 on three-point goals. Mouton had made just seven three-point goals all year entering the game. The contest was close throughout as there were 19 lead changes and 13 ties in the game, including 15 lead changes in the first half. Clemson made 7 of its first 8 shots from the field and led 24-23 at the 12:32 mark of the first half. McKnight, Scott and Stockman connected on long-range jumpers, while Maryland scored from the inside. Tiger turnovers were a key in the first half as Maryland had a 19-1 lead in points off turnovers at intermission. It was a 52-48 lead for Maryland at intermission. Clemson made 11-16 three-point attempts in the first half, a school record for made three-point goals in a half. Maryland pushed the lead to 11 points at 62-51 at the 16:07 mark of the second half and it appeared the Tigers were wilting. But, Clemson struck back and tied the score at 67 on a layup by Dwon Clifton. The score remained close the rest of the game. The contest was tied at 72, 74, and 80. Clemson took an 83-82 lead with 4:41 left on a layup by Chris Hobbs. But, Maryland made some clutch three-point baskets down the stretch, one by Nicholas and one by Dixon and held a 93-86 lead with 1:49 left. Clemson cut the lead to six in the final minute, but could not get a stop and the Terps had a nine-point win. Maryland's ability to control the ball had a lot to do with its victory. The Terps had a 27-6 assist/turnover ratio for the night, fourth best ratio ever against the Tigers.
Clemson Starting Backcourt Had Pair of 20-Point Scorers Both scored 20 in the loss to Duke on February 2 at Littlejohn Coliseum. Four times this year Clemson has had a pair of 20-point scorers. In the win over Georgia Tech on Jan. 5, Chris Hobbs tallied 25 and Jamar McKnight added 22, the only time this year the Clemson starting forwards scored at least 20 in the same game. The other occurrence came at Duke when Hobbs had 25 and Chey Christie scored 21 off the bench. Jamar McKnight scored 19 points at Maryland, nearly giving Clemson three 20-point scorers in the same game. Each of the last two times Clemson has had three 20-point scorers in the same game the opponent was Florida State. In 1992-93 Clemson got 24 points from Sharone Wright, 23 from Devin Gray and 20 from Chris Whitney enabled Clemson to gain a 87-75 win in the ACC Tournament. Earlier that year at Tallahassee, Clemson also had three 20-point scorers in a loss to the Seminoles.
Tigers net 15 Three-point Goals at Maryland Clemson entered the game having made just 5.3 three-point goals per game and had connected at a .303 clip, worst in the ACC. Clemson had made just 29 percent on the opponent's home court. Clemson made 11 of 16 in the first half, a school record for made three-point goals in a half. The Tigers missed their last four three-point attempts when they were forcing threes in the final minute. Tony Stockman made 6-13 threes in the game, Edward Scott hit 5-8 and Jamar McKnight made 3-4 in the contest. Even Tomas Nagys made his first three-point goal of the year. Clemson's 15 three-point goals were the most by the Tigers since Larry Shyatt became head coach. It was the highest figure since Clemson made15 against Evansville in the 1993 Rainbow Classic. The Tigers also made 15 at Virginia in 1982-83, the year the ACC used a 17-9 three-point goal line. Clemson has now made 15 three-point goals in a game three times and lost all three.
Tiger Stats Outstanding Against N.C. State and Maryland
The Unusual Occurrences of Jan. 15
Tigers Shoot 60 Percent from Field... And Lose Ironically, that loss was at home to N.C. State in 1997-98. That year, Rick Barnes final season as Clemson head coach, the Tigers shot 31-50 from the field, yet lost to the Pack, 82-80. Clemson is now 21-2 since 1986-87 when it makes at least 60 percent of its field goal attempts and 40-5 all-time. Clemson actually shot well in all three of the shooting areas against the Pack. Clemson was .621 from the field, .417 on three-point shots and .700 from the foul line, a 50-40-70 game. Clemson is now 26-7 all-time when it shoots at least 50 percent from the field, 40 percent from behind the arc and 70 percent from the foul line, all in the same game. Clemson actually has lost two games in a row when shooting that well in all three areas. Clemson shot 52 percent from the field, 50 percent on three-point attempts and 81 percent from the foul line, yet lost to Georgia Tech, 111-108 last year at Littlejohn Coliseum. How good was Clemson's 1986-87 team? That squad led by Horace Grant finished with a 25-6 record. It had 11 games that season in which it shot at least 50-40-70 in the three shooting areas. There have been just 22 such shooting games by the Tigers in the other 14 seasons combined.
Ford Has Been Top Clemson Freshman Unlike most freshman, Ford plays better on the road than at home. As noted above, three of his four double-figure scoring games have taken place on the road. He averages 6.1 points a game on the road and just 3.3 at home this year. Ford attended Gwynn Park High School in Maryland where he played for Steve Matthews. He averaged 15.8 points, 12 rebounds and 6.6 blocked shots per game. That blocked shot figure seemed high, but based on what he has done on a per minute basis this year, it is certainly realistic. Ford came to Clemson from Hargrave Military in Virginia where he helped that team to a 26-1 record last year by averaging a double-double.
Scott Second in Nation in Assists Grayson Marshall is the only Clemson player to rank in the top 25 in the nation in assists over the course of a season. Marshall was 20th as a freshman, 13th as a sophomore and 16th as a junior (1984-85 through 1986-87). Scott leads the ACC in assists per game, just ahead of Steve Blake of Maryland. Delvon Arrington of Florida State is seventh, giving the ACC three of the top seven assist makers in the country. No Clemson player has ever led the ACC in assists over the course of the season.
Scott Moves to Fifth on Clemson Assist List Scott has six games of double figures in assists and 13 with eight or more this year. That includes the win at Georgia Tech when he had 11 assists to go with 12 points. He had 10 points and 13 assists against State for a double-double. It was his fifth double-double of the season. In his first two years he never had more than seven assists in a single game. He had a career-high 14 assists against Charleston Southern on Dec. 22, the most assists by a Tiger since Chris Whitney had 14 against Liberty on Dec. 5, 1992. Scott has been improved in a number of areas this year, including scoring. He has averaged 10.4 points a game this year and has had three 20-point scoring nights, the first three of his career. He recently netted 20 points, including a career high five three-point goals, in a loss at #3 Maryland, then had 20 on 10 field goals against #1 Duke two weeks later. "Edward Scott was terrific," said Duke Head Coach Mike Krzyzewski. "He really did a good job pushing the ball up. Obviously (Tony) Stockman made a lot of shots, but I really admire what Scott did tonight." Scott had 25 points on 8-12 shooting in the win over La Salle in The Virgin Islands in the second game of the year, and had 21 points and 11 assists in a victory over Elon. That was the first time since the 1998-99 season that any Clemson player had 20 points and double figures in assists in the same game. He had 17 against Virginia on Jan. 8, his career high against an ACC opponent. Scott averages 7.9 points per game over his career, but has the 10.4 average this year. He has averaged 4.84 assists per game for his career, fourth best in school history. And, Scott's rebound average of 4.8 this year is ahead of his career 3.8 figure. In fact, his 4.8 rebounds per game is the best for a Clemson point guard since Doug Hoffman had a 6.0 average as the point guard in 1957-58. Scott had 10 rebounds in the loss to Yale, his career high. He had an unusual double-double in that game with 10 rebounds and 11 assists, but just one point. Six times this year Scott has had at least six rebounds, assists and points in the same game, including the Maryland game of Jan. 20 when he had 20 points, eight assists and seven rebounds.
Clemson Career Leaders in Assists/Game Rk Name Yrs Years Ast GP A/G 1. Grayson Marshall 4 1984-88 857 122 7.02 2. Chris Whitney 2 1991-93 354 58 6.10 3. Marion Cash 2 1988-90 335 64 5.23 4. Edward Scott 3 1999-02 368 76 4.84 5. Terrell McIntyre 4 1995-99 577 126 4.58 6. Derrick Johnson 4 1975-79 476 111 4.29 7. Lou Richie 2 1992-94 239 57 4.19 8. Chris Dodds 3 1979-82 325 83 3.92 9. Mike Eppley 4 1980-84 268 69 3.88 10. David Young 4 1988-92 330 97 3.40
Clemson Looks to Reach Last Year's win Total
Clemson Downs Fifth-Ranked Virginia Scott scored 17 points, his high total in an ACC game in his career. He scored 7-13 from the field, including 3-4 on three-point shots. All three of the three-point goals were near the 25-foot range. Tony Stockman added 10 points and four assists, while Ray Henderson had eight points and nine rebounds. Clemson shot 42.1 percent from the three-point arc and is now 5-0 this season when shooting at least 40 percent from long range. The Tigers employed a matchup zone the entire game and Virginia made just 2-25 three-point shots against that defense. Virginia came into the game shooting 38.8 percent on three-point shots, best in the ACC. Roger Mason, Jr. was the only Cavalier to score in double figures as he contributed 19 points. Travis Watson, who came into the game averaging a double-double, had just six points and six rebounds. Both teams struggled offensively at the outset. The Tigers made just 1 for their first 12 shots from the field, while Virginia was just 6 for their first 18. Clemson held a seven-point lead at 19-12 at the 9:35 mark on a three-point goal by Stockman. Virginia came back to tie the contest at 25 on a free throw by Keith Jennifer at the 1:20 mark. Clemson led at intermission, 27-25 on a field goal by Scott with 1:05 left. Everyone expected Virginia to finally start hitting some outside shots early in the second half, but it never happened. In fact, Mason scored four of the six Virginia field goals over the first nine minutes of the half. Clemson had a 44-38 lead with 11 minutes left. But, Clemson then went on a 14-3 run from the 10:35 mark to the 6:53 mark and had a 58-41 lead on a three-point goal by McKnight. Virginia never got closer than 15 points the remainder of the night.
Clemson Has Beaten a Ranked Team 16 Straight Years The victory over fifth-ranked Virginia was the highest ranked Cavalier team Clemson has beaten in history. It was the first Clemson win over a top-20 Virginia team since Jan. 19, 1980 when Clemson defeated the Cavs 88-68. Virginia was led by Ralph Sampson and Jeff Lamp that year. This was just the sixth time Clemson has beaten a top 25 Virginia team, its low total among ACC teams. The win over Virginia was the 16th top-five victory in Clemson history, but just the fifth in the last 20 years. Larry Shyatt has now coached two of Clemson's five top five wins since the 1981-82 season. The others are a win over #4 Duke to win the ACC regular season championship in 1990, a win over second-ranked North Carolina in 1994, Cliff Ellis's final season, and a win over #3 Kentucky in Indianapolis to open the 1996-97 season. Larry Shyatt had a hand in that game also, as he was Rick Barnes's associate head coach that year.
Shyatt Has Five Top-10 Wins
Clemson Has Balanced Team Clemson has four players averaging in double figures and five players averaging over 9.1 points per game this year. No Clemson team has had four players average in double figures over the course of the season since 1965-66. The balance has continued in ACC play as four players have scored in double figures on a per game basis in the conference games. Jamar McKnight leads the way in league games with a 15.8 average, while Tony Stockman stands at 13.8.
Tigers Won Consecutive ACC Games In case you were wondering, the Clemson record for consecutive wins over ACC teams is seven, set in 1966-67 season. The Tigers won seven straight against ACC teams from Feb. 4, 1967 through Feb. 25, 1967. Virginia broke the streak on Feb. 27 in a "Senior Night" game at Fike Fieldhouse, 73-71. Clemson finished with a 17-8 record that year, but was not invited to postseason play. In those days only the ACC Tournament champion could go to the NCAA Tournament.
Clemson on the ACC Road Clemson has won two or less ACC road games in 10 of the last 11 years and 42 of the previous 48 seasons. Clemson has had a winning record on the road in the ACC just twice in history, 1976-77, when Clemson was 4-2 with center Tree Rollins, and 1986-87 when Clemson was 5-2 with center Horace Grant.
Clemson Wins on the Road... in January It was the first Clemson ACC road win in the month of January since Jan. 15, 1997 when Clemson at 11th-ranked Maryland by a 67-63 score. That was Clemson's third straight ACC road win that year, the last time Clemson has won three straight ACC road games. Clemson has struggled on the road historically, but especially in the month of January in recent years. Clemson had lost 16 straight January ACC road games prior to the Georgia Tech game. Clemson had been 6-44 in ACC road games in January dating to the 1987-88 season. Each of the last two years Clemson has won an ACC road game in January it has gone on to win two. Clemson was 2-1 in ACC January road games in 1996-97, and 2-2 in 1994-95, Larry Shyatt's first year with the program (as an assistant under Rick Barnes). Clemson had been shutout when it comes to ACC January road games nine of the last 11 years.
Bruise Brothers Leading Inside Game Hobbs ranks second on the team in scoring with a 12.0 average, while Henderson is fifth on the team with a 9.1 average. They are the top two rebounders on the Tiger team, as Henderson has a 9.4 rebounding average and Hobbs is at 6.0 per game. Henderson is third in the ACC in rebounds per game. Both are shooting at least 54 percent from the field. Both had a strong impact on Clemson's win at Georgia Tech. Hobbs had 25 points and 10 rebounds, while Henderson added nine points and six rebounds. Collectively, they shot 13-21 from the field and pulled in 16 rebounds to go with 34 points. Both have double-double potential. Henderson already has eight double-doubles this year, more than he had all of last year and second best among ACC players. Hobbs has two double-doubles, including the win over Georgia Tech and the win at Penn State. Henderson and Hobbs, both from the state of North Carolina, are the major reason Clemson is out-rebounding the opposition by 8.0 rebounds per game. With both players at roughly the same size, 6-7 and 255 pounds, Coach Larry Shyatt has begun to call them the "Bruise Brothers" when he refers to Hobbs and Henderson in interviews. They are reminding some of a powerful frontcourt duo that led the Tigers to the ACC regular season championship in 1989-90. That year, Elden Campbell and Dale Davis both were named first-team All-ACC, the only year in school history Clemson has had two first-team selections. Campbell and Davis combined for 30.7 points and 19.3 rebounds per game on Clemson's 24-8 squad that advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament. Campbell and Davis were known as the "Duo of Doom" as the 6-11 frontcourt players struck fear in opposing players who drove the lane against them. Both are still in the NBA 12 years later. Campbell is the starting center for the Charlotte Hornets, while Davis is the starting center for the Portland Trailblazers. Below is a comparison between Davis-Campbell and Hobbs-Henderson. It looks at the year 1988-89 for Campbell and Davis, the year they were juniors and sophomores, respectively, the same class and level of experience for Henderson and Hobbs. Campbell and Davis scored at a higher rate, but Hobbs and Henderson are holding their own in terms of rebounding, field goal percentage and free throw percentage, despite playing fewer minutes.
Bruise Brothers vs. Duo of Doom Category 1988-89 2001-02 Campbell-Davis Hobbs-Henderson Points/Game 30.8 21.1 Rebounds/Game 16.6 15.4 Field Goal % .594 .558 Free Throw % .666 .648 Minutes/Game 51.7 48.8
Stockman Second in Three-Point Goals/Game It took him just 43 games to reach 100 three-point goals, second fastest in Clemson history behind Chris Whitney. Of course, Whitney was a junior college transfer, so Stockman is the first to reach 100 as a sophomore just 43 games into his career. Stockman now has 133 three-point goals in just 51 games, an average of 2.61 per game. That is second best in Clemson history on a per-game average, behind Whitney's 2.88 per game achieved between 1991-93. Whitney had 167 threes in 58 career games. He is now a starting guard with Michael Jordan and the Washington Wizards. Stockman is making threes at a higher rate than former teammate and Will Solomon, Terrell McIntrye.
Clemson Career Leaders in Three-Point Goals/Game Rk Name Yrs Years Md GP 3G/G 1. Chris Whitney 2 1991-93 167 58 2.88 2. Tony Stockman 2 2000-02 133 51 2.61 3. Will Solomon 3 1998-01 214 94 2.28 4. Michael Tait 2 1985-87 70 31 2.26 5. Terrell McIntyre 4 1995-99 259 126 2.06 6. Marc Campbell 4 1980-84 37 19 1.95 7. Anthony Jenkins 4 1982-87 91 47 1.94 8. Jeff Brown 2 1992-94 82 55 1.49 9. Bruce Martin 4 1991-95 129 88 1.46 10. David Young 4 1988-92 138 97 1.42
Clemson Rebounding Near a Record Pace The Clemson record for rebound margin over the course of a season is +8.2 per game, a mark established by Larry Shyatt's first Clemson team (1998-99). That team ranked eighth in the nation in rebound margin. Harold Jamison led that club with a 9.9 figure, 18th best in the country. Ray Henderson has done his best to impersonate Jamison on this Clemson team. The junior from Charlotte has averaged 9.4 rebounds per game, third best in the ACC. He is a big reason Clemson is among the ACC leaders in rebounding. Henderson's rebound stat is impressive considering he plays just 23 minutes per game. Jamison played 29 minutes a game when he averaged 9.9 rebounds per contest in 1998-99. The only teams to beat Clemson on the boards over the first 20 games are South Carolina, who had a 46-37 advantage in rebounding and Wake Forest, who had a 56-48 advantage. Clemson has had a double-digit rebound margin advantage in 10 of its 22 games so far this year including the losses to N.C. State and Maryland.
Clemson's top Rebound Margin Seasons
Consecutive Wins by 30 Points Since 1990, the only other time Clemson has had consecutive wins of 30 points or more took place in 1995-96 when Clemson defeated its first two opponents that year, UNC-Asheville and Appalachian State, by 42 and 36 points, respectively. The last time Clemson won three in a row by 30 points or more was in the 1989-90 season. Clemson's only ACC regular season championship team defeated Georgia State (117-59), Western Carolina (97-61) and Hofstra (91-58) in consecutive contests.
Clemson 9-4 in Non-Conference Another highlight of the non-conference schedule was a 79-66 win at Penn State in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. Clemson is now 2-1 in that event. Chris Hobbs led five Tigers in double figures. Clemson won the game without the services of Tony Stockman and Jamar McKnight, who were both nursing knee injuries. Clemson had a 46-22 rebound margin in that game, second best on school history on an opponent's home court. Clemson plays five of its first seven games away from home this year and already has won five of the first seven with the only losses coming at Duke and to Miami in the Virgin Islands. Clemson also must play five of its first seven ACC games on the road, the only school in the ACC that must do that this year. Clemson will have six of eight conference games at home between Jan. 27 and Feb. 23. The only two road games in that near month time period will be at Virginia (Feb. 10) and at N.C. State (Feb. 16).
Chey Christie Named ACC Rookie of the Week
Tigers Comeback for Road Win at Penn State The Tigers came back from a 10-point halftime deficit thanks to 59.1 percent shooting in the second half and a 20-7 run in the final 10 minutes of the game. Clemson held Penn State to just 22.7 percent shooting in the second half as the Nittany Lions made only 5 of 22 shots. The first half was much different as Penn State erupted to an early 23-9 lead. The Nittany Lions made their first 10 shots from the floor and finished the first half shooting 61.5 percent from the field compared to Clemson's 38.2 percent. Coupled with Clemson's comeback from an 11-point halftime deficit vs. Wofford on Nov. 24, the comeback from the 10-point halftime deficit to Penn State marked the first time in school history that Clemson has overcome double-digit halftime deficits to win in consecutive games. The double-double by Hobbs was his first of the season and the seventh of his career. Freshman Chey Christie had 16 points and three steals and two rebounds in 34 minutes. Clemson had a total of five players in double figures and all eight Tigers who played finished with at least one field goal, one free throw, two rebounds and one steal. Junior captain Edward Scott finished with eight points, nine assists, seven rebounds and three steals after playing all 40 minutes. Clemson out-rebounded Penn State 46-22 and had 22 offensive rebounds. The rebound margin of +24 was the largest by Clemson under head coach Larry Shyatt, who is in his fourth season. The Tigers shot 1-10 from the three-point arc while Penn State hit 8 -23.
Clemson Overcomes Double-Digit Halftime Deficit Clemson followed that up with a just as impressive comeback at Penn State. Clemson trailed by 14 points in the first half, 26-12, and trailed 44-34 at halftime. The Tigers won the second half 45-22 to claim a 79-66 win. That marked just the third time in school history that Clemson has overcome a double-digit halftime deficit to win a road game. The others took place at Coastal Carolina last year and at Furman in 1973-74, Tree Rollins's freshman season. Clemson overcame a 13-point deficit in that game. Clemson nearly overcame a double-digit halftime deficit against N.C. State on Jan. 15. Clemson trailed 44-33 at halftime before losing by just 80-79.
Clemson's Largest Halftime Deficits Overcome to Gain Victory Date Half Site Opponent Final Mar 3-17-1990 27-43 N LaSalle 79-75 -16 2-28-1970 43-56 H Wake Forest 105-95 -13 12-29-1973 31-44 A Furman 73-67 -13 12-30-2000 28-41 A Co. Carolina 81-68 -13 2-1-1977 18-30 H N.C. State 60-59 -12 12-29-1978 28-40 N Texas Tech 58-57 -12 11-24-2001 34-45 H Wofford 85-82 -11 11-28-2001 34-44 A Penn State 79-66 -10
Tony Stockman Rebounds in One Week After Surgery Stockman suffered the injury in the first half of the La Salle game in Paradise Jam in the Virgin Islands Nov. 19. He played just 13 minutes in that contest, an 81-69 Tiger victory. He started in the championship game against Miami (FL), but was only able to play 17 minutes in Clemson's two-point loss. Stockman had an MRI on the morning of Friday, Nov. 23, and the exam revealed that he had a'"Bucket Handle Tear of his medial meniscus in his right knee," said Clemson basketball trainer""Raz" Razayeski. The surgery was performed by Clemson team orthopedic surgeon Dr. Larry Bowman at the Oconee Memorial Hospital in Seneca. Stockman tied a career high with 23 points in the season opener against Morris Brown. He hit a career-high seven three-point goals in that game, just one off the Clemson single game record. He also had six assists and three steals. He added eight points on 3-4 shooting in the first half against LaSalle. For the three games in The Virgin Islands, Stockman scored 11.3 points a game and shot 50 percent on three-point goals, hitting 10-20 from long range. He also had eight assists and just two turnovers.
In Memoriam...
Clemson Finishes Second in Virgin Islands Edward Scott and Jamar McKnight combined for 38 points and both registered career highs in leading Clemson to an 81-69 victory over La Salle in the second round. Scott scored 25 points on the night, seven more than his previous high of 18 set against Penn State during his freshman year. McKnight added 13 points on 5-9 shooting, one higher than his previous high of 12 set last season against Western Carolina. Ray Henderson was also in double figures with 10 points and he was the team's leading rebounder with eight. McKnight and Chris Hobbs both scored 19 points, but it was not enough as Miami (FL) defeated Clemson 67-65 in the championship game. Clemson had possession of the ball with 4.5 seconds left, down two. But, two shots fell off the rim and the Hurricanes came away with their first ever win over the Tigers. McKnight had 17 of his career-high 19 points in the first half. It was his second straight double-figure scoring game.
Hobbs Named to All-Tournament Team
Paradise Jam All-Tourney Team
Robinson, Akingbala Sign with Clemson Robinson is ranked in the top-100 in the nation by All-Star Sports and by Hoop Scoop. A first-team all-conference player the last two years, he combined with current Florida State freshman Anthony Richardson to lead Leesville Road to the state championship game last year. His father, Darryl Robinson, is the Leesville Road High School head coach. "Shawan will be a tremendous asset to Clemson University and our basketball program," said Shyatt. "He comes to us from a wonderful family and is an excellent student. You can tell he is the son of a coach. He is an excellent combo guard who will help us immediately as a primary ball handler and deep shooter." Akingbala, a native of Lagos, Nigeria, is a senior at The Brunswick School in Greenwich, CT. He averaged 16 points, 12 rebounds and six blocked shots per game a year ago. He had a high of 11 blocked shots in a game and shot 68 percent from the field. Akingbala led his team to a 19-6 record last year and a runner-up finish in the New England Prep School Championships. The Brunswick School won the New England Championship his sophomore year. Akingbala was ranked among the top-100 rising seniors for 2001-02 by Hoop Scoop this past summer. "Akin is an athletic and enthusiastic leaper," said Shyatt. "He has excellent desire, especially on the defensive end where he is an intimidating shot blocker. His athletic ability on the soccer field and in basketball is eye-catching. He too fits exactly what we are looking for in our program. He has excellent academic credentials."
Clifton Cleared to Play Initial tests indicated that Clifton, a sophomore from Greensboro, NC, had a heart abnormality called Long QT Syndrome, a problem that inhibits the repolarization process in the heart, a condition that would have prevented Clifton from playing competitive basketball. But further tests conducted during a two-week period showed that Clifton does not have Long QT Syndrome. A fainting spell earlier this fall was the result of extreme fatigue. Clifton had a final battery of tests at Emory Hospital in Atlanta on Oct. 25. Doctors at Emory gave him the green light to return to practice immediately. "The tests revealed that Dwon does not have any structural cardiac abnormalities," said Clemson basketball physician Dr. Len Reeves. "He had a different battery of tests at Emory that showed he does not have Long QT Syndrome. He has Vaso-Vagal Sycope, which is a common problem that can lead to fainting spells, as the result of relative dehydration and extreme fatigue. We will continue to monitor Dwon. He is not on any medication." Clifton was pleasantly surprised at the result of the tests. "I was shocked because I had prepared myself for the worst," said Clifton. "I was prepared to be told that I could not play. This experience has made my beliefs in God even stronger. I received all kinds of e-mails and calls from Clemson fans who said they were praying for me. I want to thank them. This is a blessing." Clemson Head Coach Larry Shyatt, who went to Emory on Thursday to be with Clifton during the medical testing was excited with the news.""Of course we are very happy for Dwon and his family. It is reassuring that the Clemson University medical staff took the safe approach the last three weeks. There were tears of joy at Emory Hospital." Clifton started 17 of Clemson's 31 games last year. He and classmate Tony Stockman were the only Tigers to play in every game last year as freshmen. The 6-5 native of High Point, NC averaged 3.9 points and 2.6 assists per game a year ago. His top game was a 10-point, seven-rebound outing at North Carolina late in the year. He had a season high 12 rebounds against Washington in a tournament in Puerto Rico.
Tigers Tied for 10th in Producing NBA Talent North Carolina leads the way nationally with 12 former players, while ACC rival Duke is second with 11. A third ACC school, Georgia Tech, is tied with Arizona and Kentucky for third with 10 former players apiece. Michigan State has nine, while Georgetown, Michigan and UCLA are tied with eight players apiece. Clemson, Cincinnati, UConn, UNLV and St. John's all have seven, while Kansas and Maryland have six apiece. California and Villanova round out the top 18 schools with five apiece. Horace Grant is the veteran of the former Tigers in the NBA. The 1987 ACC MVP, the only Clemson player to win that honor, is now in his 14th year in the NBA. He has won four NBA World Championship rings, including last year with the Los Angeles Lakers. The native of Sparta, GA has more World Championship Rings than any other former Clemson athlete in any sport. Grant is now on his second tour of duty with the Orlando Magic. Dale Davis and Elden Campbell, who combined to lead the Tigers to the 1990 ACC Regular season championship and the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament, are both still starting in the NBA. Davis, in his 10th year in the league and is the starting center for the Portland Trailblazers.. He had 25 points and 16 rebounds on 12-16 shooting in a win over Milwaukee on Nov. 30. Campbell is in his 11th year in the NBA, his third with the Charlotte Hornets. He has the best stats among former Tigers in the league, nearly averaging a double-double on the young season. He recently had a 26-point and 13-rebound performance for the Hornets. Greg Buckner and Chris Whitney, two former Tigers from Hopkinsville, KY, are also in the NBA this year. Buckner is a reserve with the Dallas Mavericks, while Whitney has been an occasional starter for the Washington Wizards. Whitney, who has been in the league since 1993-94, and is the starting point guard on Michael Jordan's Wizard team. Buckner was injured much of this year, but returned with an 18 point performance against the Knicks in late December. He has been in the starting lineup of late. Harold Jamison is a sixth former Tiger in the NBA. A rookie with the Miami Heat two years ago, he was activated by the Los Angles Clippers, and had played in four games through January 3. Will Solomon, Clemson's leading scorer last year with a 19.7 average, is averaging 10 minutes per game with Memphis. He recently had a career-high 23 points against Orlando in 38 minutes on Jan. 19.
Tigers in the NBA in 2001-02 (Stats as of Jan. 29, 2002) Player Team GP Min PPG Reb FG% FT% Greg Buckner Dallas 20 22.1 6.5 4.4 .514 .654 Elden Campbell Charlotte 44 30.0 14.7 7.6 .488 .781 Dale Davis Portland 41 30.0 9.6 8.4 .532 .695 Horace Grant Orlando 44 28.8 8.1 6.4 .505 .721 Will Solomon Memphis 30 11.0 4.4 0.7 .326 .625 Chris Whitney Washington 42 26.4 9.5 *3.3 .394 .903 Harold Jamison LA Clippers 4 5.0 1.5 0.8 .429 .000 *Denotes Assist averageClemson Tigers Sports Properties Clemson Men's Basketball on Clemson Tiger Sports Properties can be heard throughout South Carolina, as well as portions of North Carolina and Georgia on a strong lineup of radio affiliates. Each CTSP broadcast is also carried live on the Internet on ClemsonTigers.com. CTSP begins coverage of each men's basketball game 30 minutes before tip-off with the Countdown to Tip-Off Show. There will be a half hour post game show featuring comments from Head Coach Larry Shyatt.
Clemson Tigers Sports Properties Affiliates
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