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6/25/09
Summer Camp Wrap-up
As a child growing up in Maryland I had the opportunity to attend Morgan Wooten's basketball camps at DeMatha High School. It was at these camps that I first fell in love with the game of basketball. Without that incredible camp experience I would not be where I am today.
Last Sunday marked the end of our camp season here at Clemson. This year we held three different camps. Our first camp was our elite camp. The two-day elite camp featured about thirty of our top high school prospects from the 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012 classes. The camp provided us with a great opportunity to work with some of the top young talent in the country. The following week over 300 young basketball players came to Littlejohn Coliseum to participate in our individual camp. This was by far our biggest camp yet since coming to Clemson. After four days of teaching basketball fundamentals to our campers, the staff geared up for our final camp, which was our team camp. More than 60 teams from all over the south came to compete in the three-day event.
All three camps ran very smoothly and were great successes. We received a ton of positive feedback from campers and parents and we hosted our greatest number of campers. The camps served as yet another reminder that Clemson Basketball continues to climb to new heights!
Go Tigers!
Coach P
5/26/09
Giving Back to the Community
Now that summer has arrived, our focus in the office has shifted. Although we still spend a great deal of time on recruiting, I try to make it a priority to give back to the community. Just last week I participated in a charity event in Greenville. For the past four years I have been working closely with Philadelphia 76er legend Sonny Hill and his Healthy Hoops Foundation, which is an organization that helps educate and raise awareness for asthma.
The Healthy Hoops Upstate Challenge took place at the YMCA in Greenville and allowed approximately 100 kids and their parents to learn about ways to control asthma through nutrition and monitored exercise. We were also able to work with several future Tigers on the basketball court. I, along with former player Sonny Hill, Philly coaching legend Speedy Morris and Southern Wesleyan women's basketball head coach LaCheryl Smith led campers through drill work and a three-on-three tournament.
As for our Tigers, several of the players are coming back to Clemson this week to begin their first semester of summer classes. They will be using this time to focus on academics as well as improving their strength and conditioning.
Go Tigers!
Coach P
4/13/09
Preparing for the Summer
With spring workouts in full swing, the Clemson Tigers have some exciting events on the horizon. This week will mark our final chance to honor the 2008-09 team at our men's basketball banquet. During this event we will honor our seniors as well as hand out awards for individual achievements.
We are also getting ready for our summer camps. This year we will have an Individual camp for ages 8 to 18. The Individual camp will be held on June 14th and will go through June 17th. We will also have a team camp available for middle school and high school JV and Varsity teams. This camp will start on June 19th and end on June 21st. For more information on Clemson basketball camps please click on the following link: http://clemsontigers.cstv.com/camps/clem-camps.html.
The expectations are already high for the 2009-10 Tigers. We were very excited to see that we were included in the early pre-season national polls. Our team has been ranked in the top 10 and top 20 by several of the most popular media outlets. We have already begun to work on achieving our goals for next season.
Our student-athletes have been working hard in the classroom trying to finish up the spring semester on a high note. Our players have also made their way back into the weight room and into the gym for individual and team workouts. I am already very pleased by the progress that many of our athletes have made since the end of the season. Many of our players have already began to put on some muscle and will continue to work with our strength and conditioning coach Jon Sanderson throughout the summer.
As for the coaching staff, we have been hitting the recruiting trail hard. The assistant coaches and I have been traveling all over the country scouring the AAU circuit for the top prospects in the 2010, 2011 and 2012 classes. We are very excited for the future of the Tigers and will continue to work hard throughout the end of spring and into the summer!
Go Tigers!
Coach P
03/23/09
Wrapping Up the Season
The end of every season always allows me time to sit back and reflect on all that has transpired within the last year. There is no doubt that the 2008-2009 season was another step forward for our program. The Tigers finished the year with a record of 23-9. This marks five consecutive years that our team has improved its winning percentage from the previous year. Our record of 23-9 is also significant because it marks our third straight 20 win season, a feat that has never before been accomplished in Clemson basketball history. The Tigers also enjoyed some remarkable individual achievements this season. Our senior class of K.C. Rivers, Ray Sykes and Jesse Yanutola finished their careers with 91 victories, making them the winningest class ever at Clemson. Rivers also became Clemson's career leader in three point field goals with 281 and finished third all-time in steals with 210, and became the winningest player in Clemson history. All of our seniors have made tremendous contributions to our program, both on and off the court, and they will surely be missed.
So what happens now?
Our student-athletes will continue to focus on their academics. The spring semester is always an important and challenging term which will require a steady focus from our team. After a week off from athletics, our players will go back to work in the weight room to continue developing their strength and athleticism. Soon after that we will be back on the court for individual workouts. These workouts will allow us to focus on skill development and fundamentals. For us to continue to succeed as a team, our players will need to continue to improve individually in the off-season.
The coaching staff will stay on the recruiting trail. The next few months will be crucial for us as we will be focusing on our top prospects for the 2010 class.
I think it is fair to say that we have raised the level of expectations for the Clemson Tigers both locally and nationally. While this is a great achievement that should be enjoyed, it also presents us with a challenge to live up to those expectations. As I have mentioned before, our program loves challenges and we will be sure to continue to work hard in the off-season to take our program Above and Beyond!
Go Tigers!
Coach P
03/16/09
March Madness!!!
March Madness officially began on Sunday with the NCAA Selection Show. Our entire team and staff joined me at my home to watch the unveiling of the bracket. The excitement grew as the TV flashed the Clemson Tigers on the screen as a #7 seed in the South Region. Our staff immediately went to work preparing for our match-up against 10th-seeded Michigan. Our team will head out to Kansas City on Tuesday. We will be working around the clock to make sure that we are ready for the Wolverines.
Our appearance in the national tournament marks the second consecutive year Clemson has reached the NCAA Tournament. This is a tremendous accomplishment for our program. Expectations have been raised for Clemson Basketball and we will continue to work hard to take the program to new heights... Above and Beyond!!!
Go Tigers!
Coach P
02/23/09
The Final Stretch
With four games left in the ACC regular season, Clemson basketball is entering the final stretch of the season. The ACC standings have become like a horse race as the top eight teams are all jockeying for position in the post-season. After a strong week in which we picked up wins against Maryland and on the road at Georgia Tech, we find ourselves in great position to finish the regular season off strong.
Like all of our games, these last four will present us with a major challenge. We will face Virginia and Virginia Tech at home and travel to Winston-Salem and Tallahassee to take on Wake Forest and Florida State. At this time of year, teams are desperate for wins and it will be very important for us to play at a high level. It's an exciting time of year. We love challenges! We are in a horse race to the finish of the ACC and we are going to go to the whip!
Go Tigers!
Coach P
02/15/09
Narrowing the Focus...
As we enter into the month of February, and March looms ahead, it is important for our team to focus in on the prize. With seven games remaining in conference play we are in great shape for the final stretch. We are currently tied for 2nd place in the ACC with a record of 6-3 (20-3 overall) going into our game at Virginia.
With all of the success our program has enjoyed this season, we are finding that the spotlight on us is getting brighter with each game. We are selling out all of our home games, and we are getting more and more attention in the national media as well as around campus. All of this attention that we are receiving should be enjoyed by our players and our fans. It is the direct result of their hard work. However, with attention often comes distraction. It is important for us to understand that the hard work and dedication that got us to an elite level is what will be required to keep us at that level. The brighter the spotlight, the narrower our focus must be.
I thought that our game against Duke was a great example of our team's ability to maintain focus in a big-game atmosphere. The Duke game was our third top-ten match-up of the season. We were able to draw on our experiences from our previous games against Wake Forest and North Carolina. In both of those games our team seemed to get caught up in the hype and instead of narrowing our focus, we were blinded by the spotlight. We applied this lesson to our approach against Duke. After a great week of practice, the Tigers took the court in front of an electric crowd at Littlejohn. Our team did an excellent job of sticking with the game plan. Once we got off to a fast start, we were able to use the excitement of the crowd to fuel our intensity and enthusiasm on the court. When we stretched out our lead early in the second half, we did a great job of keeping our foot on the gas pedal and refusing to let up until the buzzer sounded. This game was big for us because it proved to our men that when we play with a focused intensity, we can beat any team in the country.
As we look ahead to the final stretch of regular season games it will be important for us to continue to narrow our focus. We must insist on writing our own script as opposed to following down a path that others believe we should go. Our focus will surely be put to the test as four of our final seven games will be played on the road. And as you all know, there are no easy games in the ACC.
Go Tigers!
Coach P
1/12/09
Above and Beyond!
The end of the holiday season means one thing to us - ACC conference basketball. The Tigers got off to a great start in conference play with a 91-72 win at the University of Miami. The win at Miami took us into our three-day holiday break. This short break gave our guys a chance to spend some hard-earned time off with their families.
Then it was back to work as we prepared for our game against in-state rival South Carolina. With a huge contribution from our bench, we were able to control the pace of the game and leave Columbia with an 11-point victory. Spirits on the bus were high as we headed back to Clemson for our final two non-conference games of the season. Our team continued to make strides as we took care of a scrappy East Carolina team and an extremely talented Alabama team. With the win over Alabama, we completed our non-conference season with a record of 14-0. This is a tremendous accomplishment for our young men as well as our program.
After Alabama, we prepared to move back into conference play with a Saturday afternoon battle against NC State. The students were back on campus and were in full force as the Tiger-nation packed into Littlejohn Coliseum. The atmosphere was electric and the Tigers were focused and ready to go. With the help of our bench and the raucous crowd we were able to pressure NC State into 18 turnovers and come away with our second conference victory. During the game, K.C. Rivers reached a milestone as he passed Tree Rollins for the 10th spot on Clemson's all-time scoring list. It has been great watching K.C.'s progress over the last three and a half years as he has matured into the leader of our team. There is no doubt that K.C. is one of the best players in the country and is deserving of all the praise and recognition.
The NC State game was also our alumni game. Many of our past Clemson hoopsters were in attendance at Littlejohn. After the game I was able to catch up with several of our basketball alum at a small reception. As a coach, it is always a pleasure to connect with former players. I have no doubt that our program would not be where it is today without the contributions of all of our former athletes.
We will continue to rely on your support as we prepare to head into a tough stretch of our schedule. Over the next five games we will defend our #10 ranking against Wake Forest, North Carolina, Georgia Tech, Virginia Tech and Duke. We look forward to the challenge and we hope that you will continue to help us go Above and Beyond!
Go Tigers!
Coach P
12/15/08
Hello All,
I hope that everyone is doing well and getting ready for a relaxing and exciting holiday season. I wanted to remind you how important you are to our basketball program and how much we need you in Littlejohn. We are 10-0 right now and ranked in the top 25 nationally; we have had a tremendous start to our season.
While we are very happy with the way the season has begun, there is still a lot of work to be done - beginning on the road at Miami this Sunday, December 21. I hope everyone will tune in to the game, which will be televised nationally on Fox Sports National at 7:45 PM. I also want to encourage everyone to come out to Littlejohn as we continue the season, wear orange and be loud!
More importantly, I want to wish each and every one of you a very happy holiday season! Thank you for your support and all that you do!
Go Tigers!
Coach P
8/18/08
What a Summer!
I hope the summer has treated everyone well. We have had numerous activities throughout the summer that have kept our staff and players busy and excited about the upcoming season. Everything from two summer school sessions with our players, recruiting, staff changes, summer camps and orientation among other activities have made this an eventful summer for our program.
Our incoming freshman class of Andre Young, Catalin Baciu, Tanner Smith, and Bryan Narcisse just finished second session summer school classes, as did returnees Demontez Stitt and Trevor Booker. This was a great opportunity to introduce our freshmen to their new surroundings and get them ahead of the game academically. Our efforts in the classroom paid dividends this past season again as Cliff Hammonds earned a spot on the ACC All-Academic Team.
Over the course of this summer our players have strived to improve their basketball skills and concentrate on what it will take to win the ACC Championship. It will be here in the summer that we make some of our greatest strides individually as players and coaches to help us accomplish our goal of winning an ACC and National Championship. Our staff has stressed to each player what skills they need to develop during the off-season to return to Clemson a better player. Also, while they are enrolled in summer school the players are able to work out with Strength and Conditioning Coach Jon Sanderson to enhance their strength, mobility, and speed. While these workouts are voluntary, each one of our players understands the importance of staying in shape and gaining strength in order to compete in the best conference in America.
This summer also saw some of our players travel outside of the country to play abroad. Terrence Oglesby, Demontez Stitt and Jerai Grant all spent time playing outside of the country this summer. Terrence Oglesby shined in the FIBA Under 20 European Championships. Terrence, who was born in Norway and is a citizen of the country as well as the United States, was the leading scorer in Division B at the tournament and averaged over 24 points per game. He also had a game-high 32 points versus Finland. Demontez Stitt and Jerai Grant also played abroad as they traveled to the Dominican Republic to compete with SCORE International. While they were in the Dominican, both had the opportunity to play against several current and former NBA players. Demontez had several strong performances as he led the team in scoring with 17 points against the Dominican National Team. Jerai also had some strong play during the trip and I am confident that both will come back better players due to their experiences. It is great to see our guys getting the opportunity to travel and see the rest of the world through the game of basketball. I am very proud of their performances this summer!
Our program held several Oliver Purnell Basketball Camps this summer. These camps are a significant part of our program and something we strive to excel in. We began the summer with an Individual Overnight Camp that saw over 225 campers embark on Clemson University. The first camp was a tremendous success as these campers had the opportunity to interact with our players and staff as well as other collegiate and high school coaches from throughout the country. Our team camp also had a huge turnout with over 75 high schools from all over the Southeast participating. All together the camps brought in over 1,200 players, coaches, and camp staff in the month of June.
Staff changes have also made our 2008 summer interesting and exciting. Shaka Smart left to take another assistant position at the University of Florida and was replaced by a very familiar name in former Director of Basketball Operations Josh Postorino. Coach Postorino served this past season as our Director of Operations and before that was an assistant coach for four years at Marshall University. I am very excited about promoting Josh and am very confident he will do a tremendous job in his new capacity! We hired Michael Morrell to be our new Director of Basketball Operations and he is also no stranger to our program. Michael served as our Graduate Assistant last year and did a tremendous job for us. Loyalty is a key component in our program and I am very excited about promoting Josh and Michael and know they will continue to do a great job for us here at Clemson. We also would like to wish Coach Shaka Smart the best of luck as he moves on to Florida. Coach Smart was a key member of our staff and was an important part of our success during the past two seasons.
Finally, we just finished the July recruiting period and are excited about the future of Clemson Basketball. This is a very essential time for us as we evaluate many of the best players in the country against some of the best competition. Our efforts on the recruiting trail have paid dividends for our program and we already have two commitments for our 2009 class. The month of July is always a hectic time for me, but I thoroughly enjoy traveling the country and watching the game of basketball played at a very high level.
I will check back in with you shortly as our players return to campus and our freshmen begin their careers here at Clemson. I hope everyone enjoys the rest of the summer!
Go Tigers!
Coach P
3/31/08
Tiger Basketball Fans - What a Season!
It all started with us getting ahead of the country in August by taking advantage of the NCAA rule permitting an international trip every four years. With that came the ability to start practice as a team early - actually 10 practices before the trip. The head start on training and competition was a great opportunity for freshman Demontez, Jerai, and Terrence to learn our system early on.
Our training trip to the Bahamas was both fun and instructive. Our veteran squad had a chance to bond with the newcomers, and seniors Cliff, James, Matt, and Sam took it upon themselves to illustrate to the youngsters the true meaning of the leap of faith they took as they signed with Clemson four years previously. They bravely led the squad over the 10-Story Leap of Faith waterslide at the beautiful Atlantis resort in the Bahamas!
The fortitude and leadership they displayed at the onset carried over into a season fraught with potential setbacks. Injuries sidelining James, Sam, and Demontez for periods of time; a virulent flu virus that spread through the team during a stretch of games; Trevor's ankle injury; and Cliff's fractured wrist during our signature win over Maryland, all could have diverted us from our mission to "bust down the door to the NCAA." Rather we grasped something that all good teams learn - how to overcome adversity. Everyone on the team hitched up their belts and worked a little harder. All 15 guys contributed. The result is that we: finished the season with a 24-10 overall record (tied for the third most victories in Clemson history); did not lose on back-to-back ACC game (for the first time in 55 years); finished third in the ACC standings (highest finish in 18 years); reached the ACC championship game (for the first time in 46 years), and did indeed "bust down the door" to the NCAA obtaining a berth for the first time in 10 years receiving a No. 5 seeding in the NCAA Midwest Regional.
A great year! But we are not satisfied. We were disappointed by not winning the ACC Championship game after beating Duke in the semi-final, and although we were given the opportunity to compete for the NCAA 2008 national championship, we fell short in our efforts. It is still difficult to grasp that the season ended so abruptly.
However we are now looking forward, and will use the lessons learned from this season to improve our team during the off-season. Our returning players understand that we are counting upon them to improve and have career-best years.
The future looks bright:
As the reputation of Clemson University continues to attract quality student-athletes. On the first day of the early signing period this year, three high caliber individuals signed with our program: Andre Young (5'9") and Tanner Smith (6'5") guards from Georgia; and Caitlan "BoBo" Baciu a 7'1" forward/center from Romania. These young men are high character kids that fit our needs on the floor.
With the support of the Athletic Department. Administration, IPTAY, coach colleagues, support staffs, any my own staff are clearly committed to moving this program forward.
With the support of the Clemson Basketball Family. Fans-season ticket holders and students! You are unequivocally part of the program. Your support and enthusiasm play a pivotal role in our success. You have created an environment in Littlejohn Coliseum that makes it difficult for visiting teams to play. Your spirit energizes our team during every game.
Clemson Basketball is on the move, and we eagerly look forward to the next chapter. Having improved our team appreciably each of the last five years, my staff and I are already working to make us better next year.
Coach P
3/12/08
What a regular season this has been! We end up 3rd in the ACC and 22-8 Overall with our 10th victory coming in conference on two freshman free throws with 3 seconds left on the clock. The Virginia Tech senior night win was a very special day not only for the seniors, the team, and the coaches but for the Clemson Family also. This senior class impacted our program in an amazing way. They took a leap of faith four years ago and then their hard work lifted our program to the top echelon of the ACC. Their efforts were honored with a magical afternoon.
The environment at Littlejohn was electric the entire day Sunday. I honestly feel that Littlejohn Coliseum has developed into the most feared home court in the ACC and one of the best in the nation. I want to personally thank our fans for your support all season long.
Now we are moving on to post-season and very much looking forward to competing for an ACC and National Championship in the next couple of weeks! We set goals at the beginning of the year and we have set the table with our regular season success to reach those goals. The intensity level of these post-season games rises and every team better be ready to match or exceed the energy of the opposing team. At the ACC tournament in Charlotte everyone has a new season in front of them and will be gunning for a tournament title. Let's get it on!
Coach P
1/16/08
When you take a look at this picture what word pops into your head?
For me it is TEAM! That is the word we have been stressing to our group as we start the ACC season. It certainly took every single person on our team to win our first two out of three in the ACC and it will take that same effort every night from here on out. When things do not go our way during the game it is easy to think about yourself and why that certain call went against you or why that shot did not fall? What is difficult to do in that time of adversity is to think about your teammates and how you can help them. I think we did that last Saturday winning the double overtime game by hitting big shot after big shot and getting stops on the defensive end with our team pressure. Against NC State we played together and with passion which showed up in having twenty-one assists on twenty-seven made baskets. That is team basketball and unselfish play.
When the team is our overriding theme we see some fantastic individual performances emerge out of that. We had multiple heroes last week but Trevor Booker really put together two excellent games scoring 61 pts and shooting 20-26 from the field. He received a well-deserved award in being named ACC Player of the Week. What is important is he put in the work in practice and that intensity and attention to detail is coming out in the games. I expect him to keep up the hard work and stay consistent every day!
Throughout the ACC Season we are going to have numerous games just like our FSU win Saturday night. It is the toughest conference in the country and no game is going to be easy. Winning at home is key throughout these next two months. Our students have been tremendous and believe me the players and coaches notice it every night! A big loud home crowd gives us that extra jolt we need during certain stretches throughout the game and creates a difficult atmosphere for the opponent.
We want to see that same enthusiasm and energy in Littlejohn every night as these ACC games get bigger and bigger as we play towards March. I will keep pushing our theme of TEAM and make sure that all fifteen players know that is what the Clemson Tigers are about!!
GO TIGERS!!
Coach P
12/6/07
Hello Tiger Fans, another great November and start of December for Tiger Basketball! We are coming off some big wins in beating Purdue, South Carolina, and East Carolina for our 6th ,7th , and 8th victories of the year. We are trying to build a résumé for the postseason each and every night we take the floor. Whenever you beat teams from the power conferences and win on the road it puts a positive mark at the top of the resume for down the line in March.
We had to start last week before the Purdue game without James Mays and Sam Perry because of injuries. Without these two crucial parts of our team everyone in the program had to pull their belt a little tighter and work a little harder including players, coaches, trainers, and even managers! Good teams find a way to overcome some adversity during the season and believe me everyone goes through it one time or another. This will not be the last of it for us.
If you did not make it to these last two games at home you missed a great atmosphere on both nights. Our students were great! They were into the game from warm-ups to the final buzzer and this type of energy makes Littlejohn Coliseum a tough place to win for an opposing team. I sent an email out early this past week to let them know what a great job they did for the ACC/BIG 10 Challenge and then repeated that effort versus South Carolina.
South Carolina came in here a very motivated team in a situation where they had dropped three straight to us and lost some close ball games the week before in Orlando. My message to our team was that we had to match or exceed that intensity for us to be successful and it started in practice. We came through with a very emotional energetic start that did just that. South Carolina made a few runs but we withstood them and made some great plays on both ends of the floor to win the game.
Now we move into the most important segment of the season, EXAMS! During exam time we will shorten practices and give some days off but still try to stay sharp and get our conditioning in while not playing games. This time off also gives our staff some days where we can get out on the road recruiting and make a few of these holiday tournaments around the country. Hopefully, after this fifteen-day break we can go into the San Juan Shootout with our entire team back healthy and ready to go! I hope everyone has a happy and safe holiday season and spends some much-needed time with family and friends! GO TIGERS!
Coach P
10/30/07
Clemson Basketball is back in full swing and I hope everyone is ready for a great season! As you can tell the players, assistant coaches, and I are very excited and happy that we are officially underway. We are now two weeks into practice and starting to get closer to our season opener Monday, November 12th versus Furman.
We got practice started in the right direction on October 12th with a late night session from 7-10pm. The NCAA did away with the old start time of practice at midnight in favor of it being too late for young fans to come if schools were holding an open event such as Midnight Madness. It just so happened Clemson was on fall break that weekend and all the students were gone so we decided we would be better off waiting until the following weekend to hold our annual orange and white/purple scrimmage.
The fall break did give us a chance to hold our 2nd annual Tip Off for Success in Littlejohn Coliseum for local Oconee and Pickens County Elementary and Middle School students. This is a great event where our team is introduced to a huge group of young students and more importantly we put on an educational session for them using some basketball contests and experiences. This event was a huge success for the schools that attended and for our team. Every time our program has a chance to reach out to the community we want to take part in it and it proves over and over again to the players what role models they are in the community and how much these young kids look up to them!
The Orange and White scrimmage the following weekend was also a great day. It was homecoming here on campus and we received a big reception in Littlejohn with an early Saturday morning start time. A few thousand fans came dressed in orange ready for the football game vs. Central Michigan. They got a first glimpse at our team this season with a week of practice behind them. Overall, we played pretty well on both sides of the ball with spurts of great intensity and smart play. The game ended in a tie 76-76 with Terrence Oglesby leading the purple team with 21 points and KC Rivers leading the orange with 19. What I liked about the game was we started to establish the important things that are going to help us win this season. We were not very consistent yet with them all but there were sustained stretches where we showed the kind of exciting team we can be defensively and when we have the ball. After the game our players got a chance to sign autographs on our new schedule posters for the youngsters that hung around.
The next morning following the scrimmage Cliff Hammonds, James Mays, and I took the quick flight up to Greensboro for ACC media day. We were picked to finish fourth in the ACC this season by the media. This was the highest pre-season selection that our program has had in the last ten years. Our goals on a whole are obviously higher than fourth place but the recognition in this league is important for Clemson Basketball. This team realizes that it is talented and has a chance to be very successful this season but in order for that to happen there has to be commitment each and every day to getting better. That is the importance of pre-season practice and games, we have to keep improving and coming together as a team to reach our full potential. As you probably know I believe good Team Chemistry is vital to be successful and you can bet the hard work and sweat will be there for the next couple of weeks as we prepare for the opener vs. Furman. I hope I see you all at Littlejohn November 6th in our exhibition game against Augusta St. Go TIGERS!
Coach P
9/10/07
Hello Clemson Basketball Fans! We are back in the country after a very successful foreign trip to The Bahamas over Labor Day Weekend. Our players and coaching staff enjoyed the trip immensely and we even made it back for that great Clemson Football WIN over Florida State. Our basketball program felt like this was a great year to utilize the NCAA rule in allowing teams to take a foreign trip once every four years. With the core of our team returning for another season we knew it was important for us to mix in our freshmen and get a head start on the rest of the country.
Our journey started with ten days of practice once school began in the last part of August. This might be the best part of the NCAA Foreign Trip rule in that they allow you to practice ten times before leaving on the trip. Our staff met a few weeks before the practices started and really hashed out exactly what we wanted to get out of this practice session and two games. We set goals and wanted to lay the groundwork for a solid season. The team was fired up for this ten-day session that included some scrimmages with referees.
We left for The Bahamas on Friday, August 31 after school got out and arrived that night. We stayed in the beautiful Atlantis Resort, one of the top hotels in the world. This hotel was located in Paradise Island right over the bridge from Nassau. On Saturday the team got to spend some time on the resort riding tubes, swimming in the ocean, and taking the "Leap of Faith!" For those of you who haven't visited the Atlantis the ride named "Leap of Faith" is a huge waterslide that drops from the top of a ten-story tower. Believe me these big bad basketball players were not so confident when they reached the top and the green light flashed for them to go down! Everyone on the team made it though and had some great laughs doing it.
That night we got down to business and beat the Bahamian Club Team 113-64. We shot 52% from the field and really tried to establish the tempo that we want to play at all year. We pressed and ran all game with every player on the team contributing in the win. The next day we pretty much had the same schedule and the same results, winning 113-58 over the Bahamian All-Stars. I felt like we played better and made some adjustments in our play from the night before. To me this is a great sign early in the year that we were able to take to coaching and become a team that has the ability to make changes from game to game.
Overall, the trip was excellent for our program. It was a great educational experience for the players who for many of them probably would have never had a chance to visit The Bahamas otherwise. Also, I think it gave us a great base to the start of the year basketball-wise and, more importantly, for coming together as a team. Taking a trip like this and spending time with each other having fun doing things other than basketball is a great bonding experience. Blending all the talents and personalities of a team leads to success in college basketball. At Clemson, we have a ton of work to do but are well on our way to getting back out on the court for real on Oct. 12, 2007!!
Coach P
7/6/07
Greetings from Clemson Tiger Summer Basketball! I hope everyone is enjoying their summer and spending some quality time with family and friends. We certainly have had a multitude of activities going on within our program this off-season ranging from summer school for our players, recruiting, staff changes, summer camps, freshman orientation, and even a player getting married down in South Georgia!
Most of the team just got finished with the first session of summer school this past week. We use this time first of all to concentrate on academics and try to get ahead in the classroom as we build up to the fall semester. Our emphasis on academics has paid dividends this summer as last week we received news that out of the ten selections to the 2007 All-ACC Academic Team we had three get chosen, the most in the conference and the highest number in over twenty years at Clemson!
I'm sure some of you have heard the saying, "teams are made in the winter but the players are made in the summer." We want our players to really concentrate on their individual improvement through hard work and discipline this summer. Our staff stressed to them at the end of the season specific area's of improvement each player could make in the off-season. Also, while taking a few courses the players work out with Jon Sanderson, Head Strength and Conditioning Coach for Basketball, in the weight room everyday! These workouts are voluntary but the team knows how important it is to get stronger and stay in shape all year long. NCAA rules do not allow assistant coaches to work with the players on the floor in the summer months so they have to individually commit themselves each day to work on trying to improve!
Also this off-season we hold all of our summer camps. The Oliver Purnell Camp is an integral part of our program in the summer and just concluded last weekend with over sixty-five teams competing in our Team Camp. We held three sessions this year that included an elite camp, individual overnight camp, and a team camp. All together the camps had over one-thousand players, coaches, and camp staff visit our campus in the past month!
Josh Postorino, our camp director who we just hired in June took over the camps this year. He is the new Director of Operations on our staff but certainly is well known to me and the rest of the coaches. Josh was my first recruit at Dayton when I got the job there and when he finished playing he joined my staff for three seasons. He has been an assistant at Marshall University the past four years but very glad to be back and a part of our program again! He took over for Will Wade who had an excellent opportunity to become an assistant coach at Harvard University for Tommy Amaker. Will was an excellent worker and a big part of this Clemson Basketball Program. We all wish him well and know he will be successful!
I am currently gearing up now for July Recruiting. We start on the road July 6 and have twenty days to travel all over the country watching players compete at camps, tournaments, summer leagues, and even at their school open gym. This is a very important time for us to properly evaluate prospective recruits playing against the best competition in the country. Our recruiting efforts already paid off this April with two early commitments for the 2008 class. As you can imagine this month gets a little hectic at times traveling from different city to different city each day but is enjoyable also because I get to watch a ton of basketball.
will check back in with you again after the recruiting period ends and when I get a chance to unpack my bags in my own home! I hope everyone has a great July! GO TIGERS!
Coach P
4/10/07
We are very excited about the future of Clemson basketball. Although the season ended with a loss to a tough West Virginia team in the NIT finals, there are many positives that we can draw from the NIT experience and the season to help us down the road. As we continue to build this program, we are not satisfied with making the NIT and we strive to make the NCAA tournament each year.
Although the NIT was not the destination we had in mind, the tournament was a real positive experience for our players and program. We were able to showcase our program four times on national television within a week's time, and able to get key minutes for players who we feel will have a real impact next season. Furthermore, it was a great chance for our fans to watch us play quality competition at home against Mississippi and Syracuse. I want to take a minute to thank our fans for their great support during the Syracuse game; the sellout crowd was a fantastic show of support and did not go un-noticed by our team or recruits on television.
I also want to take a moment to thank senior Vernon Hamilton for his 4 year contributions to our program. Vernon has been a solid point guard for 4 seasons and will be deeply missed next season. He has improved each season, just as our team has improved. I was excited for him to get a chance to finish his career on a grand stage like Madison Square Garden. I also want to thank senior Chris Poole for his contributions to our program this season. He has been a great team player and always shows up ready to work at practice.
As I turn an eye towards next season, I am very excited about the future. We return 83% of our scoring and 91% of our rebounding. Our recruiting continues to get better each season. This season we signed Mr. Basketball in North Carolina as well as 2 other recruits who we think will contribute early. I look for us to take that final step next season with a trip to the NCAA tournament.
The next few months will be very hectic around the office, so I will probably check in a little less frequently on the blog. I will be spending a majority of my time recruiting and monitoring the academic progress of our players. I also hope to get a little rest. In closing, I feel like this program has gotten better each of the last 4 seasons and we are poised to make another step next season. Thanks to everyone for their support!
Go Tigers,
Coach P
3/26/07
I want to start off and thank everyone who came to Littlejohn on Wednesday night to make it such a great environment for basketball. Your passion and support did not go un-noticed by our team, staff, and those watching on ESPN around the country. We were very excited to have the opportunity to showcase our program, style of play, and University on national television 2 times in 3 nights. The last 2 games have been great exposure for our program and something that we will build upon next season.
Now, let's discuss New York and the Final 4 of the NIT. Obviously, we are very excited to be going to New York. Many members of our team have never been to New York, so they are eager to see what all of the talk is about. I have set 3 goals for our time in New York as a team:
1. Win the Tournament - We are going to New York with this main focus. Our players are excited about the trip and will have some free time, but we will prepare them as hard as we have for every game this season with a focus on winning the tournament. There are 3 very good programs there with us, but we look forward to the challenge of representing Clemson University and the ACC.
2. Enjoy the Experience - As I stated above, I want our team to have a good time and enjoy the New York experience. We did a good job of this in our trip last season to Puerto Rico where we won the tournament and got to experience the island. We will go out to dinner on Sunday night as a team as well as attend an NIT banquet on Monday night. Our players will also have some free time to site see around Times Square and the city.
3. Grow closer as a Team - Team chemistry has been one of our strengths throughout the season and we want to continue to build that strong bond. With us only losing 1 senior this season, we are excited about the opportunity for this tournament to serve as a springboard into next season for us. We want our players to continue to grow closer and the more time that they get to spend together as a group, the better, so this will be a positive experience for them.
I hope that everyone who is not able to make the trip to New York will be watching and cheering for us on tv Tuesday night. We are eager to represent Clemson University on the national stage as we look to set a record for all times wins in 1 season by the basketball team!
Go Tigers!
Coach P
3/16/07
We are hard at work preparing for our 2nd round NIT match up with Ole Miss. We played well enough to win on Wednesday night against ETSU, but there is a lot of room for improvement. I want to give ETSU credit, as they played extremely hard and did a great job of keeping us off balance all night. We will need a much more consistent effort both mentally and physically against Ole Miss if we want to advance.
As a team, I felt our players needed some time away from the court to focus on their academics, so I gave them Thursday off from practice. With Spring Break starting today, many of our players had exams and papers this week as well as make-up exams to take from last week when we were away for 3 days at the ACC Tournament. I hope that this time off will give our players time to rest up and catch up on their academics before we re-focus on basketball this afternoon at practice.
We are going to work hard over the next 3 days to prepare our team to face a very talented Ole Miss squad. They are really playing solid, team basketball right now and we will need to elevate our play on Monday night to advance. As I have told our team, we still have a lot to play for this season, as we want to finish the season strong just liked we started the season strong.
I am also looking forward to catching a few NCAA Tournament games on tv over the weekend, as this is the best time of the year to be a college basketball coach / fan. I am pulling for the ACC to advance because this serves to solidify the ACC as the number 1 league in the country. I expect us to finish strong with an eye toward being successful in the ACC next year!
I want to personally thank all of the fans who came to the game Wednesday night, you all were very loud and provided a lift for our team at key times. I hope that all of you will continue to support us on Monday night as we take on Ole Miss at 7pm in Littlejohn! For all of you who cannot make it, be sure to catch the game on ESPN.
I hope that all students have a safe and fun Spring Break.
Go Tigers!
Coach P
2/26/07
It has been a very tough couple of weeks since the last time I checked in with you all on the blog. We have played well in spurts over those games, but we have not been able to finish off the games with wins. It has been very frustrating to all involved - players, staff, and fans. However, I can assure you that we have more resolve than ever to get these problems fixed and finish the season strong.
Wednesday night will be senior night and we will recognize Vernon Hamilton for all of his great accomplishments over his 4 year career here. Vernon has been a very consistent performer for us and has earned numerous accolades over the years. Some of these accomplishments include, being the all time steals leader at Clemson, the MVP of the San Juan Shootout, and being selected to the All ACC defensive team. We look forward to honoring Vernon along with senior walk-on Chris Poole and senior manager Jeff Kallin. Chris works extremely hard for us in practice and does a great job of running the scout team. Jeff has been the ultimate glue guy for our program over the last 3 seasons and is a tremendous worker.
We will continue to work hard and push our players this week in practice as we prepare for our 2 final regular season games and the ACC Tournament. Free Throws and 6 minute games, where we play out the final 6 minutes of game situations, will continue to be priorities in our preparation. I believe the hard work that we have put into these 2 areas will pay off down the stretch.
I look forward to seeing you all at Littlejohn on Wednesday night as we close out our home schedule against Miami at 7:30pm!
Coach P
2/5/07
It has been a very difficult stretch since the last time I checked in on the blog. We had 2 tough losses to Duke and Virginia and then suffered another setback to Georgia Tech on Saturday. Nobody said that getting to the NCAA Tournament would be easy. In order to do special things as a team, you must persevere through tough times. I feel that this team has a strong resolve and will respond well on Wednesday night against Florida State.
We must continue to push forward as a team and program in spite of the recent setbacks. We have put in too much hard work and effort as a team and staff to take our foot off the gas now. We still have 7 ACC games remaining, and we have put ourselves in position to reach our goal of making the NCAA tournament where we will have a chance to do special things.
I want to take a minute to commend our players for their off the court effort during the Fall semester. We recorded the highest GPA in the history of the program for the fall semester. Our players worked very hard and took a focused approach to their academics last semester. When we arrived at Clemson, we spoke about changing the overall culture of our program, and this is one of the main areas where change was needed. We will continue to work hard in this area. We graduated all 3 seniors last season and we are on pace to graduate both of our seniors this season. All of this is possible through the hard work of Vickery Hall and our academic advisor Melvin Robinson as well as my staff. They have all been tremendous assets in helping us reach this record.
As I have stated before, our home support has been outstanding this season. On Wednesday night at 7:30 p.m., we need all of you in Littlejohn again. This is a critical game, and we need all of the students, alumni, and fans ready to make Littlejohn Coliseum a great environment for college basketball. See you on Wednesday!
Coach P
1/22/07
As I talk with our players about all the time, the ACC race is a marathon, not a sprint. The key to staying in the top half of the ACC standings with a chance to do special things late in the season is to avoid prolonged losing streaks, which we have been able to do thus far. Rebounding from our rough outings at Maryland and at home against North Carolina was a must. I was proud of how the players responded against Boston College by raising their focus on the defensive end and playing within our team concept to climb out of the short losing streak.
We must continue to push forward in practice as a staff and as a team. We had 2 very good practices leading up to the Boston College game and we need to build off of that effort and ratchet up our focus and preparation in practice even more. We will continue to work hard defensively and on our free throws over the next few days, as these are 2 areas that we must continue to improve in if we are to become a great team.
I want to thank the students, alumni, IPTAY members and all fans for their support this weekend; it did not go un-noticed or un-appreciated. Our team really feeds off of the atmosphere created by our students and fans. We really appreciate all of the support exemplified by sellouts in our last 2 ACC home games. Thank you for being the "6th man" for Clemson Basketball.
In conjunction with the Boston College game, we also held our annual alumni weekend. It was a great experience all around. From the tunnel formed by the alumni before the game to the post game reception, it was great for our players and staff to meet those former players. This is an event that my staff and I look forward to each year.
As is every week in the ACC, we have 2 tough games ahead of us. We head to Durham, NC on Thursday night to take on Duke in Cameron Indoor Stadium, arguably the toughest venue in college basketball, and then we return home to play a very good Virginia team on Sunday. Both of these games present great challenges as well as a great opportunity to close out the first half of our ACC schedule on a strong note. I hope that all of you will be tuned into ESPN at 7 pm on Thursday night, and then I look forward to seeing you all in Littlejohn Coliseum on Sunday afternoon as we play Virginia!
Go Tigers!
Coach P
1/08/07
First, I want to thank everyone who came to the game on Saturday for all of their support, what a great crowd and atmosphere! Having Littlejohn full and loud really makes a difference for our team as well as with recruits who we have attending the games. I hope that everyone will be back in Littlejohn throughout the season as we continue on in ACC play. Once again, thank you for all of your continued support.
Obviously, last week was a huge week for our program. The road win at Florida State was a great win in a tough environment. It is very difficult to win on the road in the ACC, and I was really pleased with our poise down the stretch in Tallahassee. Saturday's home win over Georgia Tech was an exciting game as well that will be a feather in our cap come March. In the ACC, you need to protect your home court and that is exactly what we did on Saturday. By doing so, we are the last undefeated team in college basketball which is a great accomplishment for our players.
Free Throws were a key to the win against Georgia Tech. We have been working hard at free throws all season, and our work is beginning to pay off. Over the Christmas break, we held numerous free throw only practices during the morning. This has really helped our players' fine tune their routines and step to the line with confidence. We are going to continue to shoot a lot of free throws as a team and individually, as many ACC games this season will come down to the line and we want to be prepared.
This week is another tough week in conference play with 2 road games. Our game at NC State on Tuesday will be another tough road contest as will our game Saturday at Maryland. We are looking forward to and embracing the challenges that lie ahead as we continue our march toward the NCAA tournament.
Go Tigers!
Coach P
12/28/06
I hope that everyone had a great Holiday and is looking forward to a prosperous New Year! We got back to work on Tuesday after a short 2 day break for our players following 2 wins over Georgia Southern and Western Carolina. Currently, we are 1 of only 4 undefeated teams left in the country which is quite a statement about our players and my staff. We are also very excited about being ranked in both polls this week.
As a team, we have played well for prolonged stretches during games, but we have yet to put together an entire game. My staff and I are pushing our players daily in practice, so we will be hitting on all cylinders and putting together full games in the coming weeks and months. We will need nothing but great effort and smart play from here on out if we are to reach the NCAA tournament. We continue to focus on and strive towards the NCAA tournament in all that we do as a team daily.
We have some big games coming up beginning with Georgia on Thursday, continuing to Sunday with Georgia State, and through ACC play in the coming months. I hope that we will continue to see our home crowds grow this season, as our team really feeds off of your energy. I often talk to the players about our "spurtability" and this can really be fueled by you and your intensity. Your support can really be a significant contribution to our program and team this season.
Once again, I want to thank all of you who have been to games this season for your support and enthusiasm. Please continue to help us "Fill Up Littlejohn" in the coming weeks and months as we march towards March!
Happy New Year!
Coach Purnell
12/08/06 - A Quick Start …
It has been a quick three weeks and it is hard to believe that we are one-third of the way through our schedule. Obviously, I am very excited about our 10-0 start and am looking to build off the quick start in the coming weeks and months. Since I last checked in, we have picked up big road wins at Minnesota and South Carolina, while also playing well in a home win over Wofford on Tuesday night. I am especially proud of how our guys have elevated their level of play each outing.
While we have two weeks off from a game, that does not mean we will not be busy. Our players have final exams starting Saturday, so we are making every effort to ensure that they perform well in the classroom next week. We viewed Wofford as our basketball "final exam" and now it is time for us to score well on our academic final exams.
My staff and I will use the time as an opportunity to evaluate our team's performance over the first ten games and make any adjustments necessary to continue our success and improve our team. We will also use this time to recruit and evaluate prospects. With our games being played on the same nights as a lot of high school games, it is difficult to see prospects play during the season. This break will allow us to see a lot of high school games and evaluate our top prospects in a scholastic setting.
I am also excited to be hosting "Shop with a Coach" again next week. This event pairs Clemson coaches with kids in the community, and we take them to buy Christmas gifts for themselves and their families. This is a very rewarding experience for all involved and something that I look forward to every year.
I want to wish all of our students the best of luck on exams and safe travels home for the holidays. I hope that all students and fans who will be around Clemson can make it to our games on December 19th vs. Georgia Southern and December 23rd vs. Western Carolina. Thank you for your support so far this season and let's continue to "Fill Up Littlejohn!"
Happy Holidays,
Coach P
11/20/06
It has been a long week as we played 5 games in 8 days. Obviously, I am very excited about our 5-0 start and am looking forward to the Mississippi State game on Tuesday night at Littlejohn. I feel like our team took a step forward on Friday night with our win over Appalachian State as we responded with a good outing after not playing very well on Wednesday night against Furman. We need to continue to build off of this performance and raise our level of play with each game if we are to attain our goals for the season.
We had a great trip to Norfolk, VA last weekend where we played 3 tough games in 3 days as we expected. I was able to catch up with some old friends who I had not seen in years, but most importantly, our team was able to win all 3 games and come home with our second tournament title in 2 seasons. We really responded well to the hostile environment on Sunday afternoon during the Old Dominion game and that experience will serve us well down the road this season.
We will continue to work on our pressing and trapping over the next few weeks as these are areas that we really need to improve in if we are to be as effective as we need to be out of our press. We are getting closer to being a solid pressing team, but we are not where we need to be at this point. This is one area where I fully intend to push our players hard over the coming weeks in practice.
I want to take a moment to personally thank our fans and students for their support these first two games. We really need to continue to build our fan base and have great crowds this week for our games against Mississippi State and Charleston Southern. I enjoyed eating lunch with those students on Thursday afternoon who were waiting in line for South Carolina football tickets, and appreciate all of their support. I hope that everyone has a great Thanksgiving holiday. Personally, I am looking forward to having my team over to my house for Thanksgiving dinner after practice on Thursday!
Coach P
11/10/06 - Back in the Swing of Things…
After a long off-season, we are looking forward to getting back in the swing of things this weekend with a trip to Old Dominion. Obviously, we are very excited about the opportunity the trip presents, as we will play 3 good teams in 3 days. Arkansas State, Monmouth, and Old Dominion present 3 unique challenges as each team plays a different style that will force us to be very solid in our preparation and execution.
Personally, I am excited to head back to Norfolk, VA where I spent over 12 years as a player and coach. Coach Smith, one of my assistants, also played and coached at Old Dominion and is looking forward to returning as well. This will be the first time we have been back for a game since I took my Dayton team to Norfolk a few years ago and escaped with a 4-point victory.
I know our players are just as excited to get back in the routine of the season and get things started in a big way. We have really picked up the pace and pushed our guys this week in practice and they are responding like we felt that they would. As I talk to my players about everyday, the season is a marathon and not a sprint, but we want to get out of the gates strong if we are to have the type of season that we talk about having and the success that we expect.
I cannot express enough how excited my players and I are about the upcoming season and the opportunities it will present for us to grow as a team. We look forward to testing ourselves early in front of a hostile crowd in Norfolk. We feel like this will be a great opportunity to prepare for other hostile environments that we will encounter throughout the season in the ACC. In order to be the team we want to be, we must develop a toughness and mindset that we will not be broken as a team and this weekend is a great first step for us in this regard.
This blog is a new feature on my website that I will update periodically throughout the season, so please check back frequently. I would also like to take a moment to thank our fans for all of their support these first 3 seasons and I hope we can turn it up another notch on the court as well as in the stands as we “Fill Up Littlejohn” this season!
-- Coach P
