Archive for February, 2010

How has Oliver Purnell turned the Tigers around?

Sunday, February 21st, 2010

A couple weeks ago, after a very disappointing loss to Virginia Tech, many people started to give up on our chances. I personally thought 7-9 was a likely finish to the ACC slate. Our half court sets were abysmal during our slide since the UNC game and shooting was terribly inconsistent. We knew going into this 3-game homestand that this was the most crucial point in the season: either we’d fall apart like other years, or put it together and make the NCAAs. Well, we got the 3 wins we desperately needed, but how?

To put it simply, we’ve shot better.

The half-court sets are not really better or more advanced these last couple weeks, we’re scoring our points off of the same in-out game on offense and off turnovers, just like we always have. The defense has definitely had its moments, and has been good on the whole, but I wouldn’t call it smothering.

Some stats to put it in perspective:

  • In 5 games prior to this homestand, Clemson shot 113/304 = 37%. The only good game out of that was the 50% shooting performance against Boston College, that we lost. For the 3 game homestand, Clemson shot 67/141 = 47.5%, and 44% against one of the ACC’s best defensive teams in FSU.
  • In 5 games prior to this homestand, Clemson shot over 70% from the FT line exactly 0 times, the best being a 9/13 (69%) performance against Duke. Since BC, where we were 50%, it has consistently risen in every game. During this homestand, we shot over 75% in every game, 66/82 = 80.5%.
  • Since ACC play started, Clemson has not shot better than 40% from the 3 point line.  We have not shot over 30% from the arc but twice, Game 1 vs BC (35.7%), and NC State (40%). In each game of this homestand, Clemson has shot 35% or better in every game and 23/58 = 39.6% for the 3 games.
  • No defensive statistic shows this drastic a change over the homestand. We aren’t defending percentagewise any differently, and other than UVA today (2/13) we actually did a worse job at defending the 3. We didn’t force that many turnovers (15, 14, 12) though we did get 11 steals against FSU. Our own turnovers don’t show a noticeable trend over the last 8 games.
  • Other than a day off 2-pt performance against FSU, Jerai Grant has really stepped up his production on offense since the Boston College loss. He put up over 10 points just 5 times until BC, but has had 5 games over 11 points since, 2 double-doubles and nearly a 3rd after having just 1 all season. He’s finally turned into the offensive threat at the 5-spot that we needed to take some pressure off Booker going forward, averaging 12.3ppg over his last 6.

But why? Well Andre Young has certainly picked up his game since Stitt’s injury. His assists have gone way up along with his production. Demontez Stitt has come back to full health slowly, and until today’s blowout his minutes have been going upwards. David Potter had been trending upwards until Miami, where he again fell off the map offensively (3/13). Trevor Booker’s stats haven’t shown a real trend either, he actually got close to 20ppg from the first Duke game until Maryland, and since the flu he’s been down offensively in part because his minutes have been lower. Over the 3 game set he put up 13, 18, and 14 points in 25 minutes today.

So it’s really not just one player that’s carrying us, we’ve just shot better as a team and hit those much-needed baskets and layups in transition and off the steals we have gotten. Its been different guys to step up in each game.

Tags:
Posted in Basketball, Uncategorized | No Comments »

Clemson throttles UVA 72-49 to move to 7-5 in the ACC

Sunday, February 21st, 2010

The Tigers moved to 3-0 with their resounding 72-49 win yesterday against UVA. They were able to successfully hold home court in that critical three game stretch to move to 7-5 in the ACC.

UVA is in a swoon as they played four games in the same amount of time the Tigers played two, including yesterday’s game. Landesberg was held in check by the defense and the Tiger defense was allowed to play, despite the lead official of the game being Karl Hess. Maybe if the Hess curse can be broken, then maybe the Chapel Hill curse can be as well. This is definitely a season the Tigers can lament the ACC scheduling imbalance, as the Tigers will not be playing in Chapel Hill this year.

Two of the most important developments of the past three games has been the maturation and play of Jerai Grant and the improved play of Milton Jennings. Jerai Grant played solidly against UVA, going 8-9 for 18pts. While he was in foul trouble against the tall trees of FSU, he had 13 pts in the win against Miami. If he is playing strong down low, more space is created for Trevor Booker. And when the outside shots are falling, the Tigers look and play like an actual, real-life top 25 basketball team.

Now, if Milton Jennings keeps his confidence up for the remainder of the year, the Tigers will be a much different team than the one who lost to BC, Duke x2, GT, VT, and even Texas A&M and Illinois. Milton Jennings had easily his best performance of the year against UVA going 4-4 with 11pts. He has been playing assignment basketball, focusing on rebounds  and defense. Should he continue to match his offensive effort with his defensive efforts, many of the Jennings naysayers and schadenfreude revelers will have their comeuppance, and more importantly, Clemson basketball will be in a better place. Yes, that is a lot of hypotheticals.

Up next  the Tigers have to maintain their current level of play in two upcoming road games. The Tigers play another road-weary team in Maryland. The Terps are coming off an emotional, last second, two last shot, win vs. GT. Remember Grievous Vasquez and his Stitt comment? Here’s what Booker had to say:

“They didn’t think Stitt being out was a factor,” Booker said of the Maryland team. “(Grievous) Vazquez said something in the newspaper about, ‘Who’s Stitt?’ or something like that.“When we get up there,”  “he’ll find out who Demontez Stitt is.”

On Wednesday, it will be time for the Tigers to let the Stitt out against MD.

Stay up late and watch the game on Raycom Wednesday, 2/24/2010, at 9:00pm.

To read more about Clemson Basketball, check out The OP Blog.

Go Tigers!

Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

February Thoughts on Clemson Athletics

Sunday, February 7th, 2010

Here are some random thoughts and opinions about a variety of issues that we will continue to investigate over at www.shakinthesouthland.com:

Clemson signed an acceptable class this season.  We overviewed this class at STS here:  http://www.shakinthesouthland.com/2010/2/3/1289865/the-2010-clemson-tiger-recruiting and will evaluate how the Tigers class looks on a needs-fill basis this week (week starting Feb 8).  Bringing in Justin Parker was critical for this class.  It was also nice to see the set of skills players (DB’s and WR’s) that we brought in this season.  Clemson has a lot of work to do for the ‘11 class based on needs and losses after this year, but should be (overall) happy about this group.

Clemson basketball has placed itself in a bad situation moving forward.  With a loss at Virginia Tech, Clemson fell to 4-5 in conference play.  Clemson has played extremely poor fundamental basketball, especially in half court sets.  Further, the Tigers do a poor job of moving without the ball and implementing anything complex.  Clemson cannot convert free throws and is really poor shooting from the field.  If the Tigers’ full court press does not result in easy transition points, the Tigers are in real trouble each and every night.  This team has a lot of basic issues that need correcting.

Moving forward, Clemson is really spiraling and has to win a minimum 3 of their next 4 to legitimately position themselves for any decent NCAA birth.  The Tigers have three consecutive road games before traveling to College Park.  CU still has hope but needs to do a lot of things to become more relevant.

On the basketball note, I have been particularly disappointed with the television coverage/availability for the country’s premier conference.  Living in SC, I would expect that I would be able to watch Clemson play on Saturdays.  Unfortunately, no one in my viewing area carries ACC basketball on Raycom.  I expect Swofford to address this issue.  ACC basketball is a huge conference asset.  To handicap this conference by lack of a distribution network is comical.  Raycom provides excellent basketball coverage.  It is almost criminal that Swoffy and the boys cannot work out a better plan to get ACC teams more coverage (especially in bball season).   Current Raycom announcers are well versed in this conference’s history and teams and I personally believe that viewers nationwide would be interested in seeing some of the country’s best basketball coupled with excellent coverage.

The folks in the SEC are reaping the benefits of media deals, I would expect the ACC to follow suit within the year.  If not, the schools should demand the ACC leadership completely removed and replaced with a group that wants the ACC (and schools outside the research triangle) to get some benefit from participating in this league.

Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

Basketball Q&A with VT blog Gobbler Country

Saturday, February 6th, 2010

I would like to thank the folks over at Gobbler Country for participating in a Question/Answer session in anticipation with our game this Saturday.  Please feel free to visit their site for all new V Tech info including bball and football articles as well as our responses to their questions.

STS Question: You mention on your site that a 0.500 record will not get Va Tech into the NCAA tourney.  What record will get them there?  What would a win over Clemson do to boost these chances?

GC Answer: It’s beginning to look more and more like a 10-6 conference record is a must for the Hokies. The ACC as a whole has proved to be very balanced across the board, but with no real powerful teams. Virtually every team Tech faced in the non-conference slate has a losing record, and most of those teams are at the bottom of their conference standings. Winning at home against Clemson will be very important for their tournament hopes. Coach Greenberg constantly stresses the importance of winning all of your home games, because road wins are hard to come by in this conference. A loss on Saturday would put the Hokies’ backs against the wall heading into the second half of the conference season.



STS Question: Malcolm Delaney is averaging almost 20 points a game for the Hokies.  What will Clemson need to do to keep Delaney at bay?  Can Virginia Tech win if Delaney can be stopped, or do you suspect another Hokie will be able to step up here?

GC Answer: Clemson’s full-court pressure will be a tough matchup for the Hokies, because Delaney will have to be the primary ball-handler. That could wear him down quicker than coach Greenberg would. When Delaney sat out the game in Cancun against Seton Hall with a sprained ankle, Dorenzo Hudson erupted for 41 points. That will never happen again, but Tech has proved they can compete even if Delaney is missing from the lineup entirely. That being said, Clemson is another animal compared to Seton Hall.



STS Question: VT handled UVa a few weeks ago, giving the Hokies a quality January win.  You then followed with a loss to Miami.  Which team should we expect to see Saturday?

GC Answer: As was said earlier, winning on the road in the ACC is extremely difficult to do, no matter who you are. The win over Virginia was draining for a few reasons: it involved two double-digit comebacks, a game-tying buzzer-beater by Virginia, and of course an overtime period. The team went straight from Charlottesville to Miami, and they came out very sluggish in the early going against the Hurricanes. It was a taxing road trip to say the least. The Hokies are 9-0 (maybe 9-1 or 10-0 depending on UNC outcome) at home this season, so I expect a strong showing on Saturday.



STS Question: VT will be coming off a game on Thursday against UNC.  Do you expect fatigue to play a factor for the Hokies against Clemson?  If necessary, how deep can this team get into the bench and still get quality production?

GC Answer: Because both games are at home, and there is no traveling involved, fatigue should not set in for this team. Greenberg has done an excellent job playing 10 and 11 guys in every game, so that they are ready if called upon in important moments. Realistically, there are five players off the bench that Greenberg would be comfortable putting in a game as important as this one. J.T. Thompson, Erick Green, Ben Boggs, Manny Atkins and Cadarian Raines will all play a decent number of minutes. Raines, a promising 6’9’’ freshman, will have to be used to defend Trevor Booker if Victor Davila and Jeff Allen are both out of the game.



STS Question: Which unexpected player should Clemson fans be watching for Saturday?  Also, is there some player on the roster who gives extreme effort and plays better than his raw talent?

GC Answer: J.T. Thompson has emerged over the last few games as the proverbial “starter off the bench”. His numbers would indicate he is a starter (6.6 ppg, 4 rpg), and his 17-point performance against Virginia tied a season-high. He followed that up with 14 points at Miami. He has great length for a forward, but will face a tough test if he has to defend the physical Booker inside.



STS Question: Overall, where does this VT team stand when compared to the rest of the ACC?

GC Answer: It’s hard to tell, honestly. Nobody in the ACC is bad, but nobody is great, even Duke. The Hokies have the worst field-goal percentage in the league, but have one of the best scoring defenses. They remind me of Florida State from a year ago. Malcolm Delaney carries the team, just like Toney Douglass did, while the supporting cast is full of long athletic players who play lock-down half-court defense. The biggest problem is if Delaney is ineffective, there is not another proven scorer that you can count on to pick up the slack. I would peg the Hokies as the fifth or sixth-best team in the league, but with the ridiculous parity in the league this year, does that really mean anything? The ACC tournament will be as important as I can remember it ever being in determining who goes to the big dance and who doesn’t.

Tags:
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »