Painter’s Preview: Tiger Basketball Week 2
Clemson has started this 24-25 campaign with two big wins over Charleston Southern and St. Francis (PA). Star Chase Hunter has continued to produce at the same level he showed during the Elite Eight run, and the Tigers have showcased their depth. However, there are still some question marks that are on this roster that may be answered in a tough upcoming road contest against Boise State.
Key Tiger Takeaways:
Chase Hunter: Hunter has looked the part during these first two ‘buy’ games for the Tigers, and he looks prime to continue his insane tournament run from last season. He has averaged 15 points through the first two contests, and he will need to continue to average that number for Clemson to have sustained success. Hunter has accomplished this feat with getting limited touches as well. The Tigers are a roster built of ball dominant players and that takes aways from Hunter’s opportunities. However, Chase Hunter has proven that he needs to be the center of Clemson’s Offensive attack. It will be interesting to see how Coach Brownell plans to use Hunter’s experience and ability once the Tigers get into competitive games this season.
Guard Depth: The Tigers have showcased their deep guard bench during these first couple of games this season. Compared to last season, where Clemson had a question mark in guard depth on the bench, the Tigers have five key Guards that will play a vital role in Clemson’s success. Obviously Chase Hunter is the star player within that group, but fellow starter Jaeden Zackery has showcased his ability as well. After a somewhat quiet opener as a Tiger, Zackery finished the game against St. Francis with 16 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, and 4 steals (ESPN). Zackery is Clemson’s best guard defender, and he already has 7 steals after the first week of the season. His speed and ability to guard on the ball has caused Coach Brownell to spread out the Tiger Defense allowing for more presses. Coming off the bench for Clemson are Junior Guards Dillion Hunter and Jake Heidbreder and Freshman Guard Del Jones. Dillion Hunter, younger brother of Chase, has shown much improvement so far from last season. He averaged 10-15 minutes a game for Clemson last season and did not produce much Offensively, but Hunter has showed his ability to create open shots during these first two contests. He is a proven defender that will help Brownell and Co.; however, the amount of help that he can provide will rely on how often he hits those open shots. Jake Heidbreder, a former Air Force Falcon, has seemingly stepped into the footsteps of Joseph Girard. Heidbreder missed last season due to a back injury, but his ability to score beyond the arch has been shown against the Buccaneers and the Red Flash. He is 5-8 from the three point line after this first week, yet the amount of opportunities that he receives will depend on his ability to play hard nose defense off the bench (ESPN). Freshman Del Jones has broke the norm for Coach Brownell as he has stepped onto campus and became an immediate contributor for Clemson. Jones has a quick first step, and his defensive ability is similar to that of Zackery’s. The Tigers have deep dependable Guard play and if they are able to make the tournament that will take them a long way.
Missing Hall: After this first week of basketball, Clemson has visibly missed P.J. Hall. I am afraid that this will most likely continue throughout the season as well. Current starting Center Victor Lakhin had a rough first game, shooting under 50% on 13 shots, but he has since played better making all of his shots against a small St. Francis team (ESPN). Lakhin lacks an ability to move laterally on defense and that could inhibit his amount of playing time in the future if he is unable to guard. Behind Lakhin is the project 7’2 Sophomore Christian Reeves. Reeves took my breathe away watching him play in warmups, yet that expectation has since fallen after seeing his play in-game. Reeves does not play up to his size as he struggled to seal much smaller defenders from the Buccaneers and the Red Flash. He has also struggled to get rebounds at a good rate, and he does not look ready to play basketball at a Power Conference level yet. It will be interesting to see how Coach Brownell treats his tall project once competitive play starts because he is not ready. After barely out-rebounding Charleston Southern, Ian Schieffelin came to play against St. Francis. The lack of rebounding against Charleston Southern was alarming because, as mentioned earlier, they were a much smaller team, but the Tigers were able to out-rebound St. Francis pretty easily on Friday. Ian Schieffelin also had his first double-double of the season after a poor showing in his Senior season opener. Schieffelin has to take the production from the big guys into his own hands to ensure that Clemson does not have a hangover from the graduation of P.J. Hall.
Upcoming Games:
Tuesday, November 12- Eastern Kentucky:
Clemson returns back to Littlejohn Collesium on Tuesday this coming week against the 23-24 A-SUN Conference Regular Season Champions, the Eastern Kentucky Colonels. The Colonels enter this game undefeated, coming off a close one against East Tennessee State (ESPN). Entering this season, Eastern Kentucky was gutted in the off-season by graduation and the Portal as they lost 6 out of 7 of their top scorers (“Sports Reference | Sports Stats, Fast, Easy, and Up-To-Date | Sports-Reference.com”). The Colonels were able to bring in a couple guys from the Portal to help reload, yet they mostly trusted in their development ability to try and repeat their regular season success from last season. Led by fifth year Eastern Kentucky Colonel Devontae Blanton, the Colonels are hoping for an upset on Tuesday. Eastern Kentucky has the most size that Clemson has seen so far, and it will be interesting to see how Clemson’s unproven Bigs handle the added size on an opponent. The Colonels are going to attempt a lot of three pointers as they average 33 a game through just two games (ESPN). If Eastern Kentucky is able to hit these 3’s at a high rate, then they will have an opportunity to play spoil. However, it is not likely that the Colonels will get the upset against the Tigers since their future stars from last season were dismantled by the Portal. Clemson will win 87-69 against Eastern Kentucky.
Sunday, November 17- Boise State:
The Tigers have their first true test of the season on a Sunday at 1:30, on the road, at Boise State this coming week. Boise State is coming off a NCAA Tournament appearance where they got put out in the first round by the Colorado Buffalos. The Broncos return a couple of their top scorers from last season with hopes to avenge a brutal 68-85 loss to the Tigers that occurred during last season (“Sports Reference | Sports Stats, Fast, Easy, and Up-To-Date | Sports-Reference.com”). Led by Forwards Tyson Degenhart and O’Mar Stanley, Boise State has aspirations to return and make some noise in the dance this season. Boise is currently 1-0 after dismantling Oakland 87-43, who won a game in the NCAA Tournament last season, and they will most likely be 3-0 once they play the Tigers (ESPN). The Broncos had some talent to replace from the 23-24 campaign so along side the developed talent that they currently have, they brought in 7’0 Dylan Anderson from Arizona and Guard Alvaro Cardenas from San Jose State (ESPN). Both guys played vital roles in the first game of the year for the Broncos stepping in nicely in the Bronco system. Forward Andrew Meadow looks to be the most improved player on the roster, and Boise State is filled with 6’7+ players that can play all five positions. The Broncos are a match-up nightmare for almost anyone in the country, and the Tigers will have a lot to prove on this upcoming Sunday. The Broncos are the most put together team that Clemson plays before a very difficult December, and it will give fans some insight into how the season may go. The Tigers’ post game struggles will not help against Boise State, and it is possible that the struggles from the paint could led to a Bronco victory. I expect Clemson to have some hiccups from within the paint on Sunday that will led to a Boise State win. Boise State will win 77-72 in a close one that is determined by rebounds and second chances.
Sources:
“Sports Reference | Sports Stats, Fast, Easy, and Up-To-Date | Sports-Reference.com.” Sports-Reference.com, 2019, www.sports-reference.com/.
ESPN. “ESPN.” ESPN.com, 2019, www.espn.com/.