Painter’s Preview: Tiger Basketball Week 8
After a week rest, the Clemson Men’s Basketball team returns to action on January 1st to start the new year. The Tigers were able to get back on the winning train after two heartbreaking defeats with a home victory over Wake Forest. Clemson’s tough hard-nosed defense suffocated Wake Forest’s offense leading to a defensive clinic. The Tigers forced 19 turnovers in route to a 73-62 win to improve to 10-3 (2-0).
Key Tiger Takeaways:
Brownell’s Defense: Coach Brownell has become known as a defensive mastermind in his tenure at Clemson, and these past few seasons it has carried the Tigers to new heights. Clemson was able to make a run to the Elite Eight last season because of their suffocating defensive ability, and this team has exemplified those traits. Clemson has struggled a little on the offensive side of the ball at times this season, and their defense has kept them in every game. Even in their losses to Memphis and South Carolina, Clemson faced double-digit deficits; however, tough defensive stops kept them within reach despite slow offensive starts. The Tigers showcased a great performance against the Demon Deacons forcing 19 turnovers while allowing just 23.1% from behind the arc (ESPN). If the Tigers are able to play good enough on offense, their defensive ability will have this squad playing late in the season.
Bench Bros: In the past couple of games even while going 1-2, Clemson has proved their best duo coming off the bench. Dillon Hunter and Jake Heidbreder have put together extremely valuable minutes off the bench these past couple of games, and their production continues to rise. Hunter was a huge question mark for the Tigers coming into the season on whether he would develop his shot or not, but now Hunter is pushing for a starting role. He has been extremely effective on defensive while averaging 6.1 points/g in 20 minutes/g (ESPN). Fellow bench star Jake Heidbreder is finally letting Tiger Fans know why he was able to average over 15 points/g at Air Force just two seasons ago. Heidbreder missed last season due to a back injury, but recently he has been firing on all cylinders. His minutes have continued to rise since the Miami game. Against the Demon Deacons, Heidbreder almost led the Tigers with 15 points and has been an effective passer of the basketball (ESPN). Clemson has two great players coming off the bench that could be fighting for a starting role depending on the production from those guys. Whether these guys start or not, expect heavy doses of these two guys for the rest of the season.
Struggling ACC: While the ACC is normally one of the best basketball conferences in the country, this season the production from the ACC as a whole has been lacking. The SEC has taken over College Basketball this season, and the ACC’s Tournament bids will be punished because of their success. Because of this, Clemson has to take advantage of the weaker conference and ensure they do not slip up in conference play to inferior opponents to weaken their resume. The Tigers missed two opportunities for big time wins over Memphis and South Carolina making their ACC Slate that much more important. Clemson has to be impressive in ACC to secure their spot in the NCAA Tournament this season.
Clemson’s Upcoming Games:
Stanford at Home Wednesday, January 1st, 2025
Clemson will host the Stanford Cardinals that enter this contest 9-3 (1-0) coming off a 15-point loss to No. 10 Oregon. Stanford’s first year Head Coach Kyle Smith has them in a much better spot through 12 games compared to their previous season as they sat at 5-7 and finished the year 14-18 (“Sports Reference | Sports Stats, Fast, Easy, and Up-To-Date | Sports-Reference.com”). The 2024 Pac-12 Coach of the Year went to work in the Portal to ensure that the Cardinals would not have another disappointing season in their first ACC season. Stanford is led by their 7 '1 Forward, Maxime Raynaud. Raynaud is a fourth-year Cardinal averaging a double-double in his final season. He has averaged 21.4 points/g and 11.8 rebounds/g while shooting 38% from behind the arc (ESPN). His development has been vital to the early success of this Stanford squad, and he has become one of the most impressive players within the NCAA. Filling out the Stanford backcourt are two new faces to the program, Senior Guard Jaylen Blakes and Junior Guard Oziyah Sellers. Blakes is a former Duke Blue Devil who has fully taken advantage of his opportunity in California. Before this season, he never averaged over 3.4 points/g, but this season Blakes has averaged 15.3 points/g and 5.3 assists/g (ESPN). Beside Blakes, fellow transfer Oziyah Sellers has also taken advantage of this opportunity. Sellers is a former four-star recruit and USC Trojan that has averaged 13.8 points/g for the Cardinals (ESPN) Both Sellers and Blakes shoot the three-ball; however, they have yet to consistently hit from behind the arc at a good rate. The Tigers have a lot on their hands coming up on New Years because if Stanford starts to hit their shots behind the arc, this game will get interesting real fast. Behind these top three players, the Cardinals do not have another guy that will put a lot of stress on Clemson; however, Sophomore Guard Ryan Agarwal’s hustle allows for him to get a lot of rebounds for his 6 '6 size. While the Tigers have looked good to start the season so far, there is still a ton on the table for this team. Coach Brownell has a lot to live up to after an Elite Eight appearance last season; however, he needs to tap into the potential of his current squad to return. With all that said, I do not expect the Tigers to lose to the Stanford Cardinals to start the New Year because of the experience of Chase Hunter and Ian Schieffelin. Clemson will win 78-66.
California at Home Saturday, January 4th, 2025
The Tigers will then welcome in fellow new ACC member, the California Golden Bears, into Littlejohn on Saturday. The Golden Bears are currently 7-5 (0-1) and most likely will be 7-6 (0-2) coming into Clemson after their game at Pittsburgh. California is coming off a disappointing season just like the Stanford Cardinals going 13-19 last season in the Pac-12 (“Sports Reference | Sports Stats, Fast, Easy, and Up-To-Date | Sports-Reference.com”). They are led by former Stanford Cardinal Guard, Andrej Stojakovic. Stojakovic has a 6’7 frame that has allowed him to score 19.1 points/g with 4.8 rebounds/g. He has improved his shot behind the arc to 35% this season, and it will be back-back tough defensive challenge for the Tigers after guarding Stanford’s Maxime Raynaud. Behind Stojakovic, the Bears added long-time College player Jovan Blacksher Jr. in the Portal who has been very productive throughout his entire career. This season he has averaged 13 points/g with a 40%+ percentage from behind the arc, but he has had a turnover problem that the Tigers will attempt to exploit (ESPN). The final player in the California back court also takes a ton of 3’s, Freshman Guard Jeremiah Wilkinson. Wilkinson has averaged almost 12 points/g taking over 4-5 3’s per game on 35% (ESPN). However, Wilkinson has struggled to fill up the other stats on the stat sheet, not averaging over 2 in any other category. Leading the Golden Bears in rebounds is the 6’9 Senior Center, Mady Sissoko. He has averaged just 6.8 rebounds/g, and Ian Schieffelin is licking his chops at the opportunity to fill up his rebound category in this match-up. This group of players for California has struggled against Power Conference Opponents going 1-3 in those contests, including a lost to Stanford. If the Tigers are able to start this new year off right earlier in the week, it is had to see our talented Clemson roster fall to this California team. Expect the Clemson defense to suffocate the Golden Bears with a main focus on defending the three-point line. The three-point line is California way to victory on Saturday, but expect to Tigers ready to guard. Clemson will win this game 83-63 because of California’s struggling defense combined with the Tigers hard-nosed style.
Sources:
ESPN. “ESPN.” ESPN.com, 2019, www.espn.com/.
“Sports Reference | Sports Stats, Fast, Easy, and Up-To-Date | Sports-Reference.com.” Sports-Reference.com, 2019, www.sports-reference.com/.