Clemson joined automatic qualifiers Wofford and Winthrop as part of the 65 team field for the NCAA Basketball Tournament Sunday night when the first round pairings were announced. The Tigers received an at-large bid and will be the seventh seed in the East Regional. The Tigers will face Missouri Friday at 2:45 PM in Buffalo. The winner will play either West Virginia or Morgan State in the second round. The East Region feeds into Syracuse.
Wofford is in the tournament for the first time after winning the Southern Conference Tournament championhip last Monday night. The Terriers also will play in the East Region as the #13 seed. They will face the fourth seed Wisconsin Badgers Friday in Jacksonville, FL at 3:00 PM. The winner will face the winner of the Temple-Cornell game in round two.
Winthrop will be the first team from the state to play in the tournament. The Eagles were assigned to the play-in game Tuesday night in Dayton against Arkansas-Pine Bluff. That game will tipoff at 7:30 PM on ESPN. The winner moves into the first round of the main tournament and will play Duke Friday at 7:25 PM in Jacksonville.
Two other state teams are in the post season. Coastal Carolina will play at UAB Tuesday night at 8:30 in an opening round game of the NIT. The Chanticleers are making their first ever NIT appearance. They are the #7 seed in their part of the bracket. The winner of the Coastal-UAB game will face either NC State or South Florida in the second round.
And The College of Charleston is in the College Basketball Inviational Tournament for the second year in a row. The Cougars got the word just after midnight that they will play at Eastern Kentucky Wednesday night. The Cougars are 21-11. Last season they beat Troy in the opening round and then lost to Richmond.
The ACC and SEC tournaments move on without USC or Clemson. The show moves on right along with the tourneys as well. Basketball, baseball, and recruiting all apart of today’s show.
- Oliver Purnell met with the media following last night’s disappointing loss in the first round of the ACC tournament.
Clemson Head Coach Oliver Purnell
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- Trevor Booker spoke with Korn following the game about his team’s letdown.
Clemson Forward Trevor Booker
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- Demontez Stitt also spoke with Korn. Hear what he had to say.
Clemson Guard Demontez Stitt
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- Recruiting includes a Newberry commitment tonight.
Friday night’s Recruiting Report
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Jeff Schaus, Kyle Parker, and Richie Shaffer all hit home runs in #7 Clemson’s 13-2 win over Gardner-Webb at Doug Kinsgmore Stadium on Thursday. The Tigers improved to 10-1, while the Bulldogs fell to 5-8.
Schaus’ two-run homer in the first inning gave Clemson the lead for good, then Parker’s three-run homer in the second inning gave the Tigers a 6-0 lead. Shaffer, who came off the bench, added a long two-run homer in the eighth inning. They were three of Clemson’s 12 hits, while Tiger batters also walked 10 times and added one hit-by-pitch.
Schaus went 2-for-3 with a homer, double, two RBIs, three runs, and a walk, while Parker went 3-for-5 with a homer, three RBIs, two runs, and a walk for the Tigers, who outhit the Bulldogs 12-7.
Tiger starter Justin Sarratt (1-0) earned the win in 5.0 innings pitched. He allowed four hits and two runs (one earned), then Kevin Brady, Scott Firth, and Josh Thrailkill combined to pitch the final 4.0 innings without allowing a run.
Bulldog starter Conner Scarborough (0-2) suffered the loss, as he yielded nine hits, seven runs (six earned), and five walks with one strikeout in 4.0 innings pitched.
The Tigers grabbed the game’s first lead in the first inning when Schaus hit a two-run homer down the right-field line, his third long ball of the season. Chris Epps, who reached on an error to lead off the frame, also scored.
Clemson will open ACC play when it hosts N.C. State at Doug Kingsmore Stadium in a three-game series starting Friday at 4:00 PM.
Clemson’s ACC Tournament misery has another chapter. The 6th seeded Tigers fell to 11th seeded NC State Thursday night 59-57 in the final game of the first day of play in Greensboro. It’s the fourth time in five years the Tigers have lost their first game in the tournament. Clemson’s alltime ACC Tournament record is now 16-57. Clemson remains the only original member of the ACC to never win the tournament. This was Clemson’s 57th appearance.
AUDIO: Clemson post game news conference with Oliver Purnell and Trevor Booker
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Oliver Purnell
The Tigers shot just 39% for the game to State’s 52%. The Wolfpack took the lead at 7-5 and never relinquished it. It was a four point game at halftime and State led by 10 with 12:54 to play. The Tigers got to within three points twice and trailed by two after Demontez Stitt’s three pointer with :06 to play. The Tigers fouled Julius Mays with :02 to play and he missed the front end of the one-and-one, but Tracy Smith got the rebound for State and the clock ran out on the Tigers.
AUDIO: Oliver Purnell
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Trevor Booker
Booker led the Tigers with 17 points and 8 rebounds. But he was just 2-8 from the line and he committed 5 turnovers. Noel Johnson gave the Tigers a spark off the bench hitting four three pointers for 12 points. Smith led State with 19 points. He also had 8 rebounds. State outrebounded the Tigers 34-25.
AUDIO: Trevor Booker
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Demontez Stitt
The loss drops Clemson to 21-10. The Tigers will return home to await their NCAA Tournament assignment. State improves to 18-14 and will play Florida State Friday night. The other games on Friday will be Virginia against Duke, Miami against Virginia Tech, and Georgia Tech against Maryland.
AUDIO: Demontez Stitt
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Final Box
USC blows an 18 point lead and is likely done for the season. Clemson plays NC State tonight looking for their fourth ACC tourney win under Oliver Purnell which would make him the leader in that category as the Tiger head man. Phil is in Greensboro covering the ACC while our good friend Bill Gunter is making his way back to Columbia after the Gamecocks disappointing loss.
- We’ll let you hear Darrin Horn’s comments once again. To hear the players, scroll down a couple of stories. Very simple.
USC Head Coach Darrin Horn
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- Allen Smothers from The Source 1450AM out of Myrtle Beach is in Greensboro with Korn and gave some of his impressions on USC/Bama and Clemson/NC State.
Allen Smothers
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- We continue to give you all of the latest on recruiting even during championship week.
Thursday night’s Recruiting Report
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- The voice of the Tigers, Pete Yannity, talks Clemson hoops with the guys.
Pete Yannity
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