On Feb. 27, 2021, the Clemson Tigers were able to win their 15th game of the season against the unranked Miami Hurricanes, awarding Head Coach Brad Brownell his 200th win with Clemson.
Despite a slow start to the game, Clemson emerged on top, as Aamir Simms and Al-Amir Dawes each had 19 points while helping Clemson shoot an impressive 50% from 3-point range to counter the 28-point game by Miami’s Isaiah Wong.
When Brownell was asked about Clemson’s performance, he praised Dawes’ incredible play by stating, “Al gave us a big jolt coming off the bench and hitting threes. His defense was good, also.”
Brownell complimented Simms’ performance, too, by mentioning how efficient a player he is when it comes to scoring, since Simms can score in the post, shoot from three and drive to the basket. This praise is not uncommon for Simms, who has played tremendous basketball throughout the season. He is currently averaging 13.6 points per game while shooting 55.3% from the field and 39.1% from three.
At the start of the game, Alex Hemenway and Simms hit back-to-back threes to hand Clemson a quick 6-0 lead. Miami did not back down from the challenge, however, as Wong helped lead a 19-6 run that handed the Hurricanes a 19-12 lead with 13 minutes to go in the first half.
Despite Clemson’s offense sputtering after its fast start, the Tigers were able to get back into things after Dawes entered the game and recorded two steals and a pair of 3-pointers in two minutes, handing Clemson a 24-23 lead with eight minutes left in the half.
From that point on, the game entered an offensive explosion, as the two teams exchanged baskets each time down the court. As time expired, Nick Honor made a tough layup at the buzzer to give the Tigers a 34-30 lead entering halftime.
When the second half started, both teams continued to score on one another with ease, but it became apparent that Clemson had the edge, thanks to its balanced scoring attack. The offensive presence of Dawes, Simms, Clyde Trapp and Hunter Tyson helped propel Clemson to a 10-point lead with nine minutes left in the game. The Tigers then expanded their lead to the largest of the game, 13, after Dawes made a corner 3-pointer while pulling a Mike Miller in the process (as in his shoe came off).
Unfortunately for Clemson, the Hurricanes proved to have more fuel left in the tank, as they scored 10 straight unanswered points to trim their deficit down to only three points with five minutes to go. Clemson retook the driver’s seat after Simms and Tyson hit back-to-back threes to help expand Clemson’s lead back to 11 points and officially too far out of reach for a Miami comeback in the final two minutes. Clemson would go on to win the game 66-58.
Clemson will take their final road trip of the regular season to play against Syracuse (13-8) on Wednesday, March 3, at 5 p.m. with hopes of continuing their five-game winning streak. A win against Syracuse will help increase Clemson’s chances of getting a two-round bye in the ACC Tournament. The Tigers are currently losing the tiebreaker to Louisville for the fourth seed in the tournament.
