Tiger nation showed up to Littlejohn Coliseum expecting a full-forced fire from Brad Brownell and his squad after two straight losses, only to see Florida State extinguish that fire within six minutes of the opening tip. This loss wasn’t just another tally on their record, but a significant blow for Clemson’s tournament hopes as the Tigers fell to Seminoles 77-64.
Clemson held a lead in the beginning of the first half, making it seem like the game would be a close one. However, once FSU got hot, it was game over for the Tigers who were only able to get as close as seven points down in the second stanza. FSU did exactly what was expected of them, holding Clemson to the outside and taking away opportunities to shoot from inside the paint. Clemson is already weak from the outside, so when the opposing team is has nine players who can put significant points on the board compared to your six, it’s hard to come away with a win.
After losing to both Miami and Louisville by one-point margins last week, Coach Brownell described his team as rather weary, but he’s not using this an excuse. “We’re not about excuses around here,” he said. Before the game Brownell explained that the first two passes of each possession were going to determine whether or not they could beat FSU offensively, but he wasn’t pleased with the effort. “We just don’t pass the ball as well as we need to pass it,” he said. This is definitely something that his team will be focusing on in the next few days before their next game.
It’s not all bad news for the Tigers though. They were extremely successful in their ability to control the pace of the game as they held FSU to only two fast-break points. Even though FSU did end up with the advantage on the glass, Clemson came up with an impressive 32 rebounds against at team with size at every position.
The player of the game for Clemson was David Skara, without a doubt. His numbers in this game don’t show it, but he arguably had one of the hardest tasks on the team as he was told to guard the Seminoles’ 7-foot-4 center, Christ Koumadje. To Skara’s credit, Koumadje’s seven rebounds were hard-fought and signified outstanding effort against a center who is capable of pulling down 12-14 rebounds in a game. To also do this without getting into foul trouble further proves his mature defensive skills.
For Florida State, Mfiondu Kabengele was outstanding.. Kabengele put up 19 points, 11 boards and two blocks while coming off of the bench for the seminoles–outscoring the entire Clemson bench by himself.
Clemson is desperate for a home win this Saturday against Boston College, who sits just below the Tigers in the ACC conference standings at 10th. The game will tip off in Littlejohn Coliseum at 12:00 p.m.
