Clemson Aims to Silence Alabama A&M in Friday Night Matchup

With the 2025 Shriners Children's Charleston Classic title in tow, the Clemson Tigers look to continue their good form through the rest of non-conference play.

The latest test on that schedule? The Alabama A&M Bulldogs.

Heading into another matchup inside the friendly confines of Littlejohn Coliseum, let’s take a look at Alabama A&M and what they bring to the matchup.

A Seasoned Top Scorer

When Alabama A&M head coach Donte Jackson left Grambling State two seasons ago, he brought a bevy of transfers along with him. The top player of that bunch was 6-foot-1 guard Kintavious Dozier.

A senior from Lanett, Alabama, Dozier spent two seasons at Gadsden State Community College before averaging an impressive 12.7 points and 3.3 assists on 44.4% shooting from the field. He profiles as a dangerous scoring guard despite his smaller size.

This season, Dozier hasn’t wasted any time making his mark for the Bulldogs. In the ‘Bulldog Bash’ MTE, he averaged 18.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, and paced an Alabama A&M team that went a perfect 2-0 in the event. After wins over Charleston Southern and Lindenwood, Dozier was awarded the MVP for his efforts.

An Attackable Defense

While AAMU doesn’t rank near the bottom of defensive metrics, it isn’t particularly close to the top, either. Despite winning three of their first four games, the Bulldogs rank 155th in the nation in opponents’ points per game and have allowed fewer than 70 points from opponents in all three wins.

However, Alabama A&M has been able to force opponents to shoot just 26% from three-point range, which ranks 22nd in the nation. Against Indiana in their lone loss, the Hoosiers nailed ten threes and shot 42% from deep.

An Opponent Clemson Should Dominate on the Glass

Against West Virginia and Georgia in the Charleston Classic, Clemson demonstrated its ability to rebound against quality competition from high-major conferences. Conversely, Alabama A&M profiles as a weaker rebounding team.

The Bulldogs average 2.5 rebounds per game than they allow. Even excluding the Indiana game (IU outrebounded AAMU 42-19), the team’s rebounding margin is only slightly above zero. Though Alabama A&M features nine players who stand 6-foot-7 or taller, the Tigers should control the rebounding battle in Friday’s game.

Alabama A&M Bulldogs (3-1, 0-0 SWAC)

Head coach: Donte Jackson (1st season here, 16th overall, 3-1 at AAMU, 132-134 at Grambling State)
2024 SWAC tournament champion and NCAA Tournament participant (with Grambling State)
3-time SWAC regular season champion (2018, 2023, 2024 at Grambling State)
2-time Ben Jobe Award Winner (2018, 2024)
Awarded each year to the nation’s best minority head coach

Advanced Rankings*
311 in KenPom (Clemson is 30)
354 in BPI (Clemson is 21)

* - out of all 365 Division I teams

Record by Quadrant
Quadrant 1: 0-1
Quadrant 2: 0-0
Quadrant 3: 0-0
Quadrant 4: 2-0
Non-Division I: 1-0

Notable wins: vs Charleston Southern (68-64), vs Lindenwood (74-65)
Notable losses: at Indiana (98-51)

Stat Leaders
Leading scorer: G Kintavious Dozier, 14.0 points
Leading rebounder: G Koron Davis, 6.0 rebounds
Assist leader: G Sami Pissis, 4.5 assists

Series History

Clemson has won the series’s only meeting, which took place in 2019. The Tigers made easy work of the Bulldogs 87-51 at Littlejohn Coliseum to improve to 4-1 in non-conference play.

Quick Facts

Head coach Brad Brownell is two wins away from 300 total at Clemson. His first victory came on Nov. 12, 2010, when the Tigers defeated Western Carolina.
The four-man group of Dozier, Davis, Pissis, and Eason has started all four games for AAMU this season.
Alabama A&M has lost its last four games away from home.
Alabama A&M lost to Georgia in Athens last season, their lone trip to a high-major opponent in 2024.