How Clemson Basketball, Brad Brownell Are Preparing For ACC West Coast Trip

The last time that Clemson basketball played in California, the Tigers made their first Elite Eight appearance since 1980. Now, to begin February, the team is heading back.

A lot goes into preparation for head coach Brad Brownell, who faces both Stanford and Cal this week while looking to remain at least in second place in the ACC at 8-1 at the midpoint in the conference schedule.

Brownell revealed in the weekly ACC teleconference on Monday that Stanford is the main focus right now, calling the Cardinal a team that “has played very well at times.”

“Kyle [Smith]’s a terrific coach,” he said. “They change defenses, do different things, so it’ll be a heck of a challenge to go out there, only to play very well to win.”

In preparation for this trip west, Brownell has spoken to a lot of coaches, mainly outside of the ACC, about what the trip looks like for some. The Tigers play Stanford at 10 p.m. on Wednesday, and getting used to the body clock will be a key point of emphasis heading into the game.

Things like hydration, shooting around in the gym the night before the game begins and late-night recovery crossed the mind of the Clemson head coach.

“We got to figure it out. If we just got to go there with the mentality that we’re going to try to play well and compete,” he said. “We’ll have to monitor a little bit as a staff, but hopefully everything will be fine.”

Brownell mainly spoke to some guys from the Big 10, who now travel from the East Coast to play teams like USC, Oregon, Washington and UCLA. A coach told him that winning there is a lot simpler than many dial it up to be.

“I had one guy tell me, ‘Hey, everybody makes a big deal about it, but the two or three guys on your team to play 32 minutes or more, those are the guys you got to worry about,’” Brownell recalled.

For Clemson, in that case, there isn’t a player that averages 32 minutes a game because of the team’s depth. That doesn't mean that he shouldn’t be keeping an eye on players like Dillon Hunter (29.1 minutes per game), Jestin Porter (26.6 mpg) and RJ Godfrey (24.5 mpg), who will play a big factor in how successful the Tigers are this week.

But, the Clemson head coach wants to go into the next part of his schedule with an open mind, most importantly. The Tigers haven’t done this yet, and the way the ACC schedule is set to look like in years to come, it won’t be their last time. So, he will use this time to understand how his team responds to the trip.

“I don’t want to make more out of it than it is,” he said. “I’m also trying to be respectful of it, having not done it. It’s hard to know.”

Tipoff between Clemson and Stanford is set for 10 p.m. and the game will be broadcast on the ACC Network.