Three Areas Clemson Basketball Must Improve Before March

The Clemson Tigers have work to do down the stretch of this regular season, and these key areas are a good start

Clemson coach Brad Brownell has some adjustments the team needs to make | Todd Shanesy / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

After a convincing 67-54 defeat at the hands of No. 4 Duke on Saturday, Clemson Tigers fans have to be feeling at least a little bit uneasy about the team’s postseason future.

The No. 20 Tigers (20-6, 10-3 ACC) dropped their second straight contest, which will likely drop the team out of the Associated Press Top 25. With it, they further revealed weaknesses that could damage postseason chances.

Although Clemson currently sits third in the ACC standings, the final five games of the regular season will be pivotal in determining whether college basketball fans should consider the Tigers a squad capable of making a run in the NCAA Tournament.

Here are the three areas that will matter most as Brad Brownell’s team aims for a third straight berth in March Madness.

3) Play Through the Post

Even in a one-sided defeat, post players RJ Godfrey and Carter Welling were obviously Clemson’s best source of offense.

Godfrey has emerged as the best source of quality looks for the team. Just feed the ball into Godfrey with post position, and the defense is forced to make a decision. If the help-side man comes to double-team, the ball is swung for an open look. If not, Godfrey is free to take his time and exploit his matchup.

His production isn’t dependent on a large total of minutes, either. In a recent outing against Georgia Tech, Godfrey filled up the stat sheet with 9 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 steals in just 18 minutes of action. Clemson earned a comfortable victory over the Yellow Jackets, and Godfrey’s plus/minus of plus-18 was the second-highest on the team.

Welling and fellow big man Nick Davidson have posted standout games as well. Welling was the engine of Clemson’s second-half comeback against West Virginia back in November, scoring all 13 of his points after halftime. Davidson came alive for 21 first-half points in a Jan. 13 blowout win over Boston College.

The bottom line is simple: Clemson’s post presence, while not dominant, should be utilized appropriately. Steady post touches for the three aforementioned players open up the offense.

2) Wing Emergence

After promising true freshman Zac Foster’s ACL tear sidelined him for the remainder of the season, the wing position was always going to be a crucial piece of Clemson’s postseason picture.

Now, Brownell has turned more to transfer Butta Johnson and true freshman Chase Thompson to fill the void. The sobering reality exists: while Johnson and Thompson have had some excellent flashes during the regular season, they haven’t had the same impact as Foster had during his 12 games played.

Before the Tigers think about punching a ticket to the NCAA Tournament, the wing positions need to round into form. Could it take some lineup experimentation? It could. If those experiments bear fruit in the postseason, Tigers fans might look back on the recent cold spell with gratitude.

1) Backcourt Play

It’s no secret that Clemson’s backcourt has been a prime culprit of this week’s losses to Virginia Tech and Duke. Starters Jestin Porter and Dillon Hunter combined for just 8 points in Saturday’s defeat, shooting an ice-cold 3-for-12 (25%) from the field and 1-for-9 (11%) from three-point range.

Simply put, Clemson can’t reach its ceiling without Porter and Hunter each playing to their potential.

Fans have seen what the Tigers can be with each member of the backcourt contributing consistently. En route to winning the Palmetto Bracket at the Charleston Classic in November, the tandem was everywhere. Porter was named the bracket’s MVP after pouring in 14 and 18 points against West Virginia and Georgia, respectively.

Against the Bulldogs, Porter nailed four three-pointers, but his floor-spacing prowess hasn’t shown up in the same way since. When Clemson left Charleston a tournament winner, the UAB transfer was shooting 15-for-42 from deep (35.7%). Since then, Porter’s percentages have slowly dropped, including to a 29.9% clip in ACC play.

Hunter has had shooting struggles of his own. The senior leader from Atlanta is shooting 38% from deep (by far a career-best), but has missed 12 of his last 14 attempts from three-point territory, spanning four games.

Clemson has gone 2-2 in those games, and could be 1-3 if not for a final-minute victory at Stanford. The offense hasn’t scored 80 or more points since a Dec. 3 loss at Alabama. That needs to change, and it starts with Hunter and Porter.

The Tigers are back in action this Wednesday night when they take on Wake Forest. Tip-off from Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum is set for 7:00 p.m. on the ACC Network.