What We Learned From Clemson Basketball's Two-Loss Week

For the first time this season, the Clemson Tigers had a full week without a win.

Head coach Brad Brownell and his team suffered back-to-back losses for the second time this season against Virginia Tech and No. 4 Duke, capping off a low week that allowing his team to learn a little more about themselves going forward.

With these losses, Brownell learned a lot more about his team than wins, perhaps. These are the three biggest learning lessons from Clemson’s rough stretch, amd how it will help the Tigers get back to the form of January.

Clemson’s Starting Guards Were Slumping, But That Will Change

The Tigers’ starting guards, Jestin Porter and Dillon Hunter, saw trouble against Duke’s size that it brought to the perimeter. Blue Devil wings Dame Sarr and Isaiah Evans made it difficult to move the ball and shoot open shots, finishing with a total of eight points in the combined 58 minutes.

Brownell has belief that it will change, and if history has anything to say, the two will be back to play their best in the future.

“Those guys, they’ll make some,” he said after Duke. “They’re better shooters than they’ve had been this last week or two. I don’t know if we’re a little fatigued or not. I’ve to got do a few thins to help them better, but they’ll be fine.”

Porter is the only player to score 20 points more than once for Clemson this season. He’s helped win games almost by himself against teams like Notre Dame and Georgia. The same goes for Hunter, who used clutch shot making to remain in the game against BYU and the Charleston Classic win. That can circle back and win games, especially come March.

The Tigers’ Identity Will Not Change, Despite Adversity

Brownell had a clear message to the media after the loss to the Blue Devils. While Clemson’s offense had its worst scoring output since the 2020-21 season, scoring only 54 points, better days are ahead, and the Tigers used strong defensive possessions to remain in the game.

“Don’t forget who we are and why we’ve had success, and, you know, we have to defend at a high level,” he said. “We’ve got to continue to play as a team. I‘m proud of this group. This group, it takes a lot for us.”

Clemson isn’t going to win games shooting opponents out of the gym, it wins by being the strong opponent. There’s a reason why Miami head coach Jai Lucas, Boston College head coach Earl Grant and SMU head coach Andy Enfield all said that the Tigers grind their opponents down.

Poor shooting defined the week for Clemson, who will now move out of the AP Top 25 on Monday. However, elite defense is shown with each game, and it’s all about moving forward. That’s what Brownell wants this team to do, beginning on Wednesday.

Clemson’s Players Will Learn More From Slow Stretch

Taking this from a positive angle, both the Tigers’ young and old players will gain positive takeaways from the adversity. Brownell’s team effort fell flat during this past week, but Clemson will look to just be better to finish out the season.

After the Duke game, it was Clemson’s worst loss all season. However, that’s just how well you have to play to be able to beat the No. 4 team in the country.

“There’s good teaching moments for young guys, old guys alike,” he said. “You’re going to get exposed, and whether it’s on offense or defense, you make a mistake, you know you’re a half a second behind a play, they’re going to make you pay for it.

Despite being down as much 22 points, everytime Clemson scored in the final 10 minutes of the game, Brownell gave his team applause. He continued to motivate his team to play hard as Duke brought the ball back up on the other end of the court.

While the game was out of hand, Clemson did finish the game on a 12-3 run, a credit to the team’s grit to never give up.

“I thought we guarded about as well as we can guard them, and thought our kids played their tails off,” Brownell said after the game. “I thought we fought. . .I thought our kids competed.”

The Tigers will be back in action on Wednesday night, playing Wake Forest in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.