Tigers Miss Chance at the End, Lose to Hurricanes in First ACC Tournament Game 67-64
A promising start for Clemson offensively just wasn't enough against 13-seeded Miami team with only six scholarship players available.
Brad Brownell and Clemson (16-7, 10-7) played their first tournament matchup of March Madness, facing off against Jim Larrañaga's Miami Hurricanes (10-16, 5-15). While their shooting was good enough to win, the Tigers' defense just wasn't the animal it has been all of 2021 in a 67-64 loss.
Clemson's first 12 points of the game all came from behind the arc, and the Tigers' finished the first half shooting 52.2% from the field and 72.7% from the three-point line, with six of eight first-half three-point makes coming on perfect shooting from Aamir Simms and Hunter Tyson.
The Hurricanes only had a rotation of seven players and despite their lack of bodies, guards' Isaiah Wong and Kameron McGusty led the way for Miami, scoring 15 and 14, respectively, and were just too much driving inside the lane for Clemson to overcome with their shooting alone.
Clemson began the second half as quickly as the first with a Nick Honor three to open up second-half scoring, but the Tigers weren't able to keep it up for long. Miami went on a 16-2 run midway through the second half and took their biggest lead of the afternoon at 59-50 after a steal saw Wong wide open under the basket after taking a hard fall driving to the rim offensively.
Clemson was able to keep it close down to the wire regardless of their defensive struggles, and a Clyde Trapp three-pointer with 40 seconds remaining kept Clemson alive late, moving the Tigers' only three points behind the Hurricanes at 65-62.
Simms was able to get a steal on Wong in a backcourt trap giving Clemson a shot to take the lead down one with 14.3 seconds left. Still, Honor wasn't able to make it fall on the last attempt, sending Wong to the free-throw line with 2.9 seconds remaining and ending the Tigers' hopes of their first ACC Tournament win earlier than expected in a three-point loss.
Key Play: A trap on Wong led to a Simms steal with only 14.3 seconds left, giving the Tigers a chance to win in the second to last possession of the game.
Player of the Game: Aamir Simms came up from the ground flexing after an offensive rebound and putback cut the Tigers' deficit to only 2 points with three minutes remaining to keep hopes alive late. Simms finished with 17 points, eight rebounds, and four assists on over 50% shooting from the field and showed why he's Clemson's most valuable asset before the NCAA Tournament begins.
Coach's Decision: Brownell's decision late in the first half to begin switching screens on the Miami guards really made a difference in the Hurricanes' ability to attack the paint, something they've been proficient in doing all season long and had success doing early in the first half against the Tigers' defense.
Stat of the Game: Miami could get virtually whatever they wanted inside of Clemson's paint offensively, scoring 40 points inside the paint on 62% shooting for the game.
Up Next: NCAA Basketball Tournament: Thursday, March 18 through Monday, April 5
More From All Clemson:
ACC Tournament Preview: Can Brownell, Tigers Finally Challenge for Title?
