Clemson Downs South Carolina State behind 13 from Tyson
By Zach Wagner
The Clemson Men’s Basketball Team kicked off its home portion of the season on Wednesday night inside of Littlejohn Coliseum, improving to 3-0 on the young season with a 75-38 win over in-state South Carolina State. Clemson shot 47% from the floor and 8-of-23 from behind the arc. The Clemson defense was stifling, forcing 24 turnovers and recording 10 steals. The Tigers scored 25 of their 75 points from turnovers.
“Hard fought win tonight. We played much better in the second half and defended the three point line well.” Head Coach Brad Brownell told the media following the game. “Definitely weird not to have a band or cheerleaders in Littlejohn, and I told our guys that night in and night out we’re going to have to bring our own energy.”
Hunter Tyson paced the Clemson offense, pouring in 13 points on 4-of-5 shooting from the floor. The junior from North Carolina also hauled in six rebounds in 17 minutes of play. Aamir Simms also had a great game for the Tigers, scoring eight points, wracking in four rebounds and dishing out four assists.
Eleven different players scored in the win for Clemson. Freshman Oliver-Maxence Prosper set a career high of 11 points and Clyde Trapp (7 points, 5 rebounds) and John Newman (8 points, 3 assists) helped the Clemson offense.
Freshman Forward P.J. Hall was unavailable to suit up for the Tigers in his LJC debut, as it was announced he suffered a concussion during practice leading up to the game. Hall was a big part of Clemson’s 2020 Space Coast Challenge Championship run last week, averaging 7.5 points a game.
“We got a lot of unselfish guys that have a team first mentality.” Said Hunter Tyson after the game. “That’s what you have to have with a team as deep as this, and that’ll take us far.”
As a team, Clemson has been one of the best defensive teams in the nation this year. The Tigers are holding opponents to 22% from the floor and 15% from behind the three point line. The orange and white have also had some quick hands, recording 28 steals in the first three games, averaging 9.33 steals per game.
Clemson will take the next week off before welcoming former ACC foe Maryland into Littlejohn Coliseum for the Big Ten/ACC Challenge on Wednesday, December 9th. Tip is set for 5 p.m. and will be broadcast on ESPN2.
