Tigers see NCAAs validation with win, but job’s not done in Greensboro |
GREENSBORO - It didn’t take long for the topic of Clemson’s worthiness for the 2023 NCAA men’s basketball tournament field to come up in the postgame aftermath of Thursday’s 80-54 win over sixth-seeded NC State.
There was a common theme to the responses from the winning locker room in Greensboro Coliseum, however: the job’s not done. "All that outside noise, we're not going to focus on it. We're going to focus on the next game and get ready for tomorrow (Friday),” Tigers star big man PJ Hall said. "We'll have to see. Obviously it's good to get a win...That's (NCAA Tournament inclusion) not the focus right now." “After this performance, we definitely have to get some recognition going into the tournament,” junior guard Chase Hunter said. “But we’re just going to keep playing our game though. We’ve got two more games left. We’re not going to riled up on this game. We’re just going to keep pressing (forward) and try to win these next two.” “I think we should be in. I don't think there's a question about it,” first-team All-ACC forward Hunter Tyson said. “Thought we should be in before tonight (Thursday). At the end of the day, we're going to let y'all talk about all that and we're just going to be on the court and do our jobs." According to NCAA bracket predictors from both CBS Sports and ESPN, the Tigers do indeed still have to work to do, listed among the “First Four Out” for each -- and some teams are ahead of them in that particular mix as well. Clemson did move up substantially in the NCAA’s NET resume tool (51) and the KenPom ratings (52) with Thursday's resounding win, however. The Tigers (23-9) get another crack at a NET Quadrant 1 win in a rematch from last week in Charlottesville, with the ACC Tournament semifinal meeting versus the second-seeded and No. 13-ranked Virginia Cavaliers (9:30 p.m./ESPN2). Virginia (24-6) topped Clemson 64-57 on Feb. 28, holding the Tigers to their lowest first-half total this season (23; tied with the Boston College game). “We’re going to go back and look at the film. We’re going to go back and make some adjustments,” Hunter said. “We didn’t play our best offensive game that game. I think for us coming off this game, it’s just going to be a big confidence boost going into that game.” Clemson opened as a 3.5-point underdog against the Cavaliers, which are known for their defense (No. 31-rated on KenPom) and plodding style (No. 360 in adjusted tempo). "I think one of our coaches said -- they were winning a few close games in conference back-to-back, and he was saying 'Virginia looks the same whether there's 18 minutes left in the first half or if there's two minutes left in the second half, down two,” Tyson said. “They don't get sped up. They have a great coaching staff and obviously we have a lot of respect for them. Obviously, we know it will be a tough game. "We're ready for the challenge and we're excited." Clemson NCAA Tournament profile Record: 23-9 KPI: 58 SOR (Strength of record): 54 BPI: 47 KenPom: 54 Sagarin: 42 NET: 51 Record vs. NET Q1: 4-3 (win over No. 19 Duke at home, No. 45 NC State on the road and neutral site, No. 67 Pitt on the road) Q4 losses: 2 (in neutral site game with No. 268 Loyola-Chicago and on the road at No. 316 Louisville) NET SOS: 107 NON-CON SOS: 333 Road record: 5-6
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