Clemson challenged with height, physicality in road trip against ninth-ranked Duke
For as well as the Clemson’s men’s basketball team has shot the ball this season, size and physicality have been its Achilles heel.
Those issues cost the Tigers in a 91-78 loss to Syracuse on Jan. 18. They rebounded with a 75-48 win over Pitt on Saturday, but now face their biggest challenge yet at 7 p.m. Tuesday against ninth-ranked Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, North Carolina.
The Blue Devils’ tallest guard, freshman Trevor Keels, is listed at 6-foot-5 and is doubtful for the contest after suffering a lower leg injury against Florida State last week. That’s also the height of their shortest post player in junior Wendell Moore, the team’s second-leading scorer with 15.2 points per outing.
“Your kids make plays within the game and all of a sudden, you’re in front of Mark Williams and you’re not used to shooting over a guy like that,” Clemson coach Brad Brownell said. “He’s obviously altering shots, challenging shots, blocking shots. Guys are going into the basket. You get bumped, you don’t make a shot. You fall down and now Duke’s on a 5-on-4 (break) and you’re in trouble.
“I just think there’s a lot of things that happen within the course of the game where their size, physicality, shot blocking cause problems and, a lot of times, can lead to good offense.”
Williams, a 7-foot-1 sophomore center, has the ninth-most blocks in the country with 59 for an average of 3.28 per game. He also is averaging a near double-double of 9.9 points and 6.7 rebounds. Freshman Paolo Banchero, the 6-foot-10 ACC Preseason Player of the Year, has 17 blocks on the year and leads the Blue Devils’ scoring effort with 17.9 points per game.
To help try to counter Duke’s size advantage, Ben Middlebrooks can expect to see more time Tuesday. The 6-foot-10, 232-point Clemson freshman forward played nine minutes against Pitt, but hasn’t seen much more than a few minutes on the court since logging 10 against Charleston Southern in November.
“(Middlebrooks is) physical in the basket area, rebounds well,” Brownell said. “Just a big guy that’s going to take a little time. He’s made a lot of improvements here in the last couple of weeks. … Just in terms of sheer size and physicality, we’re going to need that, especially (Tuesday) night against Mark Williams, Banchero and all those guys inside that they have, Theo John. They’re big, strong, physical dudes and we’re going to need some guys that can match that strength.”
The Tigers will try to be as physical as possible without accumulating any more injuries. Forwards Hunter Tyson and PJ Hall are both banged up heading into Tuesday’s contest. Brownell said Tyson (ankle) is doing better, but “not all the way there,” while Hall’s foot injury will be monitored for the rest of the year. The sophomore, who is also the team’s leading scorer with 14.7 points, has been limited in practice because of it.
The game will also be one of the last-ever times Brownell will face Mike Krzyzewski. The longtime Duke head coach announced in the fall that he’ll be retiring after this season. Brownell’s final meeting with Krzyzewski will be Feb. 10 in Clemson, a game that was rescheduled from its original Dec. 30 date due to COVID-19 issues within the Blue Devils’ program. The Tigers’ mentor is 3-9 against the Blue Devils’ basketball icon.
The last time Clemson beat Duke was a 79-72 upset victory at home on Jan. 14, 2019. Duke was the third-ranked team in the country at the time.
“I love to watch him coach his team, lead his team, make adjustments,” Brownell said. “Been doing it 12 years now against him very — mostly — unsuccessfully, so that part of it, selfishly, I think you really, as a coach and basketball guy, you love to watch and learn from other guys and see things that they’re doing. What he’s done for the game speaks for itself. He’s been an incredible ambassador for not only our league but for college basketball in general.”
Next Clemson men’s basketball game
Who: Clemson vs. No. 9 Duke
When: 7 p.m. Tuesday
Where: Cameron Indoor Stadium, Durham, N.C.
Watch: ESPN2
