Coming off of back-to-back losses, No. 25 Clemson will host Wake Forest in an Atlantic Coast Conference game on Saturday afternoon.
The Tigers held on to a spot in the latest Associated Press Top 25 poll despite losing at home last week in overtime to Memphis, but it’s unlikely Clemson (9-3, 1-0) will retain a spot among the top teams after falling on Tuesday — again in overtime — at in-state rival South Carolina.
It was the second consecutive game that Clemson allowed its opponent to shoot over 51 percent from the floor, and the Tigers are 1-3 this season when they let their opponent shoot better than 45 percent.
“I’m proud of the way we fought to give ourselves chances, but it’s like I told the guys — it’s not a game you can just play hard. Playing hard isn’t going to be enough,” Clemson coach Brad Brownell said. “I have to do a better job.”
Against Wake Forest (9-3, 1-0), Clemson will hope for a better defensive showing. The odds for that seem high, considering the Demon Deacons are making just 42.3 percent of their field goals this season, which is 300th nationally. They also average just 68 points per game, which is near the bottom of Division I.
But Clemson will have to be sharp on defense because this game might be a struggle for its offense. What the Demon Deacons lack in offensive firepower, they make up for it by disrupting their opponent. Steve Forbes’ team allows its opponents to make just 38.4 percent of their shots, which is 20th best nationally.
Wake Forest has forced its opponents into double-digit turnovers in all but one game this season. That was its most recent win, in which it forced eight turnovers while defeating James Madison 75-58 on Tuesday.
“We took them out of their sets. They got us a couple of times early, but we settled in and they had a hard time scoring after that,” Forbes said of the Dukes. “We guarded the ball without fouling. Cameron [Hildreth] set the tone with that.”
One positive note for Wake Forest is its ability to take efficient shots inside. The Demon Deacons are shooting 54 percent on 2-pointers this season.
Hunter Sallis is still the lead man for Wake Forest after earning an All-ACC nod last season, averaging a team-leading 17.2 points per game. Sallis is coming off scoring 27 points against James Madison, his second-highest scoring total of the season. He also grabbed a career-high 12 rebounds against the Dukes. Last year, Sallis had 22 points, seven rebounds and four assists in the regular-season-finale win over Clemson.
Tigers leading scorer Chase Hunter is coming off a strong performance too, notching 27 points and three assists in the loss at South Carolina. He’s averaging 16.9 points per game this season.
“He’s a terrific player,” Brownell said of Hunter. “I’m super proud of him because he’s grown, as a young man and player, in our program for a long time.”
Ian Schieffelin averages a double-double for the Tigers with 13.8 points and 12 rebounds per game.
–Field Level Media
