Clemson Blitzes Miami (Ohio) in Second Half to Cruise to 89-76 Victory

CLEMSON, S.C. — Alex Hemenway (Newburgh, Ind./Castle) scored 11 of his career-high-tying 17 points in the second half to help lead Clemson past Miami (Ohio) 89-76 on Tuesday night in Littlejohn Coliseum.

The Tigers (7-4) finished with six double-figure scorers for the first time this season, led by Hemenway’s 17. Hunter Tyson (Monroe, N.C./Piedmont) matched Hemenway with 11 second-half points to finish with 13. Tyson set a new career-high with three blocked shots and four assists.

PJ Hall (Spartanburg, S.C./Dorman) and Al-Amir Dawes (Newark, N.J./The Patrick School) each tallied 13 points, while David Collins (Youngstown, Ohio/First Love Christian Academy) nearly totaled a triple-double, finishing with 14 points, eight rebounds and a season-high six assists.

Naz Bohannon (Lorain, Ohio/Lorain) collected 10 points, four rebounds and three assists off the Tiger bench.

The Tigers led the RedHawks (5-4) by one after the opening stanza, but started the second half on a 5-0 run and eventually built a 57-49 lead with 10:46 to go in regulation.

From that point, the Tigers all out blitzed the RedHawks to the tune of a 20-2 run over a 4:18 stretch late in the half to seal the victory. As part of an 8-0 run, Hemenway converted a four-point play on a made 3-pointer at the top of the key. It was Clemson’s first four-point play since Shelton Mitchell did it on Feb. 19, 2019 against Florida State in Littlejohn Coliseum.

The Tigers led by as many as 17 points late in the half to cruise to the 13-point victory. Clemson’s bench scored 29 points and the Tigers turned nine RedHawks turnovers into 16 points.

Clemson returns to the floor on Saturday, Dec. 18 when it faces in-state rival South Carolina. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. on ACCN.