Brad Brownell Reacts to Clemson’s NCAA Tournament Matchup Against McNeese State

No. 5 seed Clemson (27-6) is dancing for a second consecutive season and will face No. 12 seed McNeese State (27-6) on Thursday (3:15 P.M. EST, truTV) at Amica Mutual Pavilion in Providence, Rhode Island. 

Head coach Brad Brownell spoke to the media Sunday night about the upcoming matchup against the Cowboys in the Midwest Region.

Opening statement: 

“Just super excited to be involved in March Madness. [An] unbelievable time of year, and really hard to get here. So proud of our team for what they've accomplished this regular season. It's been a remarkable run, and [We] certainly want to continue to play as long as we can. So, we can enjoy this special group. And certainly want to see special things happen to them.”

On facing McNeese State, back-to-back Southland Conference regular season and tournament champions who are also winners of 11 straight and 22 of its last 23 games:

“I don't know enough because I haven't studied them. I've only seen probably five minutes of a game [here and there] and maybe twice. But they're gonna be athletic, like Florida State. I'm sure there'll be some pressure defense.”

On McNeese State head coach Will Wade, a Clemson alum and former student manager (2002-2005), graduate assistant (2005-06), and Director of Basketball Operations (2006–07) for the program:

“I know Will a little bit because we've obviously been in coaching for a long time. But he's obviously done a great job everywhere he's been. He's been very successful at VCU, LSU, and now McNeese. He's part of the Shaka [Smart] tree in terms of how they play. Very aggressive and very good defensively. And change defenses and excellent offensive rebounding team. 

“They've got a bunch of good high major transfers and good players that are used to winning. They've been winning there a lot the last couple years. So, they'll come in feeling good about themselves as well.”

On how they played without injured guard Dillon Hunter in the 73-76 loss to Louisville in ACC Tournament quarterfinals:

“I thought they played a little bit up and down and that's probably to be expected. Chauncey [Wiggins] got a majority of the minutes too. I thought he did some really good things. Our starters got off to a great start and played very well. I thought our team got a little tired. We as a staff have to be more mindful of that and do a better job of managing that as best we can. But I think those guys have done very well most of the time this year. I just think maybe it didn't work quite as good. I thought Jake [Heidbreder] made some good plays in the second half late. Those guys will be ready.”

On replacing Hunter in the lineup moving forward in the NCAA Tournament:

“It's not easy to figure that out because there's nobody that plays exactly like Dillon does. Jake has some other strengths. Del [Jones] has some other strengths. They can go into the lineup. We might have to move Chase [Hunter] into a different spot with Jake. Chase is probably going to have more ball-handling with Del.

“There's some flexibility, the versatility that Dillon brings, and the competitiveness and confidence. I've always talked about he's a high-energy guy. I think there's also something to just playing with your brother, right? He's probably the one guy on our team that would challenge Chase, like, hey, man, you can do better. We need you to turn it up a little bit here. So there's some things there, but at the same time, it's going to give more opportunities to these other guys, and they're going to be excited for that.”

On having veteran players Chase Hunter and Ian Schieffelin to help the younger players and transfers adapt to playing in their first NCAA Tournament game:

“It's the older guys [that] understand it more than the younger guys. Guys who've been through the wars over the years appreciate it because they do know how hard it is and how hard they've worked. And then as you get older and your role in the program becomes bigger, there's a responsibility that you feel, especially with our recent success, to keep producing for the program. And I think you see that in Chase and Ian [Schieffelin], and I'm really proud of those guys for that because that's not easy.”

“Those two damn guys have left a hell of a legacy, 27 wins. And obviously, they want to do what we did in the tournament last year because of how fun it was. I mean, those are lifelong memories that that team had. And they'd like to do it with these guys too.”

On the recent success of the program which includes back-to-back trips to the NCAA Tournament - something that hadn't been done in 15 years:

“I'm proud of what we've done, not just the last couple of years, but really ever since the facility has been improved. Joe Swann [Clemson Alumni Association] back then made a heck of a commitment to us. And obviously IPTAY, Aaron Dunham [Senior Associate Director of IPTAY Major Gifts], and me working our tails off for seven, eight years just trying to build our basketball support group as much as we could to really convince the administration that we could do things like courtside seating and coliseum clubs and courtside clubs and generate revenue. And certainly, those facility improvements have resulted in better basketball and more consistency, and better players.

“So, yeah, I'm very proud of all those things because like I've always said, there's been a lot more work behind the scenes than just on the practice court or the recruiting trail. And it takes all of that to be successful. So, I'm extremely grateful for the recent success in the tournaments, and for the administrative support and the hard work, we put in over the years to get to this point. All good.”