Sweet Dreams: Clemson races past Auburn 84-53
Clemson picked the right time to put together their most dominant performance of the season.
The Tigers set a new NCAA Tournament record for the largest margin of victory for a No. 5 seed over a No. 4 seed with a convincing 31-point win over Auburn, 84-53.
It wasn't even close.
Clemson's dreams of advancing to the Sweet Sixteen nearly came to fruition by halftime. The ACC Tigers, led by Gabe DeVoe's game-high 22 points, closed the first half on a 30-9 run taking a 43-19 lead to the break.
The Tigers were again led by tremendous guard play as Shelton Mitchell (10 points), Devoe and Marcquise Reed (16 points) helped deliver the Tigers to their first Sweet Sixteen appearance since 1997.
Early in the contest, it was a back-and-forth affair and at the 12:39 mark of the first half it looked like the game was going to be a tight battle as the score stood at 13-13.
From that point forward, Clemson used a 41-9 run to take control of the game and leaving Bruce Pearl’s birthday wishes in shambles in San Diego.
As good as Clemson played, leading twice by 41 points, the Auburn Tigers may have equaled them with their poor shooting performance.
During a stretch, Auburn missed 18 consecutive shots from the floor and at one point missed 27-29 attempts.
It was so bad by halftime, TNT's Kenny Smith was rubbing it into Auburn alum Charles Barkley at the break, popping orange and blue balloons in Barkley's face and bursting the bubble of Auburn fans everywhere.
Barkley knew it was over. Even on the same night as America saw Nevada come back from a 22-point deficit, everyone knew there was going to be no dramatic comeback.
Clemson was clicking. Peaking, even, as it rode the wave of its most dominant performance of the season.
Brad Brownell has talked a ton about how much fun these guys have had playing together the past few days. Tonight's game accentuated that point.
Whether it was Mitchell on the break finding Eli Thomas on the break for easy dunks, or DeVoe dropping 3-pointers from the perimeter with a huge smile on his face, the Clemson Tigers were not going to be denied.
"You work this hard all year to be in this position," DeVoe said. "You want to show up on the biggest stages and so far we've been able to do that. Going out, playing with confidence and believing in our team."
For years Clemson Tiger fans have seen great first half performances slip through the cracks of Tiger basketball players’ proverbial fingers, but tonight Clemson's trio of guards was not about to let that happen.
Gabe DeVoe set a school record in an NCAA tournament contest hitting six three-pointers and scoring his 22 points on 8-of-13 shooting and 6-of-9 from the perimeter.
Brownell said of DeVoe after the win, "He was outstanding, in the second half especially the way he shot the ball. He's done that several times this year, though. That's something he can do. He is a big, strong guy with great range, a quick trigger, and because, you know, of the way he plays, the confidence he plays with, it's a big part of our team."
DeVoe’s backcourt mates, poured in an additional 26 points as Reed dropped in 16 on 6-of-17 shooting while Mitchell scored 10 points, six rebounds, and six assists.
Clemson’s big man Eli Thomas also powered in 18 points and 11 rebounds to help the Tigers cause.
If there was any question as to what Clemson's effort would look like in the second half, it didn’t take long to see that they weren’t interested in an Auburn comeback effort.
In the early parts of the second half, up 31, the Tigers forced Auburn to call a timeout on an inbounds play to avoid a 5-second violation. At that moment, it was clear that Clemson wouldn't be complacent after the half.
Reed said after the game, "I think it's a statement game. I think we showed how hard we can compete defensively. I think it's a real good game for us moving forward."
Clemson kept pouring it on. Even walk-ons Lyles Davis and Isaac Fields got to check into the game with two minutes remaining in a cool moment.
"It was good to see them get out there. They never get to play, but they compete so hard in practice, Reed noted. "So for them to get out there on this big stage gets our team excited."
Things won't get any easier for the Tigers, who are now dancing their way to a Sweet Sixteen matchup against No. 1 seed Kansas, one of college basketball's biggest blue-bloods.
However, for Brownell’s team, they will arrive in Omaha, Nebraska playing as good as they have all season after two convincing wins in the first two rounds.
The Tigers and Jayhawks will play Friday at 7:07 on CBS. This is the first meeting between the two teams.