Clemson Falls to Yale 54-45
CLEMSON, S.C. – Taking part in its final non-conference game of the regular season, the Clemson University men's basketball team lost to the Yale Bulldogs on Sunday. Defense was a fixture of the matchup, which saw Yale come away with a 54-45 win at Littlejohn Coliseum.
The Tigers (6-6) forced 19 turnovers and scored a combined 22 points off those turnovers. Clemson also benefited from 23 points being scored by bench players. The Bulldogs (10-3) shot 42.6 percent from the field, though, and limited the Tigers to a shooting percentage of 31.9. Yale also won the rebounding margin 35-27 and scored 28 points in the paint.
Hunter Tyson provided the Tigers with a big lift off the bench by tallying 11 points and a career-high four steals. Tyson threw down a pair of emphatic dunks, both of which came out of the fast break. Aamir Simms added 10 points for the Tigers and pulled down seven rebounds, as well. Three different Bulldogs scored in double figures, including leading scorer Paul Atkinson, who recorded a game-high 20 points.
In the first half, Clemson scored 16-of-its-19 points in the paint and was credited with forcing nine Yale turnovers. However, the Bulldogs shot 43.5 percent from the floor and sported a 24-19 advantage at halftime. The Tigers came out firing to start the second half, manufacturing a 6-0 run that provided them with the lead. Later in the half, a 10-0 Clemson run resulted in the Tigers going up 38-36 at the 8:55 mark. Yale was able to shake off a scoreless drought that lasted over 4 1/2 minutes after that, and the Bulldogs pulled away from the Tigers down the stretch.
Clemson will next take the court on Tuesday, Dec. 31, for an ACC matchup against the Miami Hurricanes (8-3) at Littlejohn Coliseum. The New Year's Eve battle is scheduled to tip-off at 4 p.m. and will be broadcast on ACC Network.
POSTGAME QUOTES
Head Coach Brad Brownell
Opening statement:
"Frustrated is the word for this loss. I'm really anxious to watch the film. I think as the game wore on, our guys got too tight. I thought we defended really well. We took a very good offensive team and held them to 54 points. Unfortunately. we really struggled to score."
On the keys to the game:
"It's disappointing because of how well we competed defensively. We didn't want to double [Paul] Atkinson all the time. He was a problem, and that might've been the difference in the game because Yale had a guy to go to in the paint."
On the atmosphere at Littlejohn Coliseum:
"I appreciate our crowd and how they got behind us and helped us. It was great to see everybody excited."