Tar Heels Do It Again, Beat Clemson Late
by ggggmen08 on Mar 12, 2011 8:06 PM EST
in Clemson Basketball
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Words can’t describe how frustrated I felt after blowing that game. I generally don’t like the saying "they have our number" because in college, players change from year to year. But in this instance there is no other way to describe it. UNC just has our number.
Most of the time I write up the recaps for the games directly after the game ends. Sometimes I even write portions of it throughout the game. Today I decided to wait a couple of hours to let my head clear so that my thoughts would not be driven by emotion.
Anyone that watched the game saw that it was a game that Clemson could’ve and should’ve won. We led throughout the game and played fantastic. UNC played very well and we were still able to hold a commanding lead for most of the afternoon. When UNC made a run to take a 1 point lead in the 2nd half, we answered their run with a run of our own to regain the lead by 8. It was an impressive response considering all the momentum had shifted UNC’s way. It’s just too bad there are 40 minutes in a game and not 37. Because for 37 minutes we played like a cohesive, determined basketball team. The last 3 minutes, not so much.
Clinging to a 73-66 lead with under 3 minutes left, Clemson stopped executing and mental breakdowns took over. Here’s how it played out:
- Jerai Grant sets an illegal screen, which was very obvious and not necessary, as Stitt had already beat his man off the dribble.
- Next offensive possession, Stitt throws a bad pass to Tanner Smith along the sideline that results in a turnover. An unforced turnover costs us a possession at the most critical point of the game.
- Our defense doesn’t realize that Kendall Marshall can only go left. We played him soft and let him drive left where he was able to throw it up on the glass to be corralled by Henson for the lay-in.
- Tanner Smith, who knocked down big 3’s all day long, misses a wide open 3 from the wing.
- We lost track of Harrison Barnes, who is extremely clutch and has been hot all day, and he punishes us by knocking down a 3-pointer to cut the lead to 2.
- Another Clemson possession results in turnover with 47 seconds to go, giving UNC the ball down by 2 with an opportunity to tie the game.
- Zeller hits a jump hook to tie it up. The defense wasn’t bad. It was just a good shot by Zeller.
- Clemson inbounds the ball with 30 seconds left and can hold for the last shot. This decision will probably be discussed ad nauseum, but Brownell decides not to call a timeout. Based on the events of the last 2 minutes Clemson is frazzled and out of sync. A timeout here would’ve given Brownell the opportunity to calm his team down and draw up a play. Instead, he let his team play it out. Demontez Stitt wound the clock down and was forced to take an off-balance shot as the clock expired. The ball fell hopelessly short and the game went to overtime.
Going into overtime I didn’t have much hope. We had blown our opportunity. I knew it. You knew it. The players surely knew it. We fell behind quickly and UNC eventually extended their lead to 9 points with 1 minute to go. To our players’ defense, they didn’t give up. They kept fighting and cut the lead to 3, nearly stealing an inbound pass that would’ve given them the chance to tie the game. It wasn’t meant to be and UNC held on to win 92-87.
If anyone on the selection committee watched that game it had to be obvious that Clemson is playing at a level that is worthy of a bid. Harrison Barnes played the game of his life, breaking the ACC Tournament scoring record for a freshman with 40 points. Zeller and Henson both shot 50% or better from the field and scored in double figures. Kendall Marshall finished with 9 assists. Despite all this, the #7 team in the country needed a furious rally in the last 2 minutes to send the game to overtime. It will be interesting to see what happens at 6:00PM tomorrow night.
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Interior play
Pregame article highlighted the lack of interior presence the last two times against them, and again we had none. Not on offense.
Book fouled alot early and was a nonfactor. Grant didn’t get into the game much and when he did was a nonfactor.
There aren't a lot of teams
that do anything on the interior vs UNC.
Kentucky couldnt
Duke hasn;t in either game
When UNC gives up points they come off turnovers or teams shoot lights out from the outside. Somehow, in the 2nd half of the first game vs Duke.. UNC lost its intensity on the boards and Duke got a ton of offense rebounds. We did a great job in the 1st half today on the boards, but UNC really got on the offensive glass in the 2nd half and in OT. For me.. that was a key to the last 10 minutes of the game. We either ran out of energy or UNC put it in another gear that we couldnt match.
Grant 2, 0, and 4 points this year vs. UNC
I would have liked to see a little more Bobo in the second half. Grant is scared to shoot against UNC.
Clemson Gets No Love
I don’t know if y’all heard Brownell’s post-game remarks, but I thought they were pretty insightful. He was basically talking about how it sucked the game was in Greensboro (1 hour away from both Durham and Chapel Hill) and how he felt the crowd helped UNC get the win.
Here are the quotes that are posted on Tigernet:
"It’s not neutral, and everybody knows that," he said. "This place holds 24,000, and 18,000 are pulling for Carolina, 2000 for Clemson and 4000 are rooting against Carolina. That’s just the way it is. It’s tough, but you have to be better than that and we didn’t get it done. It helps them in their runs late in the game. Against Miami and us. If you have the crowd pulling for you it makes a difference. I looked up into our student section, and there were 300 of them way up there where I can barely see them, and they are trying like crazy and cheering for us throughout the game. But it’s tough when the other team has the advantage of 18,000 people. Maybe next time we can get them on a neutral court in Greenville."
Obviously we did things wrong, but I just really feel bad for our guys when the media’s representation of our game and basketball team isn’t flattering. The headlines are “Barnes scores 40 and starts slow” rather than “a very good Clemson team falls short of victory.”
I guess I’m just sick of the media’s & ACC’s love affair with UNC and Duke; it makes our loss all the harder.
Our guys played their hearts out. We fell short, but they should be damn proud of themselves. It’s time to take that mentality into the NCAA tournament.
It would have been awesome if Brownlee had specified that it was 1,000 UNC alumni plus 17,000 baby blue clad drunken redneck mechanics rooting for the tarheels. Its so disgusting how they refuse to play this tournament outside of North Carolina because they want to do all they can to ensure a Duke – UNC final Every year. Whatever asshole is in charge of this needs to get his head out of his dick and even the playing field. I mean honestly they already have a lineup chock full of McDonald’s all Americans, why dont we also give them an undeserved home field advantage for the whole tournament? Makes sense to me.
by beentrying on Mar 13, 2011 12:19 AM EST via mobile up reply actions
I love that we have a coach that is fighting for us
It will take a win vs one of the big boys before we start to get any kind of respect from the national media. With Coach Barnes, it took standing up to Dean Smith and then Buckner’s dunk in 1996.
However, rather than talking about how greensboro was 85% Tarhole fan yesterday.. and it helped them at the end of the game… how bout using one of your fucking 3 timeouts that you were sitting on.. for no apparent reason. I even said in the game thread yesterday… 3 TOs left.. every time something starts to shift UNC’s way.. use one.. calm our kids down.. clearly we have not shown the ability to win a close one this year… we freak out.. and this was especially true on a big stage with 20,000 tarheel fans screams at us.
I know this is his first year with us.. but he cost us yesterday.
Cost Us?
I think it is pretty tough to say Brownell cost us. His defensive scheme and tough mentality is what let these players think they had a shot against UNC. Purnell might not have had any timeouts at the end of the game, but we probably would have been down by 25. Brownell has done an excellent job all year with a roster that isn’t great. Has anyone seen that Baicu has actually improved throughout the course of the year instead of languishing at the end of the bench. I also look at Narcisse who has an incredible motor and hussles all the time, but probably isn’t that basketball talented. Last year he was getting a ton of minutes with Purnell, this year he plays, but a lot less. Brownell did not cost us at the end of the game yesterday. He created a game plan for his team to win. They fell short as a team. One more made basket in the last 3 minutes would’ve put the game out of reach. We also could not stop Barnes…he is a special player. I hope he stays at UNC one more year for his development. Brownell will get players to fit his system and this team will be a better team in the future.
What i mean is
This was Brad’s first ACC tournament…. he is used to the colonial and horizon leagues. He did not rise to the occasion.. and neither did our team. I am Coach B’s biggest fan, but our performance in the last 3 minutes was awful. He has 3 TOs in his pocket and didnt use a single one to slow UNC momentum and give our guys a chance to breathe. We were completely exhausted and they had all of the momentum in the world. Coach had a chance, but he believed the the team could pull itself together.. clearly we failed.
Youre both right
We wouldnt have been in this game this long with OP, wouldn’t have been in that position in the last 3 minutes if not for good coaching.
But BB should’ve called that timeout at the end and set up a play.
Stitt was having the game of his life
I still think in that situation, you give him the ball and let him try to create something every single time. If we had called timeout and called a play and lost, everybody would be saying “Stitt had a career high point total and was hungry for the win, should’ve let him create something.”
by PenthouseTiger on Mar 13, 2011 8:53 PM EDT up reply actions
wouldn’t make too large of a difference, a little larger Clemson contingent, but UNC fans will dominate no matter where it is hosted in the state.
by Clemson Caniac on Mar 13, 2011 1:41 PM EDT up reply actions
I went in 08 in charlotte when we played UNC in the championship game and it was still at least 2/3 full of baby blue. Doesn’t matter what part of the state they play it in, as long as it is in NC it is basically home field for Duke and the tarheels.
by beentrying on Mar 13, 2011 2:10 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
I think the NAACP
is still blocking everything they can from coming to SC
by PenthouseTiger on Mar 13, 2011 8:54 PM EDT up reply actions
This loss hurt and we did blow our chance
But I am really proud of our Tigers. We have blown some games this season, really missed great opportunities, and the ACC is down but compared to previous years. But, compared to what we expected of this team, loosing two scholarship players I am really proud how our team played this season.
You hear the word “culture” a lot with respect to different sports teams and usually it’s just bullshit, but I feel like Brownell changed the culture of this team for the better. Overall, I’m just proud of the basketball team whether we make the tourney or not.
This decision will probably be discussed ad nauseum, but Brownell decides not to call a timeout.
I came on here to say the same thing. I was yelling at the radio when he decided not to call the timeout. A TO doesn’t guarantee us a win but it felt like we were playing for OT and I don’t think anyone wanted to go to OT.
"If I have asthma, they won't let me scuba. And if I can’t scuba, then what’s this all been about?? What am I working toward??"
"You look like you should be married to one of the San Diego Padres."
To me the game was lost on Smiths miss
I hate to put a loss on one person and he doesn’t deserve it but you absolutely can not miss a wide open shot in the closing minutes of a game that possibly decides your season.
nope cant do that
Buckets at the beginning are just as important as at the end. You can manage the effort but with great shooters shooting 50% its a 50-50 chance at best.
I was not a big Smith fan all season but I thought after his injury he actually played great and I think he will be big for us later
I'd have to disagree on that one
See Kenpom’s take on it here: http://kenpom.com/blog/index.php/weblog/all_points_are_not_created_equal/
Points are definitely more valuable at the end of the game, and you can much more reliably predict what would have happened if a made shot was missed (or vice versa) in the final minute than you can in the first.
For anyone wondering
We’re going to have an article up tomorrow about the Tournament brackets, so save your thoughts for that one.
Tonight it’ll be the baseball recap.
Brownell Costs us?
HUH?
Excellent job of keeping us ahead all game.
Dont forget that you also give NC a timeout to set a defense that would have kept the ball away from Stitt. Did anybody see how bad we are at inbounding the ball?
If you are where you want to be with OT as a safe second, go for the win while still on the court.
You want to know why we lost?
Crappy calls due to home crowd pressure. Even the TV announcers couldn’t help but notice how bad the officiating was. They had the NC-Duke programs printed in FEB.
I say conservatively the officials cost us 4 to 5 points.
Secondly, you will not win a nailbitter shooting 53% free throws. If I am Stitt, I can blame nobody else. 6-10 from the line wont get it done.
Also, did anybody else see how pissed Young was after Stitt missed. Stitt should have dished. He was standing all alone when UC pulled off him to DT Stitt and Stitt went with the shot?
I dont think that a TO should have been called but I also dont think Stitt made the right move clearing everybody out and deciding to take it himself. He should have moved the ball look to get it back on the move.
He has been a great player for us this year and will now get to play one or two more but he aint Barnes, so he ought to move the ball around and get the best shot from whoever has it.
Good luck in the tourney, this team has battled and showed some real grit. Great coach as he got the most he could from the team he has.
They all should be proud of the season and I would say Clemson BB is on the right track
Officiating
Dont get me wrong, I dont think the officials intentionally blew the calls, What I am saying is that Officials get caught up in a comeback as do the fans and momentum swings accordingly. I dont think they get the crowd nor the calls in Atlanta.
Just the way it is, next year hope we beat em by 20
I think the refs are keenly aware
that the guy who signs their paychecks has powder blue blood. UNC will get favorable treatment as long as Swofford is in charge of the ACC.
by PenthouseTiger on Mar 13, 2011 8:59 PM EDT up reply actions
The book "Scorecasting" provides a statistical analysis on the effect of home-field advantage on the refs.
This from The State in February:
http://www.thestate.com/2011/02/05/1679881/tigers-in-search-of-a-road-victory.html
After showing a very lopsided foul-call ratio in favor of home teams, the study concluded that the refs succomb to a built-in human desire not to make calls that anger the crowd. In this case, I would say that UNC had a significant home-field advantage and the UNC got the benefit of the calls… probably just enough to put us into overtime.
Economist Tobias J. Moskowitz and Sports Illustrated writer L. Jon Wertheim explore what is behind homecourt advantage in their new book "Scorecasting."
Through statistical evidence, Moskowitz and Wertheim claim to debunk several myths about homecourt advantage: They assert the crowd has a negligible impact on players, and that travel is also a nonfactor. Their theory is homecourt advantage is linked to the officials’ subconscious.
"When humans are faced with enormous pressure — say, making a crucial call with a rabid crowd yelling, taunting and chanting a few feet away — it is natural to want to alleviate that pressure," Moskowitz and Wertheim write.
"By making snap-judgment calls in favor of the home team, referees, whether they consciously appreciate it or not, are relieving some of that stress.
"In the NBA, crowd size also affects home-away differences, particularly with more ambiguous calls. Traveling is whistled 15 percent less often against the home than away players, but at the most attended games, the home team is 28 percent less likely to be called for traveling."
Backing up this claim is Clemson’s rate of fouls.
In 13 home games this season, Clemson has been called for 223 fouls, opponents 281. In six road games the Tigers have been called for 115 fouls, their opponents 85.
The authors attempt to isolate the crowd’s influence on players by examining free throw shooters: "Free throws are an isolated interaction between one player and the crowd that is trying to distract him. Over the last two decades in the NBA, encompassing more than 23,000 games, the free throw percentage of visiting teams has been 75.9 percent, and that of the home teams has been … 75.9 percent."
I dont understand
why Bobo didnt see the floor in the 2nd half after matching up against Zeller much better than Grant did in my opinion. At the very least he could’ve helped keep Milton (who was also playing really well this weekend) from fouling out.
The play-to-preserve-victory ending reminded me of Clemson's losses in football too. (Think Auburn.)
I’m not a huge basketball fan, so I might be totally off base here, but I watched the game, and I watched Clemson make the same mistake that the Clemson football team (and many other teams) often seems to make. They play a dominating game, but then take their foot off the gas, trying to run out the clock with conservative play, rather than just playing the style of football or basketball that got them the lead (or had them driving down the field) in the first place. In this game, in the last few possessions by Clemson they stalled too long on the offense (until there was only about 10 seconds left on the shot clock), and ended up having to take bad shots with almost no time left on the shot clock.
In football, think about the Auburn game where Clemson was killing Auburn with a wide-open offense, but then once Clemson had a big lead, Napier got ultra-conservative trying to run the clock out in the second half. That gave Auburn the opportunity to come back. Or think about that SCar game several years ago where Merriweather was driving down the field on Clemson’s final possession, just shoving his wad down SCar’s throats… and they couldn’t do a thing to stop him. But rather than letting him just continue blow his load in for a TD, Spence got all conservative and played for game-winning FG, which we missed.
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