Despite residing in the top half of the Atlantic Coast Conference standings, No. 24 Louisville and host Clemson find themselves in desperate need for a victory when they tip off on Saturday afternoon.
The Tigers (20-8, 10-5 ACC) lost their fourth straight game last Saturday with a 70-65 setback to Florida State.
However, even with that dry spell, Clemson is locked in a three-team tie for the fourth and final double-bye for next month’s ACC tournament.
That said, the losing streak has led to some bracketologists no longer considering coach Brad Brownell’s team a lock for the NCAA Tournament. The Tigers’ hold on the fourth seed could be considered tenuous as the Cardinals (20-8, 9-6) only are a game back in the standings. In addition, North Carolina (22-6, 10-5) also has its eyes set for a double-bye and will host Clemson on Tuesday.
Clemson boasts the ACC’s second-best scoring defense, allowing opponents to score just 65.5 points a game. The Tigers have held opponents to just 41.2% shooting from the floor, which is third-best in the conference.
In their four straight defeats, though, the Tigers have allowed three opponents to shoot 50% or better, and all four foes have made at least 10 3-pointers. Before the losing streak, Clemson allowed only two teams to make 10 or more 3-pointers this season.
“We win because we have to guard at an extremely high level,” Brownell said after the loss to the Seminoles. “With this team, we have a phrase, ‘Everybody, all the time,’ and it takes everybody for us to win. It just does.”
The recent trouble defending the 3-pointer could haunt Clemson on Saturday, as the Cardinals have made an ACC-best 332 shots from beyond the arc this season.
Unlike the Tigers, Louisville’s NCAA Tournament standing remains on firm ground. However, a team considered by some analysts as a Final Four contender at the beginning of the season has had its share of struggles on the road. Coach Pat Kelsey’s team is 3-6 in true road games, including a 77-74 defeat at North Carolina on Monday.
A win Saturday against the Tigers would rank as Louisville’s best road win of the season.
Kelsey said he liked the way his team battled against the Tar Heels, who led Louisville by as many as 16 points in the second half. He added that his team cannot afford to get in another hole like that Saturday.
“Clemson is as tough and physical a team as we’re going to play all year long, in a really tough environment,” Kelsey said. “So we’ve got to go in with the right mentality.”
Reserve Ace Buckner has played well of late for the Tigers. The sophomore guard averages 8.3 points per game but has scored in double figures in five of his last six games and seven of his last nine. He scored a team-high 15 points against Florida State.
Louisville freshman Mikel Brown Jr. has been on a hot streak over his last five games. The point guard has averaged 29.2 points per game in that span to take over the team scoring lead (18.9). He scored 24 in the loss to the Tar Heels.
A key to Brown’s recent success has been pinpoint perimeter shooting. Over the last five games, he has made 27 of 50 (54.0%) of his 3-point attempts.
