By Ron Pitts for Urban Media Today
Brad Brownell will take his #8 seed Clemson Tigers team to Tampa to face Ben McCollum and his #9 seed Iowa Hawkeyes in the First Round of NCAA Tournament play. Clemson finished the season with a 24-10 record with a loss in the Semifinals to Duke.
The Tigers held their own in ACC play, winning 12 of their 18 games. Playing a tough ACC schedule has prepared them for an opportunity to have success for March Madness play. Clemson will go into tournament play without one of their leaders #22 Carter Welling, who suffered a season ending ACL injury in the ACC tournament to Wake Forest. Welling is a big part of the Tigers’ success. Clemson will miss his 10.2 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. Although missing Welling will be a blow to the team, Coach Brownell has built this roster to play as a collective unit. With their balanced offensive play and the grittiness of their 9-10 man platoon that Coach Brownell rotates in throughout the game you never know who’s going to lead them. The Tigers will rely on the leadership of their leading scorer #0 RJ Godfrey (11.9 points/game).
Clemson will need a total team effort to advance past Iowa who is led by Guard #14 Bennett Stirtz averages 20 points and 4.5 assist per game. The matchup will be Friday evening in Tampa Fl.