Clemson will aim to get back on track Thursday night when it hosts a Radford team that has won four straight games.
The Tigers (3-1) lost 84-71 at Boise State on Sunday despite a career-high 30 points from Chase Hunter.
The game featured seven lead changes, and the Tigers trailed by just one point at halftime before the Broncos pulled away in the second half. Clemson got outrebounded by eight and shot just 24 percent (6 of 25) from 3-point distance.
Boise State also received 21 points from its bench, while Clemson’s reserves mustered just eight.
But for coach Brad Brownell, the bright spot, of course, was Hunter, who was 12 of 21 from the floor (4 of 8 from behind the arc) and dished six assists in 37 minutes.
“Chase was fantastic,” Brownell said. “I thought he played at an elite level.”
Against elite teams, however, Clemson will need more than just heroics from Hunter, who leads the team with 19.8 points and 3.5 assists per game.
The Tigers’ supporting cast will have the chance to step up against Radford (4-1), which has beaten Evansville, Old Dominion and William & Mary so far this season. The Highlanders’ most recent win was a 96-50 rout of Division III Southern Virginia on Monday behind 15 points from Jarvis Moss.
Radford’s record so far marks its best start to a season in seven years, and it has scored at least 87 points in four consecutive games for the first time since the 1992-93 season.
“You know, it’s just another opportunity,” Radford coach Darris Nichols said of the clash with Clemson. “I like the month of November because we’re on the road a lot. I think that gives us the opportunity for our guys to get to know each other and bond a little bit. … But I know Clemson is really good and they have some key pieces returning.”
Last season, Clemson beat Radford 93-58 in a game where Hunter had 16 points and five assists.
–Field Level Media
