Charlottesville, VA – The Clemson Tigers will try to gain ranked Virginia Cavaliers.
This will be the 118th meeting in the all-time series. The Cavaliers hold a 67-50 lead in the rivalry after a narrow 49-47 victory in last season's encounter.
Clemson comes into tonight on a two-game winning streak after a 71-60 victory over the Wake Forest Demon Deacons on Saturday. The defeat made Clemson 11-9 overall and 3-3 in league action. The Tigers shot 41.7 percent from the field and made just 6-of-15 from three-point range in the contest with the Demon Deacons. The offensive showing was encouraging, as Clemson has now shot above 40 percent from beyond the arc in two straight games. The Tigers are averaging 65.1 ppg. Brad Brownell has shown to be a defensive-minded coach this season as his team is second in the league in scoring defense, allowing a mere 59.7 ppg.
Clemson is led by the duo of Andre Young and Tanner Smith. Young is averaging a team-best 13.9 ppg on 42.3 percent shooting from the field. The senior guard has been outstanding as of late, averaging 24 points per game on 66.6 percent shooting from the floor in his last two games. During that span, Young has gone 10-of-16 from three-point range. Smith plays well opposite the 5-9 Young in the backcourt, as he is second on the team in scoring with 11.1 ppg. Smith chipped in 13 points and four steals versus Wake Forest. Devin Booker provides inside toughness for the Tigers and is coming off of a 16-point, seven-rebound outing. The team will be a little short-handed for this contest as Brownell has recently suspended Milton Jennings for academic issues.
Head coach Tony Bennett's team comes in with a 17-3 overall record and a 4-2 mark in league play after its 61-60 victory over the NC State Wolfpack on Saturday. The Cavaliers were lucky to escape with a victory after they were outrebounded 42-25 by NC State. Virginia is an elite team defensively as it ranks second in the nation in scoring defense with an allowed average of just 50.6 ppg on 38.8 percent shooting. Only three teams have eclipsed the 60-point mark against the Cavaliers this season. Virginia's focus on the defensive end has left it with a sub par scoring average of 64.2 ppg.
Forward Mike Scott continues to lead Virginia with averages of 16.7 points and 8.7 rebounds per game. Scott is leading the ACC in field goal efficiency with a connection rate of 57.4 percent. Joe Harris complements Scott nicely from the guard slot. Harris is the team's second leading scorer with 12.3 ppg after he went 4-of-8 from the field to score 12 points against NC State. Jontel Evans is the top distributor for the Cavaliers as he his dishing out a team- high 3.5 assists per contest.
