The newly constituted Clemson basketball team continued to impress in the early season, running their record to 3-0 with an 83 -56 dismantling of Morehead State in Littlejohn Coliseum Tuesday night.
Jake Wahlin and RJ Godfrey were the story of the night for the Tigers, with Wahlin scoring a team leading 14 points to go along with four rebounds and two assists on five-of-seven shooting from the floor, including a 4-6 showing from behind the three-point line. RJ Godfrey, Clemson’s prodigal basketball
son, chipped in a 14-point 11 rebound double-double on five-of-eight shooting and contributed an additional three assists and two steals to the Clemson cause.
Fittingly, Whalin and Godfrey had a hand in the games first eight points. Clemson won the tip, Jestin Porter missed a three, RJ corralled the rebound, kicked it out to Nick Davidson, and Davidson found an open Jake Wahlin for three to open the scoring. On the Tigers second bucket of the game, Godfrey cut out the middleman, hoovered up another Porter misfire from outside, and kicked it out to Wahlin for his second three in the first two minutes of the game. On Clemson’s third possession, Godfrey cleaned up a missed Wahlin three, attacked the basket, picked up an and one, converted the free throw, and the route was on.
The Tigers started the game on a 9-2 run and didn’t look back. At the 1o minute mark of the first half, they held a commanding 23-7 lead and Brad started digging into his bench. Depth should be a strength for this team, and it was on full display in the first half, with eleven Tigers checking into the game during the opening 20 minutes. When the horn sounded for the intermission, Brad Brownell’s headed to the locker room with a commanding 20-39 lead.
Morehead State played better in the second half, especially on offense, but the damage was already done. The Tigers offense remained steady, keeping the Eagles at arm’s length despite their increased output on offense. Redshirt freshman Ace Buckner continued to announce his arrival, finishing the second half with six points and contributing twelve points, five rebounds, two assists and a steal on the night. The Tiger legacy has been a revelation three games into the season and appears poised to play a larger role than originally anticipated on this team. There’s an argument to be made that he’s been the best guard on the roster through three games. The only blemish on his resume tonight was an 0-4 performance from deep.
All-in-All, this is exactly the type of game Clemson was looking for on a cold Tuesday night in November. They put the game away early, worked on some of their rotations, and most importantly, remained healthy. Coach Brownell should have all hands on deck when Tigers travel to Washington D.C. on Saturday for their first test of the season against a 2-0 Georgetown Hoyas who look poised to play decent basketball for the first time John Thompson retired in 2017.
