Sophomore can be difference maker against Virginia
GREENSBORO, N.C. — When teams face the Clemson men’s basketball team, their top concerns are stopping All-ACC performers Hunter Tyson and PJ Hall and point guard Chase Hunter. Shooter Brevin Galloway is also a point of emphasis.
But there is a new guy to add to the scouting report – Ian Schieffelin.
Suddenly, the Clemson sophomore has become another scorer for the Tigers, who are already considered one of the top offensive teams in the ACC. In the quarterfinal round of the ACC Tournament Thursday night against NC State, Schieffelin tied Hall as the game’s top scorer with 15 points on 6-of-8 shooting. He also was a perfect 3-for-3 from 3-point range.
“I have been begging him to shoot the ball more,” Hall said. “He has a great shot that he works on all the time – me, him and Ben (Middlebrooks). So when I saw a few go down, I knew it was going to be a good night for him.”
Schieffelin’s good night allowed the Tigers (23-9, 14-6) to blow the Wolfpack out for a third time this season, while advancing to tonight’s semifinal matchup against No. 2 Virginia. Three-seeded Clemson and the Cavaliers tip off at 9:30 p.m. on ESPN.
“Everybody keeps telling me to be confident and shoot the ball more,” Schieffelin said. “Coming from the Notre Dame game, it tells me we can beat anyone in the country when I am scoring.”
The forward was a perfect 7-for-7 from the field against Notre Dame in the regular season finale and scored 16 points.
Tonight Schieffelin will play a big role for the Tigers if they hope to knock of Virginia. The Cavaliers’ pack line defense is an issue for everyone who plays them and having another scorer on the floor can take pressure off the Tigers other four performers.
Of course, Virginia will be without big-man Ben Vander Plas, who broke his hand in practice earlier this week.
“They played us big some, maybe more than some of the other teams the other day, and obviously some of that’s because of PJ,” Clemson head coach Brad Brownell said. “They’re going to play us bigger than some teams who maybe don’t have as formidable a five man.
“They’re better defensively with the bigger guys. Now, those guys don’t shoot threes like Vander Plas, who’s an excellent player, but they were terrific today. They were smothering. Their guards are very good one-on-one defenders, and obviously their older guys, they play with great poise, they don’t beat themselves, they rarely turn it over.”
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