Unbeaten Clemson travels to take on Penny Hardaway's hot Memphis team

Brownell is looking forward to the atmosphere in Memphis.

by David Hood - Senior Writer - Thu Dec 14 14:01:40 GMT-04:00 2023

CLEMSON – The 13th-ranked Clemson basketball team is just one of seven unbeaten teams left in the country, but if the Tigers want to reach 10-0, they have to find a way past a tough Memphis squad this Saturday.

Clemson is off to a 9-0 start on the season and heads back on the road to take on Memphis on Saturday at 3 pm in the FedExForum (ESPN+). Penny Hardaway’s Tigers are 7-2 and on a two-game winning streak and own wins over Missouri, Michigan, Arkansas, and Texas A&M.

Memphis has two quality scorers in David Jones at 20.1 ppg. and Jahvon Quinerly at 13.1 ppg.

“Quinerly and David Jones are terrific players,” Brownell said this week. “I mean, they can really score, one-on-one and, obviously, within their offense. They’re just gifted players. I think they run some unique stuff – good stuff with good spacing.

“Defensively? They muck the game up a little bit. They’ll press you some, they’ll trap every once in a while on their own. Obviously, Penny (Hardaway) calls some of it. You can see him calling it. They’re just trying to be disruptive and not let you get into any rhythm. They’ve got good depth. I think they play really hard.”

In addition to the wins over the teams already mentioned, Memphis has also played VCU, Ole Miss, and Villanova for a difficult non-conference stretch of games.

“What they’ve done so far is really, really good considering they just played six straight road games against high-level competition,” said Brownell. “One of the reasons this game came about was because Memphis is willing to play anybody. I think they’ve got Virginia after us.

“Their gauntlet of scheduling prepares their guys. Obviously, them being in the American? I know they’re trying to get games against high majors, but they’re a high-major program.”

Brownell has never taken a team into the FedExForum, but he said he’s looking forward to the atmosphere.

“It’ll be an electric atmosphere. I’ve never been there, but I’ve heard it’ll be unbelievable,” he said. “They just have a really good program. They’re playing really well; they’ve had good teams back-to-back-to-back. It’ll be a real challenge for our team.”

Clemson’s start to the year is led by senior center PJ Hall. He leads the team with 20.1 ppg and 7.6 rpg. Guards Joseph Girard III and Chase Hunter are double-digit contributors, while Ian Schieffelin has been a breakout contributor in the frontcourt. They’re a top-20 three-point shooting team currently, making nearly 40% of its shots.

However, the Tigers will still be without forward Jack Clark and guard Alex Hemenway, and Brownell doesn’t expect either player to be back before January.

“Still waiting. Jack actually was getting an MRI today, so you know, I don’t anticipate either one playing before Christmas," Brownell said on Wednesday. "I think we’re hoping that they’re progressing. They seem to be.

“Jack’s been a little more frustrating, and it feels like he took a couple of steps forward for a while, and then just, maybe a step or two back and just haven’t been able to get him to where he really feels comfortable.”

Clark’s injury is something that could linger, even after he returns.

“I think it’s one of those deals where he’s never going to feel great all the time, and you kind of get to a point sometimes in your career where it’s going to be uncomfortable at times,” added Brownell.

“It just can’t be, you know, where he’s in danger of getting hurt more. And so, I think we’re trying to kind of get to that point where you almost have to relax their mind to know that you’re okay, you can play through some stuff. Now, we’re going to have to figure it out. We’re kind of in the process with both of them on that.”