Thursday, March 19, 2009

NCAA Tournament Tonight: (7) Clemson vs. (10) Michigan

Check out http://www.block-c.com for a preview and anything else you need to know about Clemson Tiger sports.


Clemson squares off against the University of Michigan Wolverines in a first-round NCAA Tournament game at 7:10 ET tonight in Kansas City, MO. The Tigers are the favorites but that hasn't meant much as of late. Michigan is led by a pair of explosive scorers in Manny Harris (16.8 ppg) and DeShawn Sims (15.7 ppg). They also have a quality head coach in John Beilein, who had an impressive tournament run in 2005 with an overachieving West Virginia team. Clemson and Michigan both notched victories over ACC Tournament champion Duke, which is the 2nd seed in the East Region. Clemson has struggled as of late, with the nadir coming in a loss to woeful Georgia Tech in their most recent contest. On paper, Clemson should advance. Unfortunately, the Tigers have not been smart with the ball while appearing lackadasical in their half-court defense recently. A turnover-prone offense coupled with a disinterested defense most likely spells a loss tonight against the Wolverines. Hopefully, coach Oliver Purnell will earn his first NCAA tournament victory tonight and the Tigers will advance.

Prediction: Michigan - 68 Clemson - 63

Unfortunately, I don't see Purnell getting over the hump tonight. Beilein has proven tournament success and Clemson has looked awful in their last handful of games. Unless Trevor Booker can get on track early and the Tigers can score inside-out, and not try to force threes, I see the Wolverines advancing.

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