Heartbreak in Charlotte: The Tigers chances in the NCAA dealt a fatal blow to Pack



[ad_1]

CHARLOTTE, NC – Marcquise ReedThe long-range 3-pointer was too long, and Clemson's hope of qualifying for the NCAA tournament might have failed in another heartbreaking NC State defeat for the Tigers.

NC State beat Clemson 33-16 in the second half and made two free throws in 2.8 seconds to beat Clemson 59-58 in the second round of the NCAA tournament in Charlotte on Wednesday afternoon. The Tigers lost an 18-point lead in the first half and 16 points at half-time. Clemson has lost six games this season by two points or less.

NC State advance to face Virginia in the quarterfinals on Thursday.

Clemson lost a six-point lead in the final seconds and sided with NC State earlier this season. The Tigers fall to 19-13 while the Wolfpack improve to 22-10.

Reed led Clemson with 16 points, while Aamir Sims was the only other double digit Tiger with 11. Elijah Thomas fouled after playing only 18 minutes and scored eight points.

The Tigers ran early and often in transition to create a big lead in the first period. Reed and Mitchell scored 3 to 3 points early in the race while the Tigers took the advantage 8-4. Skara scored two dunks at the break and a 3-point mark in a 12-0 run while Clemson led 18-6 in the first six minutes of the match. .

Aamir Sims, of the right wing, scored 3 points and extended the lead by overtaking the biggest player of the Tigers (36-18) at 7:37. The fouls were tied at 4-4 at the time, but Clemson had five of the following six points and NC State went to an 8-0 run that lasted four minutes to make a 10-point game at 36. -26.

A Javan White dunk and Clyde Trapp The free throw raised the score to 39-26 with 2:22 to play and Mitchell hit a 3-point button 30 seconds later to make it 42-26. Neither team scored a goal in 1:47 of the half and the Tigers had the 16-point lead at half-time.

The Wolfpack caught fire to start the second half as the Tigers racked up fouls. Devon Daniels scored a corner pointer after seven minutes to reduce the lead to a figure at 51-42. It was the second shot in what turned out to be a 14-2 Wolfpack test in which Thomas scored his fourth foul. With Thomas out of the game, the Wolfpack began pushing Clemson's offensive towards the perimeter and the shots that fell early on resulted in twists and turns.

Clemson then missed 14 consecutive shots, and NC State narrowed the gap to just two goals at 53-51 with just over six minutes left. Brownell called timeout and put Thomas back in the game, but the Pack managed to give NC State a 3-point lead from a 4-3 lead in the first period to 54-53. Markel Johnson splashed a pointer 3 seconds a few seconds later and NC State was leading 57-53 in a 20-2 run.

Reed ended the race with a 3-pointer from the top of the key, earning 57-56 NC State in 3:56. One mistake was called State by Torin Dorn. Inside, Thomas took over under the basket and his lay-up allowed Clemson to return to 58-57 with 3:40 to enter the contest.

The teams then spent the next two minutes trading rushed shots and playing a frantic defense game, including a huge shot blocked by Thomas. At exactly one minute from the end, the Wolfpack took over after a video review. Reed was called for a push with 48.2 seconds remaining, and the Wolfpack took another timeout with 20 seconds left on the shot clock. A missed shot reset the shot clock, and Skara was called for a foul, followed by Thomas's fifth foul. That gave NC State the ball with 18.7 seconds to play and no clock.

Johnson drove to the basket and his shot was far from the goal, but Trapp was called for the foul, with 2.6 seconds remaining. Johnson equalized both free throws and Brownell called the timeout with the remaining 2.6 seconds and the pack in the lead with 59-58.

[ad_2]

Source link