Mays out for Clemson

[shawn555]

Clemson's Mays to miss Purdue game with hip injury

November 26, 2007


CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) -- Clemson starting forward James Mays will miss Tuesday night's game against Purdue because of a hip injury.

Mays fell hard on his hip midway through the second half of the 24th-ranked Tigers' 96-67 victory over Gardner-Webb on Saturday. He returned to the game briefly.

After the game, coach Oliver Purnell said Mays had a sprained hip and was being bothered by a sore back that started hurting earlier this month.

Mayes, a senior, is averaging almost 15.0 points and 9.0 rebounds a game.

 

[shawn555]

Clemson - Starting F James Mays (hip) is expected to miss Tuesday vs Purdue. Starting F Sam Perry (knee) is expected to miss 1 to 2 weeks. Backup F Julius Powell (heart) missed the last 4 games and is questionable Tuesday vs Purdue.

 

[shawn555]

Posted on Tue, Nov. 27, 2007
Men's basketball pregame


PURDUE BOILERMAKERS AT NO. 18 CLEMSON TIGERS

WHEN: 9:30 p.m.

WHERE: Littlejohn Coliseum, Clemson

TV: ESPN2

RADIO: ESPN 93.1 FM

RECORDS: Purdue 3-0; Clemson 5-0

COACHES: Purdue — Matt Painter (59-36 in four seasons, 34-31 in three seasons at Purdue); Clemson — Oliver Purnell (331-249 in 20 seasons overall, 75-58 in five seasons at Clemson).

TICKETS: Available

THREE THINGS TO WATCH

1. Clemson can make up for the points it loses with James Mays out because of hip injury. Where his absence figures to factor in most is on the fullcourt press, where Mays was the point man and a disruptive force. The Tigers must decide whether to stay big up front with Raymond Sykes and Jerai Grant — thereby sacrificing offense — or try 6-6 swingman David Potter up front and try to match up with Purdue’s four-around-one motion offense.

2. Purdue is largely an unknown entity. The Boilermakers’ top four scorers are freshmen (all the starters, excluding sophomore point guard Chris Kramer), and their body of work so far is hardly telling; they own blowout wins against Loyola-Chicago and Bethune-Cookman to go with a 66-62 win against Lipscomb, all three at home. This will be the first major hostile venue for most of its significant players.

3. For the first time this season, Clemson utilized its expected advantage in the low post in the Gardner-Webb victory. Mays’s absence hinders their ability in that regard, but center Trevor Booker has to make himself more of an offensive threat. Booker has the moves and touch, but he is not assertive in making himself available for entry passes and one-on-one opportunities.

KEY PLAYER

G K.C. Rivers, Clemson

First high-profile home game, first national TV game, no Mays in the lineup — these are the circumstances in which teams need their best player to elevate his game. Rivers has been fine thus far, but he has not flashed the all-around skill that had teammates thinking this might be a breakthrough all-ACC year. His 3-point stroke is on target, but he could stand to improve from inside the arc (35.1 percent), and his rebounding will be needed against a taller front line.

STARTING LINEUPS

BOILERMAKERS


POS. HT. NAME PPG.
G 6-3 Chris Kramer 8.7
G 6-3 E’Twaun Moore 13.0
G/F 6-8 Robbie Hummel 8.7
G/F 6-8 Scott Martin 13.3
C 6-10 JaJuan Johnson 10.0

TIGERS


POS. HT. NAME PPG.
PG 6-2 Demontez Stitt 7.2
G 6-3 Cliff Hammonds 12.0
G 6-5 K.C. Rivers 15.0
F 6-9 Raymond Sykes 3.0
C 6-7 Trevor Booker 8.6

BOTTOM LINE

Purdue’s defense and length could make it a close contest down the stretch. But with at least three veteran starters handy, Clemson should be able to trump a rookie squad making its first road trip.

— Paul Strelow

 

[shawn555]

Boilers to face Clemson in first road test
By Zach Langdon
Publication Date: 11/27/07
Executive Reporter

The Purdue men's basketball team will face its toughest opponent to date this season tonight when it faces No. 18 Clemson.

The Tigers return four starters from last season's team, which won its first 17 games and finished the year as runner-up of the National Invitational Tournament.

Purdue averages 9.7 turnovers per game, though it has yet to face a full court press or a defense with an intensity similar to Clemson's. The Tigers force an average of 23.4 turnovers each game and have 70 steals on the season.

"Any time you have that much athleticism and that much skill along with experience, it's very dangerous," Purdue coach Matt Painter said. "We have to be prepared to match their intensity and be able to handle their intensity and handle their press and keep them off the glass.

"There are some things you have to do well, but if you can't handle their pressure, then those things won't matter because they'll be going the other way dunking the basketball."

Offensively, Painter said the Tigers' best offense often comes from offensive rebounds. The Tigers average 18.6 offensive rebounds per game, while Purdue gives up more than nine offensive rebounds each game.

When Clemson gets second chance opportunities, it only makes its crowd louder and defensive press more intense, Painter said.

Stopping Clemson may not be the biggest hurdle for the Boilers, however. This will be the first road game for Purdue's top four leading scorers, all of whom are freshmen.

History isn't siding with Purdue, either. The Boilers are just 2-4 in the Big Ten-ACC Challenge and have won only two games on opponent's home courts in the last three seasons.

None of the Boilers have been on the team through that entire span. Junior guards Marcus Green and Bobby Riddell have had the longest tenure with the team, having been Boilers for three seasons.

"We're more or less like a junior college," Painter said. "Our older guys are guys that have only played one year. I wouldn't really tab that as experience; just because you played one season of college basketball, people call those guys experienced basketball players."

After less than stellar performances in their first two games of the season, the Boilers finally had a strong showing Saturday against Loyola-Chicago, winning 84-53. After three games, however, not even the members of the team know for sure how the young squad will look in Littlejohn Coliseum tonight.

Following the Loyola-Chicago game, when asked if the Boilers were ready to face Clemson, all freshman forward Scott Martin could do was chuckle and say what everyone else was thinking.

"We'll find out."

The game between the Boilers and Tigers will be televised by ESPN2 at 9:30 tonight in Clemson, S.C.