The Deacons are suddenly one of the ACC?s hottest teams, having won two straight league games. They?ve played solid defense in the wins against Virginia and Boston College while continuing to get steady scoring from C.J. Harris and Travis McKie. The Tigers beat Virginia at home Saturday, helped by Milton Jennings? 21-point, 11-rebound effort. It was the top individual scoring performance by a Clemson player this season as the Tigers do not have a player ranked among the top 25 in scoring in the ACC.
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A compelling question awaits Wake Forest at tonight?s game against Clemson at Littlejohn Coliseum.
Is the momentum the Deacons have spent the last month building portable?
?We?ll find out,?? Coach Jeff Bzdelik of Wake Forest said Monday.
Bzdelik?s Deacons have won five of their last six and six of their last eight, fueling a notion that the foundation laid the past two disappointing years may be solid and in place. They?re playing better defense, turning the ball over less often and making critical plays with the game on the line.
The improvement, though, has been seen almost exclusively in Joel Coliseum. Of the six most recent wins, five were at home and the other against lightweight UNC Greensboro in Greensboro Coliseum.
Freshman Codi Miller-McIntyre said the confidence gained during the surge should serve the Deacons in good stead tonight at Clemson. Both teams are 9-6 overall, but Wake Forest is 2-1 in ACC play while the Tigers are 1-2. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.
?Hopefully, we?ve all got the confidence that we can play with anybody,?? Miller-McIntyre said Monday. ?These wins keep building our confidence.
?So if we can go on the road and get this big win, that would just keep it going until the next game.??
The Tigers, in Brad Brownell?s third season as head coach, lost their first two ACC games ? at home against Florida State (71-66) and at Duke (68-40) ? before bouncing back to beat Virginia (59-44) Saturday in Littlejohn. Milton Jennings, a 6-9 senior, drilled five of eight 3-pointers to score 21 points to go with 11 rebounds, and Devin Booker, a 6-8 senior, made nine of 12 free throws for 15 points to go with nine rebounds.
Clemson, which ranks eighth in the ACC with a 44.5 percent field-goal accuracy, made 10 of 13 field-goal attempts (77 percent) in the second half to win going away.
?They?re an excellent defensive team ? very athletic,?? Bzdelik said. ?Booker is a handful inside. Jennings had five 3s against Virginia.
?They need Booker scoring inside. They need to balance that out with Jennings hitting a few 3s, and we need to be ball-strong and manufacture good quality shots against a stingy defense.??
Senior C.J. Harris is coming off a career-high 29-point performance against Boston College, but it?s the development of the seven-player freshmen class that contributed to the Deacons? strong start in conference play. Wake Forest has committed just 12 turnovers in each of its last two games, and freshman center Devin Thomas has 45 rebounds in his last four games.
Another bright spot has been the outside shooting of junior Travis McKie. After making only three of his first 17 attempts from behind the 3-point arc this season, McKie is shooting 39 percent (nine for 23) over the last nine games.
McKie made three of five 3-pointers against BC.
?I thought early on he was taking some contested 3s, trying to force it,?? Bzdelik said. ?He?s doing a better job of taking a better shot.
?Obviously, when you take a better shot, you have a higher percentage of making it.??
Tonight?s game will be the first of five road games over the next seven games for the Deacons, whose home games during the stretch will be against ACC contenders N.C. State and Duke. It will also be played at an arena that has recently been a tough place for Wake Forest to win.
The Deacons have lost four of their last five at Littlejohn Coliseum.
?I heard it?s crazy,?? Miller-McIntyre said. ?But we?ve just got to do what we do and stay together as a team, and if we do that, then we?ll come out with the win.??
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A compelling question awaits Wake Forest at tonight?s game against Clemson at Littlejohn Coliseum.
Is the momentum the Deacons have spent the last month building portable?
?We?ll find out,?? Coach Jeff Bzdelik of Wake Forest said Monday.
Bzdelik?s Deacons have won five of their last six and six of their last eight, fueling a notion that the foundation laid the past two disappointing years may be solid and in place. They?re playing better defense, turning the ball over less often and making critical plays with the game on the line.
The improvement, though, has been seen almost exclusively in Joel Coliseum. Of the six most recent wins, five were at home and the other against lightweight UNC Greensboro in Greensboro Coliseum.
Freshman Codi Miller-McIntyre said the confidence gained during the surge should serve the Deacons in good stead tonight at Clemson. Both teams are 9-6 overall, but Wake Forest is 2-1 in ACC play while the Tigers are 1-2. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.
?Hopefully, we?ve all got the confidence that we can play with anybody,?? Miller-McIntyre said Monday. ?These wins keep building our confidence.
?So if we can go on the road and get this big win, that would just keep it going until the next game.??
The Tigers, in Brad Brownell?s third season as head coach, lost their first two ACC games ? at home against Florida State (71-66) and at Duke (68-40) ? before bouncing back to beat Virginia (59-44) Saturday in Littlejohn. Milton Jennings, a 6-9 senior, drilled five of eight 3-pointers to score 21 points to go with 11 rebounds, and Devin Booker, a 6-8 senior, made nine of 12 free throws for 15 points to go with nine rebounds.
Clemson, which ranks eighth in the ACC with a 44.5 percent field-goal accuracy, made 10 of 13 field-goal attempts (77 percent) in the second half to win going away.
?They?re an excellent defensive team ? very athletic,?? Bzdelik said. ?Booker is a handful inside. Jennings had five 3s against Virginia.
?They need Booker scoring inside. They need to balance that out with Jennings hitting a few 3s, and we need to be ball-strong and manufacture good quality shots against a stingy defense.??
Senior C.J. Harris is coming off a career-high 29-point performance against Boston College, but it?s the development of the seven-player freshmen class that contributed to the Deacons? strong start in conference play. Wake Forest has committed just 12 turnovers in each of its last two games, and freshman center Devin Thomas has 45 rebounds in his last four games.
Another bright spot has been the outside shooting of junior Travis McKie. After making only three of his first 17 attempts from behind the 3-point arc this season, McKie is shooting 39 percent (nine for 23) over the last nine games.
McKie made three of five 3-pointers against BC.
?I thought early on he was taking some contested 3s, trying to force it,?? Bzdelik said. ?He?s doing a better job of taking a better shot.
?Obviously, when you take a better shot, you have a higher percentage of making it.??
Tonight?s game will be the first of five road games over the next seven games for the Deacons, whose home games during the stretch will be against ACC contenders N.C. State and Duke. It will also be played at an arena that has recently been a tough place for Wake Forest to win.
The Deacons have lost four of their last five at Littlejohn Coliseum.
?I heard it?s crazy,?? Miller-McIntyre said. ?But we?ve just got to do what we do and stay together as a team, and if we do that, then we?ll come out with the win.??
