Clemson-UVA thoughts

If you can get past the despicable blasphemy of my writing about basketball on National Signing Day, here are some thoughts from last night's narrow loss in Charlottesville:

-- You're never happy with a loss, and I know Brad Brownell and his staff certainly aren't, but there were some encouraging signs. K.J. McDaniels and Devin Coleman looked comfortable and assertive. Catalin Baciu continues to impress. And the Tigers played with focus and poise in the first half.

-- Here's my theory on teams that lose a key player, whether to injury or suspension or whatever: It seems the team always plays well its first time out without that player. Not sure whether it's a back-against-the-wall mentality or what, but the trend goes back a long way and it seems to happen in all sports.

I suspect that was part of what we saw last night, this team rallying with a good effort against a good team after learning Milton Jennings was back home as a result of an academic suspension.

It's often the case, however, that a team ends up struggling in its second game after losing that key player. So I suspect Saturday's trip to Blacksburg will be difficult.

-- There are many reasons Clemson lost that game last night, and you have to start with Virginia shooting 55 percent for the game and 63.2 percent in the second half. That helps explain why Clemson was out-rebounded 34-19; there simply were not many rebounds to get.

But the Tigers were right there toward the end, and again they could not hit the big shot when it mattered. Andre Young was freed for an open 3-pointer thanks to a good downscreen by Devin Booker, but his shot was off.

Young, who scored 48 points in the previous two games against Georgia Tech and Wake Forest, was held scoreless in the second half and missed five of 6 3-pointers. That's a killer.

-- Virginia's pack-line defense doubles the post, so scoring down low is difficult. But it is imperative to get the ball into the paint to draw those doubles, leading to skip passes that allow for open 3-pointers.

That was a big problem last night: The Tigers didn't get the ball into the post frequently enough to create open shots.

That led to some rushed, contested jumpers too early in the shot clock. Not many of them, but three or four of these possessions end up being a big deal in a close game.

This has been a common theme this season. Six of the Tigers' 10 losses have come by four points or less.

-- Virginia was playing its third game in six days, so this was a really good opportunity for Clemson to grab a big win on the road. Those chances absorbed a blow early in the second half, when Virginia scored 23 points on its first 12 possessions. Clemson, meanwhile, scored 10 points in the first 10 minutes of the second half.

-- This team is 3-4 in the ACC, but the good news in looking at the remaining schedule is that Clemson will have a reasonable shot to win every game except the trip to Chapel Hill.

Brownell has done a heck of a job of putting his team in a position to win, and you have to think that'll continue.

LW