BC avoids rout, not loss

"We weren't ready to play and [Clemson] took advantage of that," BC's Craig Smith said. "No excuses. The guys have to get it in their head to come out and be aggressive, and we didn't have that. But instead of letting them get a bigger lead we said we aren't going to take this anymore. That's character."

Smith scored 28 points, including a 3-pointer that cut the deficit to 66-60 with 1 minute 11 seconds remaining, capping a 21-9 rally.

"It is about the character of this team," BC coach Al Skinner said. "We have had tough games this year and won them. Last year we didn't, we lost to Holy Cross and Northeastern. This team is much more resilient than last year. It might not be as talented but we showed who we were in this game. We got down but we really got after it."

BC (9-2) struggled at the start and in the opening minutes of the second half. Clemson (7-4) took a 10-0 lead before Jared Dudley scored for BC with 16:30 remaining in the first half. The Tigers also scored the first 10 points of the second half.

"They were ready to play, they were excited about the game and we were extremely flat," Skinner said of the Atlantic Coast Conference's Tigers. "It's understandable for that to happen at the start of the game but we should have been ready in the second half and we weren't. We didn't execute and we didn't respond to their physical play. We have to do a better job with that."

The Eagles did not score for the first 3:30 of the game, then later went nearly three minutes without hitting the rim late in the half, and converted only one field goal in the final 4:45 of the half. But BC remained in contention through the persistence of Smith, who had six offensive rebounds in the first half, including a fifth-chance attempt that led to two foul shots, and a three-quarter-court press that helped blank the Tigers for a 3:59 span.

Clemson pulled away with a 12-0 run, starting with Akin Akingbala converting a tip-in with three seconds remaining in the first half, then continuing as Olu Babalola and Chey Christie hit 3-pointers in the first 61 seconds of the second half, followed by a Vernon Hamilton steal and layup and a Christie follow for a 44-20 advantage 2:12 into the half. Smith scored with 17:31 remaining in the game to launch a 12-4 rally. But Clemson regained control on Shawan Robinson's 3-pointer and Hamilton's steal and dunk in a 17-second span as the Tigers went up, 53-32, with 11:15 remaining. Meanwhile, BC was gaining momentum with a full-court press and the inside play of Smith and Nate Doornekamp in cutting the deficit to 62-46 with 4:25 left. Steve Hailey converted on a goaltending call, three foul shots, and a drive to cut the deficit to 64-57 with 1:27 to go. Smith's 3-pointer made it 66-60 with 1:11 left, but Christie converted two foul shots, Doornekamp missed a 3-pointer, and Babalola made two free throws for a 70-60 lead with 48 seconds left.