CLEMSON, S.C. - With Maryland (home) and Duke (away) next up for Boston College, a dose of Clemson was hardly what the Eagles needed last night. But coach Al Skinner welcomed the opportunity to get some Atlantic Coast Conference seasoning for promising freshmen Corey Raji, Biko Paris, and Josh Southern, even in the raucous Littlejohn Coliseum.
What wasn't promising was the Eagles' performance on the court, a 78-56 loss that marked their second straight by more than 20 points and their fourth consecutive defeat in conference play.
"We turned the ball over too many times," Skinner said. "We like to think that we're a better ballhandling team than that. But between the turnovers and the number of offensive rebounds they got, I think that's clearly the difference in the ballgame. We've got to rebound the ball better and handle the ball better."
For the second straight game, turnovers were a significant problem for BC, which gave the ball away 20 times, leading to 30 Clemson points. They had 17 turnovers in a loss to North Carolina Thursday. The Eagles also allowed Clemson (16-5, 4-3) to pull down 21 offensive rebounds.
The Eagles also struggled to get into an offensive flow. Though they managed to keep pace with the Tigers in the first half, in the second half virtually everything went wrong. That was because of impressive defense by Clemson - some of its best all season, according to coach Oliver Purnell - and a multitude of miscues by BC (12-8, 3-4).
After coming out of the break down by 5, the Eagles fell apart, and Clemson's lead ballooned to 17 points from 6 in 2:33.
"In the second half, Clemson came with everything they had," Raji said. "And it worked."
It wasn't the 21-0 run the Tar Heels pasted on the Eagles Thursday, but the 28-11 run that started after BC tied the score at 29-29 with 2:26 left in the first half effectively ended the game for the visitors.
Clemson freshman guard Terrence Oglesby - who spent the game trying to demonstrate his range with attempts from well beyond the arc - hit a 3-pointer to put Clemson ahead. Oglesby had a tip-in that bounced around the rim and in as the buzzer sounded, prompting a roar from the crowd and a giving Clemson a 36-31 halftime lead.
BC was unable to exploit the absence of Clemson's starting point guard, Demontez Stitt, who had surgery on his injured knee Thursday.
Cliff Hammonds (14 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, no turnovers) ably led the Tigers, while his defense held Tyrese Rice to 4-of-8 shooting. Rice finished with 17 points and six turnovers.
BC did enjoy a solid five-minute stretch in the first half during which Raji collected 7 points and four rebounds, two offensive. But he scored just 2 points and grabbed one rebound during his 11 minutes on the court in the second half.
"We're a young team, we're learning what it's all about," Skinner said. "I'd like to think in the future we're going to be better for it. But right now it's clearly a learning experience. Guys have got to learn to be able to handle these situations, not so much back-to-back games, but games that are similar. From an athletic standpoint, it's a challenge for us. There's no question about it."
There's also no question that BC is struggling. And it won't get any easier in the next week.
"It's a must," Rice said of reversing the Eagles' fortunes. "We have to turn it around now. If we don't now, we'll let it get away from us."
Amalie Benjamin can be reached at abenjamin@globe.com.
