S.C. State takes Tigers to the limit

CLEMSON -- Clemson had one last tuneup Tuesday night before opening ACC play and the new year at Duke.

As might be expected with a young team, the No. 21 Tigers admitted to looking beyond S.C. State in a 70-67 win. With the seventh-ranked Blue Devils on the horizon for Clemson (Sunday, 7:45 p.m., Fox Sports South), the Bulldogs entered Littlejohn Coliseum having played two other power- conference teams this season in Miami and Iowa, resulting in two losses by a combined 50 points.

The Tigers (12-2) play three freshmen and two sophomores in their rotation and have previously had intensity lapses this season. For one, they blew a 23-point second-half lead in a loss to Illinois.

The Tigers nearly lost another double-digit lead, but this time it was an opposing player, Jason Flagler, lying on the floor in anguish as the clock ran dry. His buzzer-beating 3-pointer attempt to tie the game fell short.

"Our guys weren't prepared enough," Clemson coach Oliver Purnell said. "I think we had guys looking forward to closing out (pre-conference play)."

Purnell said the energy lull was similar to the Illinois game, and he reminded his players of that collapse at halftime.

"We were sleeping most of the game until the last minute when we realized we could get beat," Trevor Booker said.

Thanks to the modified mohawk-sporting Darnell Porter and a high-energy defensive effort, the Bulldogs remained in the game deep into the second half.

Porter connected on 3 of 5 3s toward his game-high 19 points. Flagler finished with 16 points.

The undersized Bulldogs (6-4) outrebounded Clemson by a 30-27 margin, held the Tigers under 50 percent shooting (49) and limited leading scorer Trevor Booker to eight shots and 12 points.

S.C. State coach Tim Carter said his Bulldogs couldn't have executed their strategy any better, though he lamented the 7-of-15 free throw shooting.

"We just wanted to front (Booker) and decrease his touches," Carter said. "You can't get into an up-and-down game with Clemson because he will get a lot more touches. You have to decrease possessions."

Porter and the Bulldogs had their chances late.

Clemson led by only two, 62-60, with 6:16 remaining, when a missed Tyvon Williams 3 would have given S.C. State its first lead since early in the first half.

David Potter connected on a 3 and put back a Demontez Stitt miss to give Clemson a 67-60 lead with 3:22 to play.

But Khalif Toombs' 3 cut the Tigers' lead to 68-65 with 45 seconds to play, and a Williams drive and layup cut it to 68-67 with 30 seconds left.

With a chance to put the game away with seven seconds to play, Trevor Booker missed both free throws. That set up Flagler's contested from several feet beyond the arc, allowing Clemson to escape.

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Clemson Tigers

Devin Booker starts

While one freshman, Noel Johnson, left the starting lineup, fellow freshman Devin Booker made his first career start. Booker finished with six points and has made 20 of his last 29 field goals.

Reach Travis Sawchik at tsawchik@postandcourier.com and check out his Clemson blog at www.postandcourier.om/blogs/tiger_tracks.