No. 18 Clemson, Girard close nonconference play with 93-58 win over Radford
CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) Joe Girard III had a good feeling about joining Clemson after his long career at Syracuse. So far, it has gone even better than he could've hoped.
Girard scored 24 points, hitting four 3-pointers, and the 18th-ranked Tigers pulled away early to close nonconference play with a 93-58 victory over Radford on Friday night.
Girard, had 17 points in the opening period and 12 of those during a 28-9 game-changing run as the Tigers (11-1) took control for good.
Girard leads Clemson with 38 3-pointers, hitting close to 45% of his shots behind the arc, to give his team a reliable outside threat with post players like PJ Hall and Ian Schieffelin operating down low.
Girard acknowledged that nothing's guaranteed when you switch campuses, no matter how promising your visit was. But he's found it easy to blend with his new program.
“Quite honestly, it feels like I've been here for five years,” Girard said. “These guys have been the best teammates I could've asked for and it kind of makes playing fun.”
Clemson is having a lot of fun this season, its only stumble a 79-77 loss at No. 19 Memphis earlier this month. The Tigers lead the Atlantic Coast Conference in the NET rankings, a key component for NCAA Tournament resumes, at No. 12.
“It's been a lot better than I could've asked for,” he said.
Girard's four threes gave him 335 for his career, moving him to fifth in the ACC in that category.
“That's crazy. I didn't even realize that," teammate PJ Hall said to Girard when asked about the milestone.
Radford (10-5), coming off a last-second 66-65 win at West Virginia on Dec. 20, could not hold up against another power conference opponent and fell to 0-5 against Clemson.
Hall added 17 points and Chase Hunter 16 for the Tigers, who'll jump back into Atlantic Coast Conference with their next game at Miami on Wednesday night.
Kenyon Giles led Radford with 17 points.
Radford, behind Giles' 12 points in the first 10 minutes, stayed close and trailed 21-14 after DaQuan Smith's bucket with 9:47 left in the half. Clemson answered with the dominant run to the half for a 49-23 lead to put things out of reach.
The Tigers led by 43 points in the second half and held Radford, which came in averaging 74.6 points, to its second- lowest output this season.
THE BIG PICTURE
Radford: The Highlanders are 0-3 against ranked opponents this season, previously losing to then-No. 19 North Carolina and then-No. 24 James Madison last month. But without injured forward Justin Archer, hurt in the win at West Virginia, Radford could not matchup with Clemson.
Clemson: The Tigers close their nonconference schedule they way they drew it up in the preseason with 10 of 11 victories. Early losses a year ago to struggling opponents like South Carolina and Loyola-Chicago likely kept Clemson out of the NCAA Tournament.
TUNING IN
Clemson coach Brad Brownell spent part of his afternoon before the game tuned in to the football team's wild, 38-35 last second win over Kentucky in the Gator Bowl. Brownell and football coach Dabo Swinney have been a model of stability at Clemson, Swinney leading his team since 2008 and Brownell joining the school for the 2010-22 season. “It was a great day,” Brownell said with a smile. Football “had 'em all the way.”
UP NEXT
Radford: Opens Big South Conference play at home against High Point on Wednesday night.
Clemson: Returns to ACC play Wednesday night at Miami.
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Time | Team | Play | Score | |
---|---|---|---|---|
20:00 | (Tigers gains possession) | |||
19:02 | Chauncey Wiggins offensive rebound | |||
20:00 | (Tigers gains possession) | |||
19:46 | +2 | PJ Hall makes two point layup (Joseph Girard III assists) | 0-2 | |
19:17 | Kenyon Giles misses two point jump shot | |||
19:15 | Ian Schieffelin defensive rebound | |||
19:04 | PJ Hall misses three point jump shot | |||
19:02 | Chauncey Wiggins offensive rebound | |||
19:02 | Chauncey Wiggins offensive rebound | |||
18:57 | PJ Hall misses three point jump shot | |||
18:55 | Ian Schieffelin offensive rebound | |||
18:52 | D'Auntray Pierce blocks Chauncey Wiggins's two point layup | |||
18:50 | Tigers offensive rebound | |||
18:37 | Chase Hunter misses three point jump shot | |||
18:35 | DaQuan Smith defensive rebound | |||
18:14 | Kenyon Giles misses two point layup | |||
18:12 | Ian Schieffelin defensive rebound | |||
18:06 | Ian Schieffelin misses three point jump shot | |||
18:04 | Chandler Turner defensive rebound | |||
17:42 | Bryan Antoine misses two point jump shot | |||
17:40 | Joseph Girard III defensive rebound | |||
17:33 | Joseph Girard III turnover (bad pass) | |||
17:05 | Truth Harris misses two point layup | |||
17:03 | Chauncey Wiggins defensive rebound | |||
16:43 | Chauncey Wiggins misses three point jump shot | |||
16:41 | Truth Harris defensive rebound | |||
16:33 | +3 | Kenyon Giles makes three point jump shot | 3-2 | |
16:07 | +3 | PJ Hall makes three point jump shot (Chase Hunter assists) | 3-5 | |
15:42 | Chandler Turner misses two point jump shot | |||
15:40 | Ian Schieffelin defensive rebound | |||
15:28 | +3 | Joseph Girard III makes three point jump shot | 3-8 | |
14:58 | Chandler Turner turnover (lost ball) (Chase Hunter steals) | |||
14:50 | +2 | Chase Hunter makes two point jump shot | 3-10 | |
14:24 | PJ Hall blocks Chandler Turner's two point layup | |||
14:24 | Highlanders offensive rebound | |||
14:24 | TV timeout | |||
14:16 | Highlanders turnover (shot clock violation) | |||
13:58 | RJ Godfrey misses two point layup | |||
13:56 | RJ Godfrey offensive rebound | |||
13:38 | +2 | RJ Godfrey makes two point layup | 3-12 | |
13:29 | DaQuan Smith turnover (bad pass) | |||
13:16 | +3 | Chase Hunter makes three point jump shot (Ian Schieffelin assists) | 3-15 | |
13:16 | Highlanders 30 second timeout | |||
12:59 | +2 | Kenyon Giles makes two point jump shot | 5-15 | |
12:45 | Kyle Burns shooting foul (Dillon Hunter draws the foul) | |||
12:45 | +1 | Chase Hunter makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 5-16 | |
12:45 | +1 | Chase Hunter makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 5-17 | |
12:23 | +2 | Kenyon Giles makes two point jump shot | 7-17 | |
11:54 | D'Auntray Pierce blocks RJ Godfrey's two point layup | |||
11:52 | Chandler Turner defensive rebound | |||
11:41 | +2 | Kenyon Giles makes two point jump shot | 9-17 | |
11:27 | Dillon Hunter misses two point jump shot | |||
11:25 | D'Auntray Pierce defensive rebound | |||
11:07 | +3 | Kenyon Giles makes three point jump shot (Truth Harris assists) | 12-17 | |
10:53 | +2 | Joseph Girard III makes two point jump shot | 12-19 | |
10:33 | Chandler Turner misses two point jump shot | |||
10:31 | Josh Beadle defensive rebound | |||
10:24 | Joseph Girard III misses three point jump shot | |||
10:22 | RJ Godfrey offensive rebound | |||
10:13 | +2 | RJ Godfrey makes two point layup | 12-21 | |
10:01 | Josh Beadle personal foul | |||
10:01 | TV timeout | |||
9:48 | +2 | DaQuan Smith makes two point layup | 14-21 | |
9:41 | Chase Hunter turnover (traveling) | |||
9:26 | Kyle Burns misses two point jump shot | |||
9:24 | Ian Schieffelin defensive rebound | |||
9:13 | Joseph Girard III misses three point jump shot | |||
9:11 | Ian Schieffelin offensive rebound | |||
9:11 | DaQuan Smith personal foul | |||
9:03 | Josh Beadle misses three point jump shot | |||
9:01 | DaQuan Smith defensive rebound | |||
8:35 | Trenton Walters misses two point jump shot | |||
8:33 | Ian Schieffelin defensive rebound | |||
8:29 | +2 | Chase Hunter makes two point layup (Joseph Girard III assists) | 14-23 | |
7:57 | Chandler Turner turnover (lost ball) (Chase Hunter steals) | |||
7:47 | D'Auntray Pierce shooting foul | |||
7:47 | TV timeout | |||
7:47 | +1 | Ian Schieffelin makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 14-24 | |
7:47 | +1 | Ian Schieffelin makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 14-25 | |
7:28 | Truth Harris misses two point jump shot | |||
7:26 | Tigers defensive rebound | |||
7:14 | +3 | PJ Hall makes three point jump shot (Joseph Girard III assists) | 14-28 | |
6:59 | D'Auntray Pierce turnover (lost ball) (PJ Hall steals) | |||
6:42 | +2 | PJ Hall makes two point jump shot (Chase Hunter assists) | 14-30 | |
6:16 | +2 | Kenyon Giles makes two point jump shot | 16-30 | |
6:01 | Chauncey Wiggins misses three point jump shot | |||
5:59 | PJ Hall offensive rebound | |||
5:55 | Chase Hunter misses three point jump shot | |||
5:53 | Truth Harris defensive rebound | |||
5:43 | Kenyon Giles misses three point jump shot | |||
5:41 | Ian Schieffelin defensive rebound | |||
5:31 | +2 | Joseph Girard III makes two point layup (Ian Schieffelin assists) | 16-32 | |
5:31 | Bryan Antoine shooting foul (Joseph Girard III draws the foul) | |||
5:31 | +1 | Joseph Girard III makes regular free throw 1 of 1 | 16-33 | |
5:11 | Chandler Turner misses three point jump shot | |||
5:09 | Joseph Girard III defensive rebound | |||
5:00 | +3 | Joseph Girard III makes three point jump shot | 16-36 | |
4:44 | Truth Harris turnover (bad pass) (Dillon Hunter steals) | |||
4:36 | Bryan Antoine personal foul | |||
4:28 | DaQuan Smith shooting foul (Joseph Girard III draws the foul) | |||
4:28 | +1 | Joseph Girard III makes regular free throw 1 of 3 | 16-37 | |
4:28 | +1 | Joseph Girard III makes regular free throw 2 of 3 | 16-38 | |
4:28 | +1 | Joseph Girard III makes regular free throw 3 of 3 | 16-39 | |
4:01 | +2 | D'Auntray Pierce makes two point layup (Kenyon Giles assists) | 18-39 | |
3:46 | RJ Godfrey misses two point layup | |||
3:44 | Tigers offensive rebound | |||
3:44 | TV timeout | |||
3:38 | D'Auntray Pierce blocks Dillon Hunter's two point layup | |||
3:36 | Chandler Turner defensive rebound | |||
3:28 | +3 | Chandler Turner makes three point jump shot (Kenyon Giles assists) | 21-39 | |
3:03 | +3 | Joseph Girard III makes three point jump shot | 21-42 | |
2:42 | Kenyon Giles misses three point jump shot | |||
2:40 | Ian Schieffelin defensive rebound | |||
2:30 | Kenyon Giles personal foul (PJ Hall draws the foul) | |||
2:30 | +1 | PJ Hall makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 21-43 | |
2:30 | +1 | PJ Hall makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 21-44 | |
2:18 | D'Auntray Pierce turnover (lost ball) (PJ Hall steals) | |||
2:16 | Dillon Hunter turnover (bad pass) | |||
1:56 | DaQuan Smith misses three point jump shot | |||
1:54 | Ian Schieffelin defensive rebound | |||
1:36 | Ian Schieffelin misses three point jump shot | |||
1:34 | Highlanders defensive rebound | |||
1:22 | +2 | DaQuan Smith makes two point jump shot | 23-44 | |
0:59 | PJ Hall misses two point jump shot | |||
0:57 | Kenyon Giles defensive rebound | |||
0:49 | Kyle Burns misses three point jump shot | |||
0:47 | Dillon Hunter defensive rebound | |||
0:39 | D'Auntray Pierce personal foul (Chase Hunter draws the foul) | |||
0:39 | +1 | Chase Hunter makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 23-45 | |
0:39 | +1 | Chase Hunter makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 23-46 | |
0:10 | DaQuan Smith misses three point jump shot | |||
0:08 | Chase Hunter defensive rebound | |||
0:01 | +3 | Dillon Hunter makes three point jump shot (Chase Hunter assists) | 23-49 | |
0:00 | End of period |
Time | Team | Play | Score | |
---|---|---|---|---|
19:44 | Bryan Antoine misses two point jump shot | |||
19:42 | Joseph Girard III defensive rebound | |||
19:25 | +2 | PJ Hall makes two point hook shot (Chase Hunter assists) | 23-51 | |
18:55 | +2 | Bryan Antoine makes two point layup (Kenyon Giles assists) | 25-51 | |
18:45 | D'Auntray Pierce personal foul (PJ Hall draws the foul) | |||
18:40 | +2 | Joseph Girard III makes two point layup | 25-53 | |
18:09 | +2 | DaQuan Smith makes two point jump shot | 27-53 |