Countdown to tip off: No. 25 Tigers hosts Louisville
By: will-vandervort January 5, 2018

Clemson hopes to keep its nine-game winning streak going as the 25th-ranked Tigers host Louisville Saturday at Littlejohn Coliseum in Clemson.

This will be just the seventh all-time meeting between Clemson and Louisville. The Tigers are 1-5 against the Cardinals, with the last three meetings coming as members of the ACC.

The Tigers’ lone win over the Cardinals and it came in 2015-16, a 66-62 victory over a then No. 16 ranked Louisville team.

GAMEDAY SETUP

No. 25 CLEMSON (13-1, 2-0 ACC) vs. LOUISVILLE (11-3, 1-0 ACC)

Date: Saturday

Tipoff: 12:06 p.m. ET

Arena: Littlejohn Coliseum (9,000)

Radio: CTN (Don Munson-pbp; Tim Bourret-color)

TV: RSN (Pete Yanity-pbp; Dan Bonner-color)

  • Clemson will look to improve to 3-0 in ACC play for the first time since the 2006-07 season.
  • Brad Brownell is off his best 14-game start to a season in his career.
  • Clemson is one of only three teams in the country to have a perfect record over the last two Decembers (13-0), joining Purdue and West Virginia (Chris Forman, Purdue).

SERIES HISTORY
CU Series W-L record: Clemson is 1-5 all-time against Louisville.
Streak: The Cardinals won last year’s meeting 92-60.

LOUISVILLE SCOUTING REPORT

  • The Cardinals enter the matchup with a 11-3 overall record, including a 1-0 mark in league play with a 26-point win over Pittsburgh on Jan. 2.
  • Louisville is led by three double-digit scorers, including Deng Adel who leads the team with 15.1 points per contest. Quentin Snider (12.4) and Ray Spalding (10.8) round out the three.
  • Spalding leads the team with 9.2 boards per contest as the Cardinals are grabbing 40.4 rebounds per game – a +3.1 differential on the glass.
  • The Cards shoot 45.1 percent from the field, limiting their opponent to 38.2 percent.

TIGER TRACKS

  • The Tigers entered the AP Top 25 poll (No. 25) for the first time since the 2009-10 season. Clemson is also ranked in the USA Today Coaches Poll at No. 25.
  • Clemson’s RPI checks in at 10th nationally. Four teams from the ACC are ranked in the top 10.
  • Clemson coach Brad Brownell (137 victories at Clemson) is one win shy of tying and two shy of passing Oliver Purnell for the third most wins at Clemson.
  • Donte Grantham became just the sixth player in Clemson history to amass 1,000 points, 500 rebounds and 200 assists in a career.
  • He is also just the sixth player in program history to finished a game with at least 20 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists.
  • The 20-10-5 club is an exclusive one. Grantham joins Larry Nance, Vincent Hamilton, Horace Grant, Elden Campbell and Sharone Wright.
  • Those previous five are in the Clemson Hall of Fame and members of the Centennial team chosen in 2012. Four of the five were first-round NBA selections.

–Staff Reports