Game Preview and Open Thread - Auburn vs Clemson

Auburn and Clemson have verifiably met more times in all combined sports than any other teams. By my count, the Tigers and the purple Tigers have met over 24,000 times, with most of that coming in various sports over the past few seasons.

None of that is true, but it seems like we always play Clemson. So of course, we’d draw the Dabos (Brownells) in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

We got past Charleston Southern and avoided the upset bug that plagued much of the first round, beating the Cougars 62-58 despite shooting horribly from three and from the foul line. Our defense was stellar though, and we hope that can continue along tonight.

As for Clemson, they got a huge night from their big three of Sheldon Mitchell (23 pts), Gabe DeVoe (22 pts), and Marcquise Reed (15 pts) to beat New Mexico State 79-68 to advance to tonight’s game. In that win, the Tigers shot 55% from the floor, committed just 8 turnovers, and held the Aggies to just 38% shooting on the night.

But what didn’t Clemson do?

They only got 19 combined points from the six other players that saw the floor, and they didn’t really rebound all that well (although that could be because they shot so well). With the low number of turnovers, you wonder if Auburn’s plan will be similar to what it was Friday night.

Auburn was able to force Charleston into more than 20 turnovers in the win, and we needed nearly every single one of them. While we weren’t shooting well at all, we were getting points in transition and second opportunities thanks to the sloppy ball-handling from the Cougars. I think that Clemson will be a better team in terms of protecting the ball, but it’s something that Auburn can try to take advantage of.

After the ridiculous finish to last night in the NCAA Tournament, you can bet that we’re going to get more of the same tonight. This whole weekend has been fantastic, and it’ll come to a close this evening with Auburn opening up the last four games of the day.

Bruce said that we were just two wins away from the Sweet 16. Well, we got one of them, and now it’s time to get the other. War Eagle

HOW TO WATCH AND LISTEN - Auburn vs Clemson - 6:10 pm CST - San Diego, CA

TV: TBS

Radio: Auburn Sports Network