Brad Brownell: 'Anything can happen in these tournaments'
The Clemson Tigers have been on a historic run in this year’s NCAA Tournament. They’ve reached just their second Elite Eight in program history, and they’re looking to punch their tickets to the Final Four on Saturday night. The Tigers will do battle with the Alabama Crimson Tide at 8:49 p.m EST on TBS. Earlier in the week, Tigers head coach Brad Brownell said anything can happen in these tournaments.
“I just think our guys have a lot of belief in each other, and I certainly have a lot of belief in my team. And we’re playing good basketball right now. And anything can happen in these tournaments,” Brownell began.
“You’ve got to have really good players. I have good players. When you have players you try to do the best job you can as a coach to put them in positions to be successful. And when these guys capitalize like they have been, good things are going to happen,” the Clemson head coach explained.
Brad Brownell knows the chemistry of his roster has been key
“So, we have a lot of confidence in our team. We’ve been through a lot together, especially these three guys. These guys are all — Chase [Hunter] five years, Ian [Schieffelin] third year, and P.J. [Hall] his fourth. We’ve been together for a long time. And so, we know the ins and outs of each other and our personalities. I think that helps our team,” Brownell noted.
The Tigers feature an excellent mix of talent on the interior and the guard positions. In their win against Arizona, Clemson got numerous easy buckets at the rim. They got a big-time performance from Chase Hunter, who stuffed the stat sheet with 18 points, seven rebounds, and five assists. PJ Hall also chipped in 17 points and eight rebounds. Ian Schieffelin stuffed the stat box with 14 points and seven rebounds.
March is a time for the superstars to shine and Brownell has gotten great performances from his big three during his team’s historic run. They’ve also had role players like RJ Godfrey step up in certain moments, like the four clutch free throws he drained in the final minute against the Baylor Bears.
A trip to the Final Four will be on the line tonight for both programs. It would mark the first ever trip to the Final Four in program history for both the Tigers and Crimson Tide.