Clemson guard Chase Hunter to return against FSU

Matt Connollyby:Matt Connolly•01/28/23•

MattConnollyOn3

Clemson is getting back a big piece of its starting lineup for Saturday’s game at Florida State as starting point guard Chase Hunter is returning to action.

Hunter has missed the past three games with a foot injury but is expected to play and start against the Seminoles, Clemson Sports has learned.

The junior is third on the team in scoring, averaging 14 points per game, and leads the Tigers in assists, averaging 4.3 per game.

Clemson was 2-1 in games without Hunter, losing to Wake Forest, before beating Virginia Tech and Georgia Tech.

The Tigers enter Saturday’s matchup with a 17-4 record, including a 9-1 mark in the ACC. Clemson is currently alone atop the ACC standings.

While Hunter is returning to action, Clemson will still be without two of its top guards.

Alex Hemenway is slated to miss Saturday’s game as he continues to deal with plantar fasciitis.

Hemenway has been out since mid-December. He started all 12 games he was available for and averaged 9.8 points per game.

While the Indiana native won’t be able to play against the Seminoles, he is getting close to returning to action.

The Tigers also had another guard suffer an injury earlier this week as Brevin Galloway is dealing with “an abdominal injury.” The senior is considered day-to-day.

Galloway has appeared in all 20 games this season, making 19 starts. He is fourth on the team in scoring, averaging 10.4 points per game. He is also second on the team in assists with 50.

Galloway transferred to Clemson from Boston College after starting his college career at College of Charleston.

He is having arguably the best year of his career, due in part to finally being healthy. The Anderson native has battled injuries throughout his college career.

Brownell said earlier this week that Hunter and Hemenway had returned to practice in a limited capacity.

“Just very light stuff. More 1-on-1 stuff,” he said. “We thought maybe that we could get them to do some of that [Monday]. Didn’t quite get to that point. Just trying to be ultra-careful.”