March 1, 2006

Virginia Tech-Clemson box score

Clemson 86, Virginia Tech 81

 

BLACKSBURG - The Hokies placed four players in double figures, but Clemson closed out the game with a 14-2 run and made some clutch free throws down the stretch to hand Tech an 86-81 loss in an ACC game played Wednesday night at Cassell Coliseum.

With the loss, Tech fell to 14-14 overall on the season, 4-11 in the ACC. Clemson avenged a one-point overtime loss to the Hokies earlier this season, and improved to 17-11, 6-9 in the league.

The Hokies led by seven, 79-72, after a bucket by guard Zabian Dowdell with 3:49 left to play. But the Tigers went on an 11-2 run after that, and took an 83-81 lead on a free throw by Cliff Hammonds with 27.9 seconds left in the game.

After a timeout, the Hokies ran the clock down, planning to take the last shot. But while dribbling on the perimeter, Dowdell lost the handle of the ball and it rolled out of bounds in front of the Tech bench with just over 11 seconds left in the game. Dowdell thought Clemson's Vernon Hamilton had knocked the ball out, and so, too, did Tech coach Seth Greenberg. But official Ray Natili saw otherwise, and gave Clemson possession.

Greenberg argued the call and ultimately received a technical from Natili. Robinson drained two free throws to give the Tigers an 85-81 lead, and then with Clemson getting the ball back, Tech fouled Akin Akingbala with 10.4 seconds left. He hit one of two free throws, putting the game out of reach for the Hokies.

"That was the call that was made, so it must be the right call," Greenberg said of Dowdell's turnover. "I can't agree or disagree because I'll be reprimanded by the league."

"I know it went out on him [Hamilton]," Dowdell said. "But things happen. The call could go either way and it went their way.

"He touched it. But the ref was at a bad angle to make the call, and he made the wrong call."

It marked a bitter end to a thrilling game for Tech, one that saw nine ties and 14 lead changes. But the Hokies' inability to hit free throws and their inability to defend the 3-pointer came back to haunt them.

Clemson hit 13 3-pointers in the game - 11 in the second half. Robinson canned five treys in the game and finished with 17 points for the Tigers, while Hammonds and K.C. Rivers hit three bombs each. Clemson came into the game as the ACC's worst 3-point shooting team, having hit just 30.9 percent of its 3-pointers on the season.

"They went 11-for-14 in the second half and I'm not sure that if you locked them in a gym by themselves, they'd go 11-for-14," Greenberg said. "They're the worst 3-point percentage team in the league, but they made shots. You have to give them credit. They also stepped up to the line and made free throws. We didn't."

Clemson also came into the game as the league's worst free-throw shooting team. Yet the Tigers hit 21-of-27 for the game. In contrast, Tech hit just 12-of-23 (52.2 percent) and actually shot better from the floor (57.1 percent) than from the free-throw line.

Dowdell led four Tech players in double figures with 17 points, hitting 7-of-9 from the floor. Coleman Collins added 16 points and nine rebounds, while Deron Washington added 15 points. Jamon Gordon finished with 13.

Akingbala had a monster game for the Tigers. He led Clemson by tying his career high with 21 points and grabbing a career-high 16 rebounds.

The Hokies now hit the road for their regular-season finale before heading to next week's ACC tournament in Greensboro, N.C. Tech will take on Boston College this Saturday in Chestnut Hill, Mass., with the game slated to tip off at noon.