Sweet 16 Preview: Clemson (6) v Arizona (2)
May the oversized elf deliver
In a strong Sweet 16 field [see my early round madness recap here], Clemson might be the most surprising team. Fellow ACC surprise NC State at least had Uncle Mo and a favorable draw on their side.
Just about everyone (including myself…) piled on New Mexico, and after dismantling them, Clemson seemed overmatched against the mighty Baylor Bears. But a just-large-enough lead, a smothering defense and timely free throw shooting were enough to set up a matchup against the Wildcats.
Defining Matchup: Ian Schieffelin vs Keshad Johnson
White dude tropes be damned, Schieffelin is always the hardest playing guy on the court. His energy and motor create extra possessions and opportunities that will be sorely needed against a more talented team. Schieffelin sorta looks like an oversized elf, but he delivers equally big gifts of blocks, spin-moves and wtf buckets gift-wrapped with screams and floppy hair. I want to dislike him but am nonetheless drawn to him.
Johnson also brings the energy and has the strength, athleticism and experience to negate Clemson’s X-factor.
PJ Hall vs Oumar Ballo and Chase Hunter vs Caleb Love would be more obvious choices. But both teams have proven they can win with quiet games from their big men, and Caleb Love is usually the only player on the court that can stop Caleb Love.
Stats Nugget: 14 ppg
That’s Caleb Love’s career average in three games against Clemson while at UNC. In classic Caleb Love fashion, it include two stinkers (a 9 pt, 2-10 FG game freshman year, and a 10 pt, 4-12 FG game sophomore year) and a flame-thrower (23 pts on 6-9 3FG) and a 2-1 record.
Prediction: Arizona
The talent gap is too wide. Clemson has a very narrow path to victory that includes generating easy buckets on offense and a grinding defense that bothers Arizona in the half court, similar to what they did to Baylor. But Arizona has as many — if not more — weapons than Baylor, and Clemson narrowly escaped the Bears. Plus, just about everyone is rooting for the Caleb Love-UNC reunion game.
