Will Clemson play this week? Brownell provides latest on Tigers after COVID pause
Clemson men’s basketball has missed its last two games due to positive COVID-19 tests in the program, but Brad Brownell is hopeful the Tigers will be back in action Wednesday night at Wake Forest.
Clemson returned to practice on Saturday for the first time in about a week. Last week’s games against Notre Dame and Pitt were postponed.
“We’re planning on it,” Brownell said Monday when asked if the Tigers will be able to play at Wake Forest. “I think today is another big day of us getting through things and making sure that we’re OK health-wise and are able to put our guys in a chance to be successful. It’s really hard. So we’ll see.”
Even with Clemson resuming practice, the entire team was not able to attend, Brownell said.
Still, he was happy for his players to be back on the court together after the layoff. Clemson is currently 13-5 (7-5 ACC) and has won three straight games. The Tigers have three regular season games remaining on their current schedule. However, postponed games could be added to the schedule down the road.
“It was good to see the guys Saturday, see everybody together. We hadn’t been together in a week. Just the camaraderie of being together ... guys smiling and joking and having a good time together,” Brownell said. “That’s why everybody does this. That’s why we coach. It’s what drives you to be a part of something. Team sports, there’s nothing like it.”
When Clemson does return to action, whether it be Wednesday or at a later date, Brownell is hopeful his team can avoid the struggles it dealt with during its last COVID-19 pause.
The Tigers were blown out by Virginia, Georgia Tech and Florida State after coming off of a COVID pause last month.
“Your guys’ conditioning goes quicker than you think it does. ... If your kids are not doing anything, it’s going to affect them. You’re not going to come back with the same energy and legs. You’re going to be tired,” Brownell said last week. “We’ve gotta be able to keep our conditioning at a better level.”
He added that Clemson’s fundamentals and defense suffered the most after the first pause. Clemson allowed at least 79 points in four of five games after the last pause. The Tigers have allowed 72 points or less in all three games during their current winning streak.
“The other thing we’ve gotta make sure we do is we’re right on fundamentals, because I think that’s the thing that kids don’t do that on their own. You need to remind them of all the fundamentals on both offense and defense,” Brownell said. “They’re certainly not going to go into the gym and work on their defensive slides and closeouts. Being sound defensively has what’s gotten us back. So we’ll see.”
Upcoming Clemson basketball schedule
Feb. 24 — at Wake Forest, 4:30 p.m.
Feb. 27 — vs. Miami, 2 p.m.
March 6 — vs. Pitt, Noon
Note: Clemson also had games against North Carolina, Syracuse, Boston College, Notre Dame and Pitt postponed. No makeup dates have been announced yet.
This story was originally published February 22, 2021 at 10:53 AM.
