Clemson hoops to play in 2023 Asheville Championship

The Clemson basketball schedule is starting to come together for the 2023-24 season.

The Tigers will play in the Asheville Championship on Nov. 10 and Nov. 12, it was announced Tuesday morning.

Clemson will be joined by Davidson, Maryland and UAB in the tournament, which will be played at the Harrah’s Cherokee Center in downtown Asheville.

This marks the third season of the Asheville Championship, which was started in 2021. Minnesota won the tournament the first year it was held, before Louisiana took home the title last season.

Clemson finished 23-11 (14-6) last season. The other teams in the tournament had mixed results last year.

Davidson went 16-16 under first-year head coach Matt McKillop, who replaced his father Bob McKillop at Davidson.

Maryland advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament in 2022-23 after finishing the regular season with a 21-12 record, including an 11-9 mark in the Big Ten.

UAB made the championship game of the NIT this past season and finished with a 29-10 record.

Clemson had a really good season overall but it ended in disappointment with the Tigers falling to Morehead State in the NIT.

It was a disappointing ending to a very good season for Clemson. Brownell’s squad went 23-11 (14-6) but was left out of the NCAA Tournament, becoming the first ACC team since the tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985 to win 70 percent of its conference games and not make the NCAA Tournament.

The Tigers went 5-0 against bubble teams, beating NC State three times, Pitt and Penn State.

“We proved that we can beat several of the teams that got in. And we can beat them at home, we can beat them on the road, we can beat them in neutral. And we did that,” Brownell said. “Unfortunately, maybe the metrics are more important than common sense or just head to head watching games. So I feel bad about that.”

Clemson was hoping to make a run in the NIT. However, instead the Tigers had one of their worst shooting nights of the season.

Clemson shot 41 percent from the field and 21.4 percent from 3-point range while losing for only the second time this season at home.

Seniors Hunter Tyson and Brevin Galloway combined to shoot 2 of 17 from 3-point range.

“I thought we really felt the pressure. One of the few games this year, especially at home, where we really had a hard time making a shot and making some free throws,” Brownell said. “I thought our kids were ready to play. I thought we got off to a good start. Had a nice lead in the first half, played a bunch of guys. Then we got a little casual at the end of the first half and gave them some life.”