Clemson players give pitch to make NCAA Tournament

Clemson forward Hunter Tyson chose to return to school for a fifth season in order to try to do something special in his final year of college basketball.

In some ways, the Tigers and Tyson already have.

Clemson was picked to finish 11th in the ACC, yet earned the No. 3 seed in the ACC Tournament after going 14-6 in conference play.

Tyson, who leads the Tigers in scoring and rebounding and is averaging 15.5 points per game and 9.5 rebounds per game, was named first-team All-ACC after having far-and-away the best year of his career.

But Tyson didn’t come back to school for individual recognition. What he really wants is to get back to the NCAA Tournament for the second time in his career.

“I just worked so hard, this team has worked so hard, and I can honestly say I feel like we’ve left it all out there,” Tyson said Friday night after Clemson’s loss to Virginia in the semifinals of the ACC tourney. “I’m not looking for sympathy. I’m just looking for recognition of what we’ve earned.”

Clemson coach Brad Brownell and his players have been adamant this week that the Tigers deserve an at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament.

Clemson has a complicated resume with a 23-10 overall record, a 4-4 mark in Quad 1 games and a 14-6 record in the ACC.

However, the Tigers also have some bad losses, including to South Carolina, Louisville and Loyola-Chicago. Those losses are why naysayers believe Clemson should be on the outside looking in.

“I believe our body of work has earned us a spot in the tournament. Obviously I understand we have some tough losses, but at the end of the day, we should be in the tournament,” Tyson said. “If you really want the best 68 teams, we’re one of them. And we’ll have our fingers crossed on Sunday, but I truly believe we should get in.”

Clemson star forward PJ Hall echoed his fellow All-ACC player’s remarks.

Tyson and Hall, who both average more than 15 points per game, are a big reason why the Tigers would be dangerous if they do get in.

“You look at our complete body of work, I think there’s plenty of wins — home and away — that show we can play with anyone in the country when we play our best. Obviously tonight wasn’t a great showcase of that,” Hall said.

“I have to take a lot of responsibility for that. The first five out there, we didn’t quite bring the heat we needed to. But if you look at some of the games we played this year, how we played on the road, how we played with backs on the ropes late in games and finished, there’s not a doubt in my mind that we’re one of the best teams in the country and belong in the tournament. I say that wholeheartedly, and there’s nothing more to it.”