Story ends with hard loss vs. Tigers

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Two words describe Friday night's quarterfinal game: painful and pitiful. The No. 3 Clemson Tigers scored 38 points off Boston College turnovers and eliminated the No. 11 Eagles from the ACC tournament, 82-48. Clemson moves on to face No. 2 Duke in the semifinals, while BC packs up and looks forward to next season.

"I felt like Clemson just came out and basically just outplayed us from the jump. They just played us as hard as they could and it was like they wanted it more," said guard Tyrese Rice.

After upsetting Maryland on Thursday, the Eagles looked like a team that could make a run in the tournament. BC started out hot and held a lead to begin the game. That lead lasted for all of 3:50. After that, the Tigers gave the Eagles a basketball clinic, outplaying them in every facet of the game.

After falling behind 6-0, Clemson quickly went on a 19-0 run to blow open a 13-point lead. Clemson continued to dismantle the Eagles, building up a 22-point lead before finishing the half ahead by 17, 42-25. The Eagles allowed the Tigers to shoot nearly 60 percent from field in the half.

Whatever head coach Al Skinner told his team at the break was not enough, as the Tigers began the second half where they left off in the first. They scored four quick baskets to get their lead up to 25.

A 20-point margin would be the closest Boston College could come to the Tigers. Clemson finished the game ahead by 34 points, the eighth-largest margin of victory in ACC tournament history.

"We really did not meet the challenge. Physically, we did not meet the challenge. They came after us, they challenged us, they bumped us and we didn't respond well to it," Skinner said. "That led to easy opportunities for them. On every basket they scored they just continued to build confidence in what they were doing."

Senior James Mays led the Tigers with 15 points and six rebounds. K.C. Rivers chipped in 11 points and four steals, while Raymond Sykes scored 12 points.

Defensive intensity was the story of the game, however. In their only regular-season match-up, a 78-56 Clemson victory, the Tigers hounded the Eagles whenever they had possession, completely throwing off the Eagles offensive rhythm.

Clemson mimicked that exact game plan and again smothered the Eagles whenever they had the ball.

Boston College shot just over 36 percent from the field, compared to almost 50 percent from Clemson. The Tigers also outrebounded BC, 40-31.

Clemson's defensive pressure also forced 22 BC turnovers. From the outset, Clemson's full-court press prevented the Eagles from effectively bringing the ball over half court.

The Eagles struggled to get the ball inbounds, and when they did, the ball carrier was immediately double-teamed.

Guard Biko Paris brought the ball up the court on almost every possession as a result of the Tigers' pestering defense on Rice. Rice received most of the focus from the Clemson defense, especially from Clemson guard Cliff Hammonds, who played with a fractured wrist. Rice finished with a team-high 15 points on six-for-13 shooting.

Paris tied an ACC tournament freshman record with eight turnovers.

"[Our pressure defense] definitely had an effect in that we were getting something off of it immediately, and then I thought it had a cumulative effect in the second half that wore them down," said Clemson head coach Oliver Purnell. "Our pressure defense was as good as it's been all year long tonight."

The Eagles struggled against similar pressure from Maryland, but a team has never kept up this type of game plan up over the entire length of the game.

Skinner worried about facing Clemson even before the game started because it would be the second game in two days.

"I knew it was going to be difficult. For us, it probably wasn't the best opponent to play because of their style of play," Skinner said.

Bottom line: Clemson played their game to perfection, and there was nothing the Eagles could do about it.