Brownell’s primary takeaway from Clemson’s first two games

Brad Brownell has a sample size, though it’s a tiny one.

Clemson’s men’s basketball season is officially 40 minutes old. The Tigers rallied from a couple of double-digit deficits to knock off Presbyterian in their season opener Tuesday, but it was the second extended look Clemson’s 12th-year coach got at his current team in game action. Clemson made easier work of Georgia Southwestern State, a Division II school, last week in an exhibition rout.

Through two games, what has Brownell learned about his team?

“I think we’ve got to continue to be better in our offensive execution,” Brownell said.

Clemson’s defense is ahead of the offense in the early going, and the possibility of it remaining that way can’t be ruled out. More often than not, Brownell’s teams have been known for their defense, and the Tigers returned seven players from a team that finished last season in the top 4 in the ACC in points allowed and field-goal percentage defense.

The offense has had its moments. Clemson (1-0) didn’t come across much resistance in its 26-point exhibition win, but much of that was because a physically inferior Georgia Southwestern State team had no answer down low for sophomore big PJ Hall, who had 23 points. Only one other player, freshman Ian Scheiffelin, reached double figures.

Once the games started for real — and the competition got a little tougher — it was difficult for anyone to get going. Clemson made just two of its first nine shots from the field Tuesday and went to the half trailing 32-24 because of 35% shooting from the field, 46% shooting from the free-throw line and seven turnovers.

“(Got to figure it out) playing against different defenses and that type of thing,” Brownell said. “Some of it is coaching. We’ve got to figure out a way to better utilize guys. Some of it our guys have got to make better decisions.”

The Tigers have two new starters — Hall and South Florida transfer guard David Collins — they’re trying to get integrated, but some of the decision-making also falls on players who’ve been in Brownell’s system for a while. Brownell used junior guard Al-Amir Dawes as an example.

Dawes eventually became the offensive spark for Clemson in its opening win, scoring 16 of his 21 points in the second half. He finished 7 of 16 shooting from the floor, including 4 of 9 from 3-point range, but there were times Dawes played outside the flow of the offense with ill-advised shots. Brownell said it’s a balancing act with players like that who can get streaky.

“Al’s kind of a wild-card player sometimes,” Brownell said. “You’ve got to kind of give him some rope and let him go because he’s going to make some shots, but then every once in a while, it’s, ‘What are you doing man? We can’t have that one. We don’t need that one right now.’ So it’s kind of, we’re all still kind of adjusting as you’ve got a guy where you’re trying to get him some baskets and some freedom.”

The Tigers also didn’t work the ball inside nearly as much to Hall, who had six points on just four shots after putting up 14 shots in the exhibition. Brownell said some of that had to do with the way Presbyterian was defending Hall, but there were also times when the 6-10, 240-pounder was open on the block only to never get an entry pass from the Tigers’ guards. Clemson had just 12 assists on 21 made baskets.

“Our guards have got to do a better job of post feeding, but their pressure bothered us at times,” Brownell said. “Sometimes it’s hard with a small big guy guarding you who’s moving around and you’re trying to feel him and find him. It’s the first game of the year and you’re a little antsy. He just didn’t have a good rhythm, and I think a lot of it was (Presbyterian). I thought they did a lot of really good things.”

It’s early, but there’s a ways for the Tigers to go offensively. Their next chance to work on it will come Friday when Clemson hosts Wofford at 7 p.m.

“We’ve got to figure that out as a coaching staff, how to utilize our offensive package a little bit better,” Brownell said.