# 2009–10 Clemson Tigers men's basketball team

The 2009–10 Clemson Tigers men's basketball team represented Clemson University in the 2009–10 college basketball season. Their head coach was Oliver Purnell. The team played its home games at Littlejohn Coliseum in Clemson, South Carolina and are members of the Atlantic Coast Conference. All games were produced and broadcast locally by the Clemson Tigers Sports Network. The Tigers finished the season 21–11, 9–7 in ACC play. They lost in the first round of the 2010 ACC men's basketball tournament. They received an at-large bid to the 2010 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, earning a 7 seed in the East Region, where they lost to Missouri in the first round.

## Pre-season

On Wednesday, May 27, guard Terrence Oglesby announced he would forgo his final two seasons at the school to pursue a professional basketball career. Oglesby appeared in 66 games and scored 777 points in his two seasons at Clemson. Previously, Oglesby played for Norway at the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) FIBA Europe Under-20 Championship. In a press release issued by Clemson University, Oglesby indicated that his time spent playing internationally helped fuel his decision to turn pro. Oglesby's departure left an open roster spot which was filled by the commitment of shooting guard Noel Johnson, a former USC commitment.
On Tuesday, August 18, ESPN announced that Clemson will serve as one of the host sites for the network's popular basketball series, College GameDay, during the 2009–10 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Two one-hour shows (11:00 am and 8:00 pm Eastern) will originate from Littlejohn Coliseum on Jan 23, 2010 for the Clemson vs. Duke game. This is Clemson's first appearance on ESPN College GameDay. The series, which is in its sixth season, will make four first-time stops in 2010. Other first-time hosts include Illinois, Kansas State and Washington. The Clemson/Duke game will be one of two ACC tilts featured this season, with the other being North Carolina at Duke on Mar. 6.
On Sunday, October 26, 2008, members of the ACC Media were polled and picked Clemson to finish third in the conference behind North Carolina and Duke.

## Regular season

On December 2, 2009, Illinois came back from a 23-point second-half deficit to upset the No. 18 Tigers, 76–74 at Littlejohn Coliseum. The victory was the biggest comeback win in school history and was also notable as it helped the Big Ten win their first ACC – Big Ten Challenge in eleven tries.
On December 6, 2009, Clemson beat rival South Carolina 72–61, extending their winning streak over the Gamecocks to six games. Carolina leads the overall series, 86–74.
On January 3, 2010, the No. 21 Tigers managed only 12 points in the first half as they lost to No. 7 Duke for the 13th straight time at Cameron Indoor Stadium, 74–53. Clemson had as many fouls as points in the opening period, and their scoring total and shooting percentage (5–30, 17%) were the lowest for a half in Oliver Purnell's seven years as head coach.
On January 13, 2010, the No. 19 Tigers ended a 10-game losing streak to North Carolina by defeating the No. 13 Tar Heels, 83–64 at Littlejohn Arena. It was the second largest margin of victory ever for the Tigers over the Tar Heels. The most being a 20-point 93–73 win in 1976–77, Tree Rollins' senior season. Clemson then followed the win with a 73–70 win at NC State, ending a streak of 13 consecutive losses in the game following a victory over a top 25 team.
On January 23, 2010, ESPN's College GameDay broadcast live from Littlejohn Coliseum for the first time. Afterward, GameDay host Digger Phelps said of the broadcast at Clemson: "It was the best". The crowd was so loud during the broadcast that the production director requested that the crowd keep the noise down when cameras were rolling. The day culminated in a 47–60 loss to Duke, the lowest point total for Duke thus far this season, and the lowest point total of a Clemson team at home since the 2003–04 season, Oliver Purnell's first at Clemson.

## Postseason
### ACC tournament

Clemson entered the ACC tournament as the No. 6 seed with a 9–7 record in the ACC regular season. The Tigers lost their opening game to No. 11 seed NC State 59–57, dropping their record in the tournament to 16–57 all-time with 43 of their losses coming in the first round. Clemson remains the only original member of the ACC to have never won the tournament.

### NCAA tournament

Clemson entered the tournament as the No. 7 seed in the East Region, but was knocked out in the opening round by a lower-seeded team for the third straight year, losing 86–78 to No. 10 seed Missouri. The loss dropped Oliver Purnell to 0–6 all-time in NCAA Tournament games as a head coach for three different schools.

## Roster
### Coaches & staff

| Position | Name | Year at CU | Experience | Alma Mater | Hometown |
| Head coach | Oliver Purnell | 7th | 32 | Old Dominion ('75) | Berlin, Maryland, United States |
| Associate head coach | Ron Bradley | 7th | 32 | Eastern Nazarene ('74) | Springfield, Massachusetts, United States |
| Assistant head coach | Frank Smith | 7th | 20 | Old Dominion ('88) | Alexandria, Virginia, United States |
| Assistant coach | Josh Postorino | 3rd | 9 | Dayton ('99) | Clearwater, Florida, United States |
| Director of Operations | Michael Morrell | 2nd | 2 | Milligan College ('05) | |
| Video Services | Andy Farrell | 2nd | 1 | Dayton ('07) | Richmond, Virginia, United States |
| Graduate assistant | Adam Gordon | 2nd | 1 | Tampa ('06) | Ocala, Florida, United States |

### Players

| No. | Name | Ht. | Wt. | Position | Year | Hometown |
| 03 | Anderson, Zavier | 5' 09" | 160 | PG | JR | Mauldin, South Carolina, United States |
| 10 | Baciu, Catalin | 7' 02" | 245 | C | SO | Cluj-Napoca, Romania |
| 04 | Baize, Jonah | 6' 06" | 205 | SF | JR | Evansville, Indiana, United States |
| 31 | Booker, Devin | 6' 08" | 235 | PF | FR | Whitmire, South Carolina, United States |
| 35 | Booker, Trevor | 6' 07" | 240 | PF | SR | Whitmire, South Carolina, United States |
| 45 | Grant, Jerai | 6' 08" | 220 | PF | JR | Bowie, Maryland, United States |
| 32 | Hill, Donte | 6' 04" | 200 | SG | FR | Virginia Beach, Virginia, United States |
| 24 | Jennings, Milton | 6' 09" | 225 | F | FR | Summerville, South Carolina, United States |
| 1 | Johnson, Noel | 6' 08" | 190 | SG | FR | Fayetteville, Georgia, United States |
| 21 | Narcisse, Brian | 6' 06" | 205 | PF | SO | North Augusta, South Carolina, United States |
| 55 | Petrukonis, Karolis | 6' 11" | 260 | C | SR | Trakai, Lithuania |
| 15 | Potter, David | 6' 06" | 215 | SF | SR | Severn, Maryland, United States |
| 05 | Smith, Tanner | 6' 05" | 220 | SG | SO | Alpharetta, Georgia, United States |
| 02 | Stitt, Demontez | 6' 02" | 175 | PG | JR | Matthews, North Carolina, United States |
| 11 | Young, Andre | 5' 09" | 170 | PG | SO | Albany, Georgia, United States |

### 2010 commitments

College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Marcus Thornton PF | Atlanta, GA | Westlake High School (GA) | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | Nov 8, 2008 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 91 ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Clemson Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved June 21, 2010. "2010 Clemson Basketball Commits". Scout.com. Retrieved June 21, 2010. "ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved June 21, 2010. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved June 21, 2010. "2010 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved June 21, 2010. ||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition ||||||
| Nov 6* 7:00 pm | No. 24 | Francis Marion | W 99–51 | | Littlejohn Coliseum (5,000) Clemson, SC |
| Non-conference regular season ||||||
| Nov 13* 8:00 pm | No. 24 | Presbyterian | W 84–41 | 1–0 | Littlejohn Coliseum ( 9,177) Clemson, SC |
| Nov 17* 10:00 am, ESPN | No. 22 | at Liberty ESPN College Basketball Tip-off Marathon | W 79–39 | 2–0 | Vines Center (8,143) Lynchburg, VA |
| Nov 20* 7:00 pm, FSN | No. 22 | at UNC Greensboro | W 89–67 | 3–0 | Greensboro Coliseum (5,672) Greensboro, NC |
| Nov 23* 7:30 pm | No. 19 | Winthrop | W 102–66 | 4–0 | Littlejohn Coliseum (10,000) Clemson, SC |
| Nov 26* 4:30 pm, ESPN2 | No. 19 | vs. Texas A&M 76 Classic | L 60–69 | 4–1 | Anaheim Convention Center (2,117$^1$) Anaheim, CA |
| Nov 27* 5:00 pm, ESPNU | No. 19 | vs. Long Beach State 76 Classic | W 87–79 | 5–1 | Anaheim Convention Center (2,067$^1$) Anaheim, CA |
| Nov 29* 7:30 pm, ESPNU | No. 19 | vs. No. 12 Butler 76 Classic | W 70–69 | 6–1 | Anaheim Convention Center (2,057$^1$) Anaheim, CA |
| Dec 2* 7:15 pm, ESPN | No. 18 | Illinois ACC–Big Ten Challenge | L 74–76 | 6–2 | Littlejohn Coliseum (10,000) Clemson, SC |
| Dec 6* 1:00 pm, FS South | No. 18 | South Carolina Carolina-Clemson Rivalry | W 72–61 | 7–2 | Littlejohn Coliseum (10,000) Clemson, SC |
| Dec 13* 4:00 pm | | Furman | W 82–53 | 8–2 | Littlejohn Coliseum (7,183) Clemson, SC |
| Dec 16* 7:00 pm, CSS | | at East Carolina | W 80–63 | 9–2 | Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum (4,841) Greenville, NC |
| Dec 19* 7:30 pm | | College of Charleston | W 94–55 | 10–2 | Littlejohn Coliseum (8,308) Clemson, SC |
| Dec 22* 7:30 pm | No. 24 | Western Carolina | W 79–57 | 11–2 | Littlejohn Coliseum (8,485) Clemson, SC |
| Dec 29* 7:30 pm | No. 21 | South Carolina State | W 70–67 | 12–2 | Littlejohn Coliseum (8,589) Clemson, SC |
| ACC regular season ||||||
| Jan 3 7:45 pm, FSN | No. 21 | at No. 7 Duke | L 53–74 | 12–3 (0–1) | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| Jan 9 4:00 pm, Raycom | | Boston College | W 72–56 | 13–3 (1–1) | Littlejohn Coliseum (10,000) Clemson, SC |
| Jan 13 9:00 pm, ESPN | No. 24 | No. 12 North Carolina | W 83–64 | 14–3 (2–1) | Littlejohn Coliseum (10,000) Clemson, SC |
| Jan 16 Noon, Raycom | No. 24 | at NC State | W 73–70 | 15–3 (3–1) | RBC Center (17,984) Raleigh, NC |
| Jan 19 7:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 17 | at No. 19 Georgia Tech | L 64–66 | 15–4 (3–2) | Alexander Memorial Coliseum (8,738) Atlanta, GA |
| Jan 23 9:00 pm, ESPN | No. 17 | No. 7 Duke ESPN College GameDay Game of the Week | L 47–60 | 15–5 (3–3) | Littlejohn Coliseum (10,000) Clemson, SC |
| Jan 26 9:00 pm, ESPN2 | | at Boston College | L 69–75 | 15–6 (3–4) | Conte Forum (6,238) Chestnut Hill, MA |
| Jan 31 5:30 pm, FSN | | Maryland | W 62–53 | 16–6 (4–4) | Littlejohn Coliseum (10,000) Clemson, SC |
| Feb 6 4:00 pm, Raycom | | at Virginia Tech | L 59–70 | 16–7 (4–5) | Cassell Coliseum (9,847) Blacksburg, VA |
| Feb 10 7:00 pm, ESPN2 | | Florida State | W 77–67 | 17–7 (5–5) | Littlejohn Coliseum (10,000) Clemson, SC |
| Feb 13 Noon, RSN | | Miami | W 74–66 | 18–7 (6–5) | Littlejohn Coliseum (9,700) Clemson, SC |
| Feb 20 4:00 pm, RSN | | Virginia | W 72–49 | 19–7 (7–5) | Littlejohn Coliseum (10,000) Clemson, SC |
| Feb 24 9:00 pm, Raycom | | at Maryland | L 79–88 | 19–8 (7–6) | Comcast Center (17,514) College Park, MD |
| Feb 28 5:30 pm, FSN | | at Florida State | W 53–50 | 20–8 (8–6) | Donald L. Tucker Center (9,153) Tallahassee, FL |
| Mar 2 8:00 pm, Raycom | | Georgia Tech Senior Night | W 91–80 | 21–8 (9–6) | Littlejohn Coliseum (10,000) Clemson, SC |
| Mar 7 6:00 pm, FSN | | at Wake Forest | L 65–70 | 21–9 (9–7) | LJVM Coliseum (14,410) Winston-Salem, NC |
| 2010 ACC tournament ||||||
| Mar 11 9:30 pm, Raycom | (6) | vs. (11) NC State First Round | L 57–59 | 21–10 | Greensboro Coliseum (23,381) Greensboro, NC |
| 2010 NCAA Men's Basketball tournament ||||||
| Mar 19 2:35 pm, CBS | (7 E) | vs. (10 E) Missouri First Round | L 78–86 | 21–11 | HSBC Arena (18,653) Buffalo, NY |
| Notes: 1 – Denotes Session Attendance ||||||
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time. ||||||
$^{1–Notethatrankingsabove25arenotofficialrankings.Theyarerepresentationsofrankingbasedonthenumberofpointsreceivedintheweeklypoll.}$

## Player statistics

As of Monday, February 15, 2010

## Awards and honors

Trevor Booker
* John R. Wooden Award Preseason & Midseason Men's Top 50 Candidate
* Naismith College Player of the Year Preseason Watch List
* ACC Preseason All-Conference Team
* ACC Co-Player of the Week – January 18, 2010

## Rankings

| Ranking Movement | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Final |
| USA Today/ESPN Coaches | 24 | 23 | 19 | 19 | 24 | 24 | 23 | 18 | 21 | 19 | 16 | 21 | 27 | 39 | | | | | | |
| Associated Press | 24 | 22 | 19 | 18 | 27 | 29 | 24 | 21 | 26 | 24 | 17 | 28 | 31 | – | | | | | | |
$^{1–Notethatrankingsabove25arenotofficialrankings.Theyarerepresentationsofrankingbasedonthenumberofpointsreceivedintheweeklypoll.}$