The Sports Xchange
Nov 17, 2017
Junior guard Marcquise Reed had 16 points and career highs of 11 rebounds and three assists as Clemson advanced to the Charleston (S.C.) Classic championship game with a 78-59 victory over Hofstra on Friday night.
Senior forward Donte Grantham matched a career high with 22 points and junior guard Shelton Mitchell added 13 for the Tigers (4-0), who will face Temple in Sunday's championship game. Senior guard Gabe DeVoe scored 12 points for Clemson.
Reed added three steals and Grantham was 9 of 12 from the field, including 3 for 5 from 3-point range.
Junior guard Justin Wright-Foreman scored 20 points and sophomore guard Eli Pemberton added 14 for the Pride (3-1). Hofstra also got 10 points and 10 rebounds from senior forward Rokas Gustys.
The Pride will meet Auburn in Sunday's consolation game.
Clemson scored 10 of the first 12 points before Pemberton's basket gave Hofstra a 20-19 lead. DeVoe snapped a 22-22 tie with six straight points on a 3-pointer and a three-point play to help Clemson take a 42-32 lead at halftime.
Grantham scored 12 points in the first 20 minutes and Reed added 11.
Pemberton's 3-pointer got the Pride within 48-42 with 15:30 remaining. The Tigers, though, took control with a 9-0 run -- five points from Grantham and four from Reed -- and led by as many as 20 when DeVoe's basket made it 66-46 with 9:21 to play.
Clemson was 10 of 12 on free throws and Hofstra was 4 of 10. Entering the game, the Tigers had taken 81 attempts from the line compared with their opponents' 39.