MICHIGAN 62, CLEMSON 59: Wolverines respond like regulars
Tigers' late threat overshadowed by horrific shooting
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Michigan was supposed to be the team with the jitters. The Wolverines hadn't been to the NCAA tournament in more than a decade and had to sweat out Selection Sunday just to find out if they'd get in.
Turns out they weren't so nervous after all.
Michigan stymied Clemson with its zone defense and survived a late scare in its first NCAA tournament game since 1998, beating the Tigers 62-59 in the first round of the South Regional on Thursday night.
Showing little sign of nerves in their first NCAA game since a booster scandal in the 1990s, the Wolverines (21-13) handled (mostly) Clemson's frenetic press and held one of the nation's highest-scoring teams 20 points below its average. Manny Harris had 21 points, seven rebounds and six assists, and Stu Douglass added 12 points to send the Wolverines into Saturday's second round against Oklahoma, an 82-54 winner over Morgan State.
''Finally!'' Michigan forward Anthony Wright said. "This is for the team, the coaches, Ann Arbor, the state of Michigan, just giving back to the fans because they've been waiting for this opportunity. It's good to give it back to them.''
After facing mostly man coverage during the ACC season, seventh-seeded Clemson (23-9) had to dust off its zone offense and struggled early. Jumpers, three-pointers, layups -- didn't matter. Clemson couldn't seem to get the hang of Michigan's defense and clanged shot after shot, shooting 32 percent, including 5-for-22 on three-pointers.
Then, sparked by consecutive three-pointers by Andre Young and another by K.C. Rivers, Clemson started finding holes in Michigan's defense and went on a 14-0 run to make it 58-57 with just under a minute left. Clemson still had a shot after Michigan's Zack Novak hit just one of two free throws with 13 seconds left, but Rivers' contested three-pointer at the buzzer was well short.
Trevor Booker led Clemson with 18 points and 11 rebounds, and Rivers added 13 points.
''We were tired, and they hung in there. That's why you don't want to be down 15,'' Clemson coach Oliver Purnell said. ''It's kind of like a high-wire act: maybe you stay up on it, get it down and bring it into overtime. But the way we were making shots in this game, it probably wasn't going to happen.''
Upset over his 1-for-8 shooting, Clemson's Terrence Oglesby was ejected early in the second half for throwing an elbow at Douglass.
AP
NCAA TOURNAMENT
WEST & SOUTH REGIONS AT KANSAS CITY, MO.