Dylan Faulkner did a little of everything for Clemson in its season opener.
The versatile forward will look to stay hot when the Tigers tip off against American on Friday evening in Clemson, S.C.
Faulkner will look to build upon a terrific performance in Clemson’s 85-72 win over Stetson on Monday. He finished with 16 points on 7-for-8 shooting from the field, grabbed 11 rebounds and had five assists.
“He’s one of our most experienced guys,” Clemson coach Brad Brownell said. “He plays with good poise. He’s used to having the ball in his hands. That really helps our team.”
The Tigers (1-0) relied on an eight-player rotation in their opener as Trent Steinour played only two minutes while recording three fouls. Clemson could continue to play with a small bench as it sets its sights on American (0-1).
One of the regulars, Chase Thompson, has emerged as Clemson’s sixth man. He played 26 minutes in the opener and finished with six points, one steal and two blocks.
“He’s going to play a lot,” Brownell said. “We don’t have a lot of options. He’s the next most experienced guy. Until we get Carter Welling back (from his knee injury), we’re thin a little bit, and we’re a little young. …
“We have what we have. Everybody’s going to have to play.”
As Clemson looks to start the season 2-0, American will try to avoid beginning the season with back-to-back losses. The Eagles are coming off a 79-53 road loss to Cincinnati on Monday.
Madden Collins scored 20 points to lead American, and Julen Iturbe finished with 10 points and seven rebounds.
Eagles coach Duane Simpkins said his players competed hard in the first half before the Bearcats took control. He noted that his team is not afraid to shoot from long distance, though they hit just 7 of 29 3-point attempts (24.1%) on Monday.
“That’s the way we play,” Simpkins said. “We try to get the threes up and everything, but it has to be within the flow of the offense.”
Brownell also will look for a cohesive effort on both ends of the court.
“In the second half (of the opener), I thought we got a little careless at times, I thought we got a little tired at times, and I thought we got a little casual at times,” he said. “We played like a team with a 20-point lead. So there was some evidence of all those things.”
