McNeese Cowboys (27-6, 21-1 Southland) vs. Clemson Tigers (27-6, 19-3 ACC)
Providence, Rhode Island; Thursday, 3:15 p.m. EDT
BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Tigers -7.5; over/under is 134.5
BOTTOM LINE: No. 12 Clemson and McNeese square off in the NCAA Tournament first round.
The Tigers’ record in ACC games is 19-3, and their record is 8-3 in non-conference play. Clemson ranks sixth in the ACC with 14.4 assists per game led by Jaeden Zackery averaging 3.2.
The Cowboys are 21-1 against Southland opponents. McNeese ranks fourth in the Southland with 33.5 rebounds per game led by Joe Charles averaging 7.1.
Clemson makes 46.5% of its shots from the field this season, which is 6.3 percentage points higher than McNeese has allowed to its opponents (40.2%). McNeese has shot at a 47.9% clip from the field this season, 5.2 percentage points higher than the 42.7% shooting opponents of Clemson have averaged.
TOP PERFORMERS: Chase Hunter is scoring 16.4 points per game and averaging 3.0 rebounds for the Tigers. Zackery is averaging 1.2 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.
Javohn Garcia is shooting 44.3% and averaging 13.3 points for the Cowboys. DJ Richards is averaging 3.5 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Tigers: 9-1, averaging 74.0 points, 32.2 rebounds, 14.6 assists, 7.7 steals and 3.8 blocks per game while shooting 47.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 62.3 points per game.
Cowboys: 10-0, averaging 78.0 points, 34.4 rebounds, 15.0 assists, 8.1 steals and 4.3 blocks per game while shooting 47.5% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 61.7 points.
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
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