CLEMSON, S.C. — Hello from press row in Littlejohn Coliseum, where all the heavy hitters are sitting. There’s Jay Bilas, Andy Katz, NBA scouts and of Phil Kornblut of the S.C. Radio Network. The coliseum is sold out and there aren’t as many UNC fans here for this game as have been in the past.

A quick note, this blog is going to provide some important information, but it will also be used to make fun of a lot of people, including myself. After all, if we can’t laugh at ourselves, then who can we laugh at? Well, OK, maybe we could still laugh at Tim Tebow and Lane Kiffin.

And just like that, Demontez Stitt drives the baseline for a basket, and follows it up with another basket. Three possessions for UNC and three turnovers. 7-0 Clemson.

David Potter just picked up his second foul of the game with not even two minutes gone. I have to admit that the second foul looked rather cheap.

Clemson’s Noel Johnson comes off the bench and drains a couple of 3’s and this place is going crazy. As I talked about earlier on the Frank & Buck Show, the team that hits the most 3s will probably win. Both have struggled from the outside this year and making 3-pointers should be the difference in the game.

15:32 left in first half, 17-6 Clemson

Roy Williams was so upset during the media timeout that he tried to have for Clemson fans removed from the building, briefly forgetting he wasn’t in Chapel Hill. You knew it wasn’t going to take long for a Roy Williams joke to emerge.

I am so happy that Oliver Purnell opted not to wear that pimp-looking orange jacket. God, that thing is ugly. But at least he’s never in danger of getting hit by a car at night while wearing it.

Clemson has made four 3-pointers. 22-8 with 13:46 left in first half.

Tanner Smith just drains another 3 for Clemson and then points to the student section and asks them to get louder. Wow, already showboating.

32-12 with 10:52 left in first half

OK, during the media timeout, a promotion offered a free ticket to a “massage parlor.” Um, aren’t those illegal? Since when did the Anderson Mall become part of Las Vegas?

Well, the pathetic ball skills of UNC is starting to hurt them. The Heels have no answer for the press.

Another 3 for the Tigers and they’re up 23 freaking points. UNC is getting completely undressed. But this is Clemson, the schools that has blown more double-digit leads in ACC history.

35-16, 8:24 in first
While there’s a break in the action, it’s time for a little DID YOU KNOW, Clemson style:

Did you know Clemson has lost 10 straight games to UNC? Did you know Oliver Purnell and Roy Williams served as assistant coaches in the 2004 Olympics? Did you know point guard Andre Young can sleep in a shoe box? Did you know that Devin Booker, younger brother of Trevor Booker, has the worst haircut in the ACC?

46-26, with 3:24 left in first half

The frantic pace has calmed a little as both teams are getting a little winded.

UNC still can’t pass or shoot from the outside. This might be the worst group of Tar Heel guards I’ve ever seen. Seriously.

It’s halftime and the Tiggers are up 50-32. Again, this is far from over. My bet is that UNC will only be down by 10 with 10 minutes to play.

OK, it’s time to run into the press room and grab some grub and a coke. And before I leave, here’s a pic to get you through until halftime.

Some insane halftime stats for you:
Clemson was 7-of-15 from 3…UNC had 15 turnovers and THREE assists….The starting backcourt for the Heels had seven turnovers and one assist….Deon Thompson had two points.

Roy was just so fed up at the play of his starters that he benched all five with less than two minutes gone in the second half. After a brief yelling, all five are set to come back in some 90 seconds later.

Clemson now has two freshmen and two sophomores on the floor and it shows. The offense has bogged down, but it really doesn’t matter as UNC can’t do anything offensively.

56-38 with 15:08 left in game

It’s now time for DID YOU KNOW, UNC style:
UNC is 15-1 vs. Clemson when both teams are ranked…UNC enters tonight’s game with 1,996 wins, second-most all-time behind Kentucky…Did you know that somewhere Adam Boone is laughing hysterically…Did you know that the Heels are now going to be 1-5 on the road this year…Did you know that every Carolina fan is saying to everyone, “Wait ’til next year!”

So, I was wrong about UNC being down 10 with 10 to play. Clemson hasn’t gone into one of its usual scoring droughts. UNC is down 14 with 10 to play and coulda cut it to 11 had it made a wide open 3-pointer.

64-50 with 9:40 left to play

Clemson has gone cold from the outside, yet the Tigers are still jacking up the 3. If UNC had any sort of offense I’d say the Tiggers could be in store for one of their classic meltdowns. As it is, I just don’t think UNC can make the comeback unless Clemson doesn’t score but five points the rest of the way, and even then, UNC would be hard pressed to win.

And just like that it’s down to 11 with 5:55 left to play. The crowd at Littlejohn is starting to get anxious. They’ve seen this movie all too often.

UNC had a chance to cut it to 10. Actually, the Heels had four shots from within two feet and couldn’t make any of them. That’s why the Heels probably won’t complete the comeback.

Demontez Stitt is having the game of his career….Graves just jacked up a long 3-pointer and missed and Roy just turned to his assistant and basically said, “WTF?” The assistant just shrugged his shoulders. UNC had the chance to make Clemson sweat, but like I said earlier, the offense is really pretty bad this year.

75-69, with 3:48 left to play

The Heels must really hate the Palmetto State. First, they lose at College of Charleston and now they get their doors blown off by Clemson.

So during the timeout, a Clemson male cheerleader brought out this huge flag to wave it, but the flag had water all over it and when he waved it, the water flung everywhere. As a result, it took an extra minute after the timeout to start the game some people could wipe up the water.

OK, so this game must officially be over if David Potter is hitting shots.

UNC is now trying a trapping defense. My question is, where the the world was this in the first half as Clemson went on a 26-6 run? Clemson has had to call two timeouts on the same possession because of the trapping defense.

77-62, 1:58 left to play.

And this isn’t an upset. UNC is now 1-5 on the road. I swear I hope the fans don’t storm the court. Seriously, this isn’t an upset in the slightest.

The good news for UNC is that Clemson is the only team in the ACC that does a full-court trapping defense.

Very few people have left this building. It’s late and most people will have an hour or more to drive to get home. Not bad. Of course, a win over UNC happens only once every six years.

One minute left and Clemson is up 15 and could make it 17 if Potter makes his two free throws. Roy just massed subbed.

To fully tell what type of game it’s been for Clemson, the Tigers have hit 17 straight free throws and are 18-of-20.

BALL GAME!!!

83-64

Thanks for reading the blog everyone. And of course, the fans stormed the court. Ugh! We’ll see you Friday on the Frank & Buck Show!

Post-game coverage is forthcoming.

From Miami to Boston, fans and those associated with the ACC are cursing Clemson for ruining a perfect thing. Talk radio shows all over the country are mocking the Tigers and all of this couldn’t be more deserving as the Clemson basketball team threw up one of the biggest choke jobs EVER.

You would think a ranked team being up by 23 points at home against an Illinois team that had just lost to freaking Bradley would be safe. Oh, but not when it comers to Clemson basketball and head coach Oliver Purnell.

The precedent for gagging away big leads had been established by Purnell and Clemson long ago, as is shown at the bottom of this piece.

As a result of another epic collapse, the Big 10 got its first-ever ACC-Big 10 Challenge win. The ACC had won the first 10 years of the matchup. And thanks to Clemson and Purnell, the ACC loses this year six games to five.

Here’s a quick recap of what transpired Wednesday night:

Clemson’s Jerai Grant scored on a layup with 19:10 left to put Clemson up 51-28.

“That was Clemson basketball,” Purnell said of the first half. “We just didn’t maintain that.”

Ya think?!

Brandon Paul stole Potter’s pass and went in for a layup, Illinois was ahead 63-61 with 8:47 to go.

In a span of 10:23, the Illini had erased a 23-point deficit.

“We came out and, maybe for the first two minutes of the first half, we looked all right. And then they started switching up defenses on us, kept us off guard. And they started making jump shots. We were stuck on 61 forever,” Clemson’s Tanner Smith said.

You mean Illinois coach Bruce Weber actually coached and made adjustments? What a novel idea and approach.

Not a single person should be surprised when it comes to the Tigers gagging. It seems Clemson choking is more common than the Tigers actually doing something relevant. This was a bigger choke than anything that transpired in Linda Lovelace’s classic and famed movie (look it up).

The Ugly Proof…Calling Dr. Heimlich!

Dec. 2, 2009 - Blows 23-point lead in second half at home to lose to Illinois.
Feb. 7, 2009 - Blows 19-point lead late in second half at home to lose to FSU.
Mar. 21, 2008 - Blows 18-point lead to lose to Villanova in NCAA Tournament.
Mar. 6, 2008 - Blows 13-point lead to lose at Georgia Tech.
Feb. 10, 2008 - Blows 15-point lead late in second half to lose at UNC.
Jan. 28, 2007 - Blows 16-point lead late in second half to lose at home to Virginia.
Mar. 9, 2006 - Blows 12-point lead late in second half to lose to Miami in ACC Tournament.

The Clemson men’s basketball program announced the signing of Marcus Thornton to a national letter of intent on Wednesday, the first day of the early signing period. Thornton, a 6-8 forward from Atlanta, GA, will play for the Tigers beginning in 2010.

“We are really pleased to add a tremendous student-athlete to our program in Marcus Thornton,” said Oliver Purnell, Clemson’s head coach. “He will really fit in well with our high-octane attack on both ends of the floor.”

Thornton, a three-star prospect according to both Rivals.com and Scout.com, is also listed as the nation’s No. 27 power forward prospect by ESPNU.

The first-team all-region player averaged 14.0 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 4.5 blocks per game last season for a 25-7 Westlake squad. He led the Lions to a region championship and berth in the AAAAA semifinals in Georgia. He recorded a triple-double in the state quarterfinals with 13 points, 11 rebounds and 10 blocks against Savannah. Thornton is on pace to break the school record for blocked shots in a career.

Thornton also won the state of Georgia’s slam dunk contest in 2009, an event sponsored by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He signed with Clemson over scholarship offers from Maryland and Xavier.