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Clemson Basketball: Brad Brownell has shown he’s a quality coach

By Tristan Freeman

OMAHA, NE - MARCH 23: Head coach Brad Brownell of the Clemson Tigers reacts against the Kansas Jayhawks during the first half in the 2018 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Midwest Regional at CenturyLink Center on March 23, 2018 in Omaha, Nebraska. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
OMAHA, NE - MARCH 23: Head coach Brad Brownell of the Clemson Tigers reacts against the Kansas Jayhawks during the first half in the 2018 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Midwest Regional at CenturyLink Center on March 23, 2018 in Omaha, Nebraska. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) /
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Clemson’s NCAA Tournament run ended in the Sweet Sixteen against the Kansas Jayhawks. But this season has proven that Brad Brownell of the Tigers should remain their head coach for a long time to come.

It was a hard-fought game at the end, but the 20 point lead that Kansas had was enough to give them the win, despite Clemson’s comeback towards the late moments. Gave DeVoe set a school-record with 31 points in an NCAA Tournament to lead the fight back into it. He and other Tigers were great all season, but the coach may have had the best performance.

Coming into this season, there were few power conference coaches that were in a hotter seat than Brad Brownell of Clemson. That’s because after taking the Tigers to the NCAA Tournament in his first year with the team, it’s been six seasons straight of missing out on the Big Dance.

It’s not like the teams were devoid of talent, with Brownell having quality players like Jarron Blossomgame and KJ McDaniels on them. But six years was far too long a streak at not being a part of March Madness, and the administration was losing patience. He wasn’t given a contract extension, making him somewhat a sitting duck.

But the stars aligned in Brownell’s “make it or break it” season, with five upperclassmen in his starting lineup. All of them contributed, averaging double figures each and leading Clemson to their highest AP ranking in nearly a decade.

The Tigers were riding high until a season-ending injury to Donte Grantham. Losing the forward was a devastating blow, and while he alone wouldn’t have beaten Kansas, his presence certainly would’ve helped.

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When the senior went down, many expected Clemson to take a dive in the loss column, and get nowhere near a protected seed. But Brownell kept things going, using different lineups and playing to his player’s strengths. They got a five seed in the NCAA Tournament, before beating upset-favorite New Mexico State before thrashing Auburn by 31 points.

A Sweet Sixteen appearance for the team should be enough for an extension, and the school appears willing to work something out. That’s a good thing because considering that Brownell has never been involved in anything shady (violations, etc.) and has made a school not known for its basketball viable for recruits and transfers, he deserves to remain the head coach at Clemson.

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The Tigers could also go the route of Pittsburgh, and not keep a coach that has proven themselves at the school. The Panthers are still paying for it to this day and likely for years to come. There aren’t many that are better than Brownell, so Clemson might as well keep him.