Clemson men's hoops takes down Detroit Mercy 87-65
CLEMSON - There's a simple path for Hunter Tyson to get more playing time at Clemson: defend hard and shoot well like he did against Detroit Mercy.
The 6-foot-8 Tyson had a career-high 20 points off five 3-pointers to lead the Tigers to their third straight victory, 87-65, over the Titans on Sunday.
Tyson came off the bench to give Clemson (3-1) a boost, going 5 for 10 from behind the arc and staying strong on defense.
Tyson surpassed his previous best of nine points set in a win over Pitt last February. He had averaged less than four minutes a game on a team with four senior starters who soaked up much playing time.
Now, Clemson coach Brad Brownell hopes Tyson can be part of the front-line rotation, even coming off the bench.
Aamir Simms added 19 while Alabama graduate transfer Tevin Mack had 18 against Detroit Mercy (0-2).
The Tigers opened a double-digit lead in the first half, helped by three of Tyson's baskets behind the arc, and maintained that lead the rest of the way to take its third consecutive victory after opening the season and Atlantic Coast Conference play with a 67-60 loss at home to Virginia Tech.
Detroit Mercy closed to 22-19 on Antoine Davis' jumper with 7:01 to play. That's when Clemson took off on a 14-7 run - seven of the points scored by Tyson - to gain control.
Tigers freshman Al-Amir Dawes got things going with a 3-pointer and before Tyson struck from long-range. Tyson added a foul shot and when he hit his third 3-pointer of the period, Clemson was ahead 36-26.
Detroit Mercy got as close as six points, the last time at 58-52 on Sam Hofman's 3-pointer with 9:37 to go, in the second half, but could not cut the deficit any further.
UP NEXT
Clemson concludes a five-game homestand to open the season when it faces Alabama A&M on Thursday night.