The Tigers enter Friday's matchup at 24-10 overall and like to play at Iowa's pace.
Nearly four years ago, Iowa and Clemson met in the 2022 Emerald Coast Classic semifinals in Niceville, Florida.
The Hawkeyes would go on to win that Black Friday game, 74-71, en route to their seventh and final NCAA tournament berth under longtime head coach Fran McCaffery.
A lot has changed in the 3.5 years since then, but the next meeting comes in a similar setting - on a neutral court in Florida.
The only difference? The Hawkeyes and Tigers are meeting on college basketball's biggest stage - the NCAA tournament. This will be the fifth all-time meeting between the two programs, with Iowa holding a 3-1 edge in the previous four contests.
Iowa fans are eagerly waiting for Friday's matchup, so to pass the time, HawkeyeRoundtable is delivering tons of information about Clemson.
Here are five things to know about the Tigers:
Brad Brownell can coach
Clemson basketball has long been overshadowed by its historic football program, but the basketball team has been a consistent NCAA tournament contender for nearly a decade under 16th-year head coach Brad Brownell. This will be the Tigers' sixth NCAA berth (third consecutive) under Brownell, and he's led Clemson to its deepest NCAA tournament run to date - a run to the Elite Eight in 2024.
Prior to arriving in South Carolina, Brownell led Wright State and UNC Wilmington to the Big Dance (two with UNC Wilmington, once with Wright State). The 57-year-old is one of the most underrated coaches in the country and is now the all-time winningest coach in Clemson basketball history.
The Tigers like to play at a slow pace
If there's any team on the 8/9 that presents a favorable matchup for the Hawkeyes, it's the Tigers. Clemson is a team known for playing a grind-it-out style of basketball, and KenPom adjusted tempo ranks the Tigers at No. 333 in the country. The metric is determined through possessions per 40 minutes (an entire game), where Clemson has 64.2.
The Tigers are stout on the defensive end as a result, holding opponents to 66.7 points per game. Expect an old-school rock right in Tampa on Friday.
Clemson will be without a key player
Clemson was dealt a tough blow when junior forward Carter Welling suffered a season-ending torn ACL during its ACC tournament victory over Wake Forest on March 11. The Tigers managed to upset North Carolina the following day without Welling, but missed him badly in the semifinal loss to Duke.
Prior to the injury, the 6-foot-10 Utah Valley transfer was averaging 10.2 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. Fellow junior Jake Wahlin could be next in line to replace Welling, but he only averaged 5.4 points per game during the regular season.
What is Clemson's NET ranking?
Clemson has just one ranked win to this point - against No. 19 North Carolina in the ACC tournament - but it does own six Quadrant 1 wins. The Tigers checked in at No. 34 in the final NET rankings, trailing Iowa by seven spots.
Clemson avoided a dreaded Quad 3 or Quad 4 loss, but losses to non-NCAA tournament teams Virginia Tech, Wake Forest, and Florida State in mid-February prevented the Tigers from earning a higher seed.
Clemson is located in ... Clemson
Some of these non-state universities are located in unknown cities, but Clemson University is located in the town it's named for - Clemson, South Carolina. With a population of roughly 18,000 citizens, Clemson is one of the smallest cities to host a Power Four athletic department. For reference, Iowa City is over four times Clemson's size (population around 75,000).
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