Ian Schieffelin’s career at Clemson did not end the way he’d envisioned.
After helping guide the program to just its second-ever appearance in the Elite Eight a season ago, Schieffelin had hoped to lead the Tigers on another run in the NCAA Tournament in his final season.
It just wasn’t meant to be, as 5th-seed Clemson fell 69-67 to 12th-seed McNeese on Thursday in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament.
“It hurts, knowing this is the last time I put on a Clemson jersey,” an emotional Schieffelin told The Clemson Insider. “We didn’t want to go out losing this way. We figured it out a little bit at the end and left it all out on the floor. Hopefully, the underclassmen can learn from this and grow and want to get back to this moment.”
The Tigers struggled mightily in the first half, scoring just 13 points over the first 20 minutes of action as the Cowboys raced out to an 18-point halftime lead. Early in the second half, the deficit grew to as many as 24 points.
Schieffelin was part of those struggles, as the usually reliable senior finished 0-for-4 from the floor with just one point.
“They came out ready to go, we were ready to go as well,” Schieffelin added. “They were physical. Sometimes the ball just doesn’t bounce your way. They got a lot of offensive rebounds, which kind of hurts me because I take pride in all that stuff and it really wasn’t my best game and it is hurting me right now to think about it being the last time I put on the jersey. Just didn’t go our way today.”
As they did in the ACC Tournament loss to Louisville, the Tigers made a furious run late, pulling to just one possession with 12 seconds remaining. However, once again, the rally would come up just one shot short and it’s absolutely not the way Schieffelin wanted to end his storied career.
“They kind of threw a little wrench at us, going zone to man, and it kind of disrupted our flow that we usually have,” Schieffelin said. “We got some good shots early and they just didn’t go. Sometimes that is basketball.”
Photo courtesy of Eric Canha-Imagn Images