Can Clemson Still Make NCAA Regional?

There will be a lot on the line when Clemson squares off against Virginia Tech on Thursday night.

While the Tigers have already been eliminated from the ACC Tournament, Monte Lee’s team desperately needs a win over the Hokies if they are to have any shot at being an at-large selection in the NCAA Tournament.

“Our season’s on the line, quite honestly,” Lee said following Tuesday’s loss. “We’ve got Virginia Tech. It’s one of the best teams in the country. We get a day to recover and regroup and get ready for them. We have to take care of business on Thursday. That’s the bottom line. We’re trying to put our resume in a position to get into the postseason.”

Interestingly enough, D1 Baseball still has Clemson as the last team in, projecting the Tigers as a 3-seed and headed to Austin to play in the Texas regional.

Clemson currently sits at No. 33 in the RPI, just one spot ahead of NC State. No. 30 in the RPI is generally the cutoff for any team with a conference record under .500 trying to get into a regional.

However, if the Tigers are battling with NC State for the ACC’s final slot, that could be troublesome. The Wolfpack took two of three from Clemson at Doug Kingsmore during the season and also has a better conference record.

All that to say, a win over the top-seeded and second-ranked Hokies is an absolute must, and even then there are no guarantees. Clemson’s only shot might hinge on whether the ACC gets 11 teams into the field, something D1 Baseball is also projecting.

“We’re trying to put our resume in a position to get into the postseason,” Lee said. “If we come out and do what we’re capable of doing against a really good club in Virginia Tech, and we could find a way to win that game, that certainly is going to help us. That’s the bottom line.”