Clemson's national profile increases

CLEMSON, S.C. - At 6-foot-9, James Mays attracts his share of looks in a small college town. Now, Mays and his Clemson teammates enjoy a notoriety as the nation&#39;s lone unbeaten Division I team they never would&#39;ve dreamed about months ago.<br> <br> When Mays turns on ESPN, he sees his coach, Oliver Purnell, chatting up the hosts on ``Pardon The Interruption&#39;&#39; or chuckling with personality Stephen A. Smith about the 17-0 team. Then there are the highlights of Mays&#39; dunks that lead sports casts. And the family and friends who keep calling about the Tigers&#39; play.<br> <br> ``Everybody&#39;s talking about it,&#39;&#39; Mays said. ``You&#39;re walking around campus, you might get a &#39;Yo, what&#39;s up Mays,&#39; or &#39;Nice dunk,&#39; or something. It&#39;s exciting, man, it&#39;s fun.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> Much like Clemson&#39;s run to perfection. The Tigers (3-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) tied the school&#39;s all-time best start set 20 years ago by a team led by NBA standout Horace Grant. Mays and his teammates get the chance at their own place in history with a victory at Maryland (14-3, 0-2) on Saturday.<br> <br> It&#39;s an incredible rise for a school that&#39;s had one winning ACC season since 1990 and was picked by the media to finish ninth in the league this year.<br> <br> ``Three months ago, who would have said Clemson would be at where we are right now,&#39;&#39; Mays said. ``When you think about, it&#39;s shocking.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> Purnell counsels his players to embrace the attention since it doesn&#39;t happen too frequently. He&#39;s trying to follow his own advice, drawing on his history of reviving programs at Radford, Old Dominion and Dayton before taking on the Clemson project four seasons ago.<br> <br> ``It&#39;s not like I haven&#39;t been in this situation before,&#39;&#39; Purnell said.<br> <br> Purnell got his first head coaching job at Radford, leading it to a 22-7 mark in 1990-91. At his alma mater of Old Dominion, Purnell had two 20-win seasons and an NCAA tournament appearance over three years. Purnell&#39;s greatest success came in 10 years at Dayton. He led the Flyers to five 20-win seasons, and two trips to the NCAAs.<br> <br> ``It takes a while to get to this point, so you ought to enjoy it,&#39;&#39; Purnell says. ``But you have to understand it takes hard work. ... If you lose sight of that in the ACC, you&#39;re going to be in for some tough sledding.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> The Tigers latest stretch should tell a lot about their staying power. Clemson has only won once in the past nine seasons at Maryland. Next week, they face home games with top-ranked North Carolina and Boston College. Then comes a trip to No. 11 Duke, where Clemson has lost its last 10.<br> <br> K.C. Rivers, Clemson&#39;s leading scorer off the bench, says the players enjoyed the novelty of their undefeated record until they realized how it would fire up opponents the rest of the season. ``You had to bring yourself back down off cloud nine,&#39;&#39; Rivers said. ``The &#39;X&#39; on our chest is even bigger now.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> As Clemson&#39;s wins continue, so do the questions about how are the Tigers are doing it.<br> <br> Purnell has answered the same way throughout Mays and experience.<br> <br> Clemson was 11-0 a year ago when Mays was lost for the season because of academics. He improved his grades and his scoring touch to return before returning this fall. Besides averaging 12.9 points and 7.3 rebounds, Mays is the centerpiece of Clemson&#39;s pressure defense.<br> <br> ``He&#39;s probably the best I&#39;ve seen at the head of a press,&#39;&#39; Purnell said. ``When you lose the head, it makes you much less effective.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> In addition, Mays has the knack for the big moment. His midcourt drive and layup with 2.2 seconds left gave Clemson a thrilling 75-74 victory over Georgia Tech last Saturday.<br> <br> Starting guards Vernon Hamilton and Cliff Hammonds have grown in savvy and leadership, along with ability. Hammonds hit the game-winning bucket at Florida State on Jan. 3 and his driving shot in the final minute against Georgia Tech moved Clemson in front before Mays&#39; heroics.<br> <br> Purnell was asked how he and the players would react to a loss at Maryland. Purnell thought for a few moments before answering. ``I don&#39;t really know,&#39;&#39; he said.<br> <br> It&#39;s about the one situation Purnell and the Tigers haven&#39;t had to deal with this season.