Clemson focused on ‘Lipscomb Regional,’ not thinking about potential matchup with Tennessee

As the NCAA Baseball Tournament bracket was revealed on Monday, one of the more intriguing potential matchups that popped up is Tennessee facing Clemson in the Clemson Regional.

The Tigers are the hottest team in the country entering the NCAA Tournament, having won 16 consecutive games. And Clemson is the No. 4 overall seed in the tournament.

Tennessee did not have the season most expected, but the Vols are still dangerous. Tennessee was a preseason top 5 team and had a solid year, even if it didn’t quite meet expectations.

While some may be looking ahead to a potential Tennessee-Clemson matchup in the regional final, Tigers coach Erik Bakich had no interest in doing so on Monday. Bakich said Clemson is solely focused on No. 4 seed Lipscomb — the Tigers’ opening round opponent on Friday.

“This is a Lipscomb tournament. This is a Lipscomb Regional. We’re not overlooking them. They’re an excellent team,” Bakich said. “I’ve known coach [Jeff] Forehand for a long time. They run an awesome program. Will be a huge challenge. They’ve got the A-Sun pitcher of the year. They’ve got over 100 home runs, 100 stolen bases. This is an excellent team, so we will have all of our energy locked in on this and will not overlook anything. Excited to keep playing and know that we’ve got a huge challenge ahead of us.”

Lipscomb finished 36-24 this season, including a series win over Notre Dame. The Bisons also earned wins over Arkansas and Louisville during the regular season, so they shouldn’t be intimidated by playing at Clemson.

Lipscomb defeated Florida Golf Coast in the championship game of the A-Sun Tournament to advance to a regional.

The Bisons have four players with more than 15 home runs and Logan Van Treeck, who was the A-Sun Pitcher of the Year. Van Treeck is 8-4 with a 3.50 ERA. He has 101 strikeouts in 82 1/3 innings pitched.

When asked about other teams in the Clemson Regional, Bakich reiterated that he wasn’t concerned with Charlotte or Tennessee.

“I just know about Lipscomb. As soon as I saw that’s who we’re playing, I immediately looked them up,” Bakich said. “I’ve known coach Forehand for a long time. He does a great job and has always done a great job. So his team will be ready, there’s no doubt. So we’re locked in on Lipscomb right now. I know we’ll watch video and plan scouting reports for Charlotte and Tennessee as well but in terms of where our mindset is, it’s on Lipscomb.”

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