Senior Day: Hale will suit up for his last home game

Harvey Hale, a senior guard playing the fewest minutes of his career, could have been a problem for Wake Forest this season.

But that's not who Hale is, and because of that the 10th-ranked Deacons (23-5, 10-5) have even more reason to celebrate his career in tonight's final home game, against No. 18 Clemson (23-6, 9-6) at Joel Coliseum at 6 p.m.

Hale, a part-time starter his first three seasons, has been relegated by the play of guards Jeff Teague, Ish Smith, L.D. Williams and Gary Clark to an average of 11.6 minutes a game in a reserve role.

In ACC games, he's averaging 7.8 minutes and 1.8 points. But he has still found ways to contribute, hitting two 3-pointers in the Deacons' victory over North Carolina, and a clutch 3-pointer at Virginia last Saturday.

Beyond that he has remained a significant influence on the team with his positive, upbeat nature.

"He's meant a tremendous amount to this program in terms of his leadership," Coach Dino Gaudio said. "He's come in this year and given us great minutes at many different times.

"The good thing about him is he's matured so much. There's times when he doesn't play as much as he wants to, and he's incredibly positive and he practices incredibly hard. And when he ends up leaving here, he will be sorely missed."

Hale, a communications major from Albuquerque, N.M., started 16 games as a freshman, 18 as a sophomore and 12 as a junior. He was largely responsible for Wake Forest's last victory in the ACC Tournament, when he scored 21 of his 22 points in the two overtimes of a 114-112 double overtime victory over Georgia Tech in the first round in 2007 in Tampa, Fla. He took six 3-pointers, and made five.

Despite his diminished role, Hale said he is happy to be on the verge of one of his main goals. The Deacons have all but assured themselves of their first appearance in the NCAA Tournament since 2004-05, the season before Hale arrived.

"That's special to finally make it to the tournament and know that we can do some damage," Hale said. "I've never been to the NCAA Tournament.

"I've tried to do whatever I could during our struggles. For this university I've played my hardest and I have given it my all every night. I'm going to miss it. It's going to be an emotional night."

The emotion of Senior Night is only one reason Coach Oliver Purnell of Clemson is wary of tonight's game. The Tigers should know before they take the floor if they'll still have a shot at a fourth-place finish in the regular season and the accompanying first-round bye in the ACC Tournament.

Clemson and Florida State are both 9-6 in conference play, but the Seminoles have beaten the Tigers twice. If FSU beats Virginia Tech today in a game set to tipoff in Tallahassee at 2 p.m., the Tigers will know they have to play in Thursday's first round.

"Our guys are human," Purnell said. "You'd like to hope that with the experience of the club and at this point the experience of the team as they've gone through the season that they understand it's important for us to play well.

"But (a letdown) is certainly a possibility."

Wake Forest beat Clemson 78-68 in Clemson on Jan. 17 to extend its record to 16-0. The Deacons shot 48 percent from the floor, held the Tigers to 34 percent and won the rebounding battle 48-39.

Gaudio said that to beat Clemson a team usually has to beat the Tigers' relentless pressure defense.

Wake Forest could still finish as high as No. 2 in the ACC if Duke loses to North Carolina today in Chapel Hill.

"We're hoping we could finish No. 2 in the league, which would be an incredible accomplishment for these young guys," Gaudio said. "To do that and to beat a good Clemson team twice in the same year would be a terrific accomplishment. I don't think for a second that motivation is a concern for our guys.

"You've got to handle the pressure, of course. And we want to attack it. Some teams give a pressing team a free press, where they cross the time line and back it out, so there's no consequences for extending your defense. We don't do that. We want to try to attack pressure and try to score against it. That's what we're going to try to do (tonight)."

Senior walk-ons Bobby Hoekstra, Mike Lepore and Jimmy McQuilkin will also be honored tonight, as will senior managers Justin Snow and Lauren Frishman.

■ Dan Collins can be reached at 727-7323 or at dcollins@wsjournal.com.