Anthony Clemmons remains the glue to Iowa's defense

IOWA CITY — Anthony Clemmons wore a smile that stretched from Ann Arbor to his hometown of Lansing, Mich., following Iowa's 71-61 win at Michigan last Saturday.

Dozens of family members and friends stood outside Iowa's locker room and cheered for Clemmons when he ducked his head into the open. As he left media interviews, the applause dwarfed the sounds of any conversation in the vicinity.

'It meant a lot,' Clemmons said. 'Before I talked to my grandmother and granddad and my uncle, it was really emotional. They were like this is your last regular-season game. For it to be in Michigan, to have that fan support, it meant a lot to me, I was happy we got the win, I was happy with our performance, I was happy for our team.'

Clemmons scored 12 points in that game, including a pivotal 3-pointer that extended Iowa's lead to eight points with 3 minutes, 28 seconds left. He finished the regular season 4-0 against home-state teams Michigan and Michigan State, which brought him satisfaction considering neither offered him a scholarship.

In almost every situation of his basketball career, Clemmons has been the overlooked, yet vital piece to his team's success. At Lansing Sexton High School, Clemmons' team won consecutive state titles. Yet best friends and teammates (and current Michigan State stars) Denzel Valentine and Bryn Forbes earned the accolades. At Iowa, Clemmons was the second guard recruited to play behind Mike Gesell. Clemmons rotated between the starting lineup and bench for most of his career until becoming a full-time starter in the back court this year.

'Now he's our guy,' Iowa center Adam Woodbury said. 'He gets to make mistakes and he gets to play through them and try to come back from them.'

Clemmons, who averages 9.3 points, 2.6 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game, has developed into one the Big Ten's top perimeter defenders. In two games against Forbes, who set a Big Ten record with 11 3-pointers last week, Clemmons forced his friend into a combined 1 of 10 shooting performance and five total points. Clemmons, conversely, scored 13 points in a road win at Michigan State.

'You check and see how I guarded him, you would hope other teams kind of counter off what I did,' Clemmons said of Forbes, who was named second-team all-Big Ten. 'They didn't, and he's hot right now. Somebody better stop him.'

Still, Clemmons was overlooked in Monday's all-Big Ten voting. He wasn't named to the all-defensive team. It doesn't bother him, but the snub stays with him.

'When you don't win anything it motivates you,' Clemmons said. 'They (Valentine and Forbes) know what I'm capable of. I know what I'm capable of. My teammates know what I'm capable of. My coaches do, too. That's all that matters. My job is to continue be that leader and be that guy on that defensive end to lead our team.'

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