Palmetto State Baseball team of the week May 1-7: Clemson

Clemson (3-0 for the week)

(swept Louisville for fifth straight ACC series win)

There may not be a hotter team in conference play - and overall, for that matter - than Clemson right now. The weekend sweep of Louisville gave the Tigers 12 wins in their last 14 ACC games. They've climbed from last place overall into a tie for third.

A 4 1/2-game deficit against Atlantic Division leader Wake Forest with six ACC games remaining may be too much to overcome, primarily because the Demon Deacons have been almost as hot as the Tigers. 

A 31-17 record, superb RPI and solid strength of schedule have Clemson solidly in the mix for an NCAA Tournament bid. Being a regional host seemed like a pipe dream for coach Erik Bakich's squad a little more than a month ago. 

No longer.

Up next for the Tigers: at Coastal Carolina, Wednesday

Also considered
College of Charleston (2-1)
Francis Marion (4-2) - reached Conference Carolinas title game
Spartanburg Methodist (3-1)
USC Lancaster (2-1) - two 'upsets' (by seed) in region tournament
USC Union (2-2) - tied school record for season wins; first two region tournament wins
USC Upstate (4-0) - three straight 30+-win seasons for first time in DI
Winthrop (3-1) - seven-game Big South winning streak

Previous winners
Jan. 23-29: Spartanburg Methodist
Jan. 30-Feb. 5: Limestone
Feb. 6-12: North Greenville
Feb. 13-19: Florence-Darlington Tech
Feb. 20-26: Southern Wesleyan
Feb. 27-March 5: Wofford
March 6-12: USC Aiken
March 13-19: South Carolina
March 20-26: North Greenville
March 27-April 2: Coastal Carolina
April 3-9: USC Upstate
April 10-16: USC Union
April 17-23: South Carolina
April 24-30: (tie) Bob Jones, Voorhees