North Carolina State University Athletics
NC State and Wake Forest Look to Get Defensive
1/14/2000 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
If the current ACC statistics mean anything, then baskets will be tough to come by when Wake Forest visits NC State at the Entertainment and Sports Arena on Sunday.
Coming in, the Wolfpack leads the conference in scoring defense (59.5 ppg) and turnover margin (+5.8). The Pack is also number two in steals per game (11.2). Wake Forest is allowing its opponents to score an average of just 60 points per contest.
After dropping three out of four games, including a home loss in their ACC opener against Florida State, the Deacons have bounced back with league victories over Clemson and North Carolina.
In Wednesday night's win over the Tar Heels, Wake rallied from a ten point deficit in the second half and went on to prevail 66-57. The Deacons were led by guard Robert O'Kelley, who made six of his last seven shots to finish with 18 points.
And although O'Kelly is Wake's go to guy, forward Darius Songaila has been providing some much-needed punch from the frontline in recent games. The 6'9 sophomore has averaged 17.3 points and 4.3 rebounds in his last three outings.
"They have any number of people, that on a given night, can make the difference for their team," said Wolfpack coach Herb Sendek. "They are a very deep, talented team. One that, right now, has a lot of confidence following a couple of ACC wins in a row."
Rebounding could play a big role in Sunday's contest. NC State's excellent offensive rebounding has helped the Pack compensate for its inconsistent shooting this season. But with Songaila, bulky 6'9 junior Rafael Vidaurreta and 6'9 junior Josh Shoemaker up front, the Deacons are capable of holding their own on the boards.
Wake Forest is third in the ACC in rebound margin while the Wolfpack is fourth.
"Wake Forest is big," said Sendek "They're as physical as any team in the country. You have to be ready to deal with that for 40-minutes."
These two teams are also very close in another statistic: Free throw shooting. The Wolfpack, which is coming off a dreadful 10 of 27 performance against Virginia, is the league's worst free throw shooting team (58.3 percent). Wake Forest is eighth at 63.5 percent.
"We're determined to keep working at it," Sendek said. "We have good shooters. We're making them in practice and there's no question that we're going to start making them in the games as well."
Last year, NC State won two of the three games played between the two big four rivals, including a 66-52 victory in the first round of the ACC Tournament in Charlotte. The Wolfpack owns a 121-84 advantage in the overall series, which dates back to the 1910-11 season.
