North Carolina State University Athletics
NC State Visits Florida State
1/24/2001 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
This week's AP College Basketball Poll says it all: four of the top 10 teams in the country reside in the ACC. But if anyone still has lingering doubts about the league's strength, Florida State and NC State would gladly challenge the skeptics.
Perhaps more than anyone else, the Seminoles and Wolfpack have felt the wrath of the neighborhood in which they reside. Between them, they have played a total of 10 conference games. The combined record? One win and nine losses.
Unless the Florida Supreme Court steps in and changes the rules of basketball on Thursday night, there won't be a tie when NC State (9-7, 1-4 ACC) meets Florida State in Tallahassee. Therefore, something has to give.
Despite their poor record, the Seminoles (5-12, 0-5 ACC) have shown some signs of life in recent games. Trailing 5th ranked North Carolina by 19 points at intermission on Sunday, the 'Noles bounced off the mat and made a game of it by rallying to within three points midway through the second half. The Tar Heels eventually won 80-70.
"I think that Florida State is playing its best basketball and continues to improve," said NC State coach Herb Sendek, whose team is coming off a 75-61 loss to Maryland over the weekend. "I think they played a difficult early season schedule, and I don't think anybody in our league takes them lightly. They played a very good game against an awfully good North Carolina team this past weekend."
Conventional wisdom suggests that Florida State is licking its chops, thinking that perhaps this will be one of its best chances of breaking through in the league. But Seminoles' coach Steve Robinson says it isn't quite that simple.
"I think NC State is a very good basketball team," Robinson said. "They just haven't had as much success as the five teams that are ranked have had. The ball just hasn't bounced their way a couple of times. I told our guys that we'll have to play harder in this game than we've played in any of the games. We're still fighting from the bottom and trying to work our way up. By no means are we taking a big sigh of relief as we take a look at our next opponent."
Ranking at or near the bottom of most of the ACC's statistical categories, Florida State has struggled on both ends of the floor. Lately, however, the Seminoles have been getting great performances from point guard Delvon Arrington, who scored a career-high 23 points against Virginia on January 16th.
"He's a great point guard," said NC State guard Cliff Crawford. "He hasn't had his best supporting cast this year, but he's playing a senior role; he's taking more shots and he's being a lot more aggressive. We know he's going to do his best to put his team in a position to win."
Michael Joiner, a 6-7 freshman from Fayetteville, could contend for ACC Rookie of the Year Honors. Joiner leads FSU in rebounding (6.5 pg) and is third in scoring (9.9 ppg).
Thursday's game will be played at the Leon County Civic Center, where NC State recorded its only ACC road win last season. Although the Seminoles hold a 14-13 edge in the overall series, the Wolfpack has won three in a row, including a season sweep last year.
