North Carolina State University Athletics
Wolfpack Opens ACC Play at Virginia
1/5/2001 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
By Tony Haynes
RALEIGH, N.C. -- Let the grind begin. Between now and early March, NC State basketball coach Herb Sendek will find out just what kind of basketball team he truly has. Sixteen of the Pack's next 17 regular season games will be against ACC competition, and the only non-conference contest during that time will be versus nationally ranked Syracuse.First in line on murderers row is 8th ranked Virginia, a team that suffered through a pride-shaking 96-73 loss to No. 4 Wake Forest on Tuesday night. Given the lopsided nature of their defeat in Winston-Salem, the Cavaliers (10-1, 0-1 ACC) will be eagerly awaiting the Wolfpack's visit to University Hall in Charlottesville on Saturday night at 8:00 p.m.
Just hearing the name of the venerable building in which UVa plays its home games should make Pack fans turn away in horror. U-Hall, after all, has been a house of horrors for NC State, which hasn't won in Charlottesville since 1988.
If any of the Cavaliers drive their cars as fast as they play basketball, then they've been keeping the Virginia State patrol quite busy. Averaging an ACC leading 94.7 points per game, Virginia prefers a tempo than can only be described as frenetic.
"They're one of the quickest teams we play," said Sendek. "They're really good off the dribble and they're great in transition. On defense, they're excellent at reaching and slapping and getting a piece of the ball. In terms of quickness and speed, I'd say that they're really high up there."
Quite often, the Cavaliers push the ball up the floor after a made basket as quickly as they do after a rebound. And their dizzying fullcourt presses are capable of forcing turnovers in bunches. UVa is forcing nearly 21 turnovers per game, a sobering statistic for an NC State team that has averaged more than 16 giveaways in its first 11 games this season.
The Wolfpack (8-3) can draw strength from the fact that it did knock Virginia off twice in three meetings last season, including a 76-65 triumph in the first round of the ACC Tournament last March. The Wolfpack also knows it should get some good looks at the basket if it can successfully negotiate the press. And unlike recent years, NC State has been knocking down open shots of late. Over its last eight games, the Pack has converted on 52 percent of its field goal attempts, including a stellar 46 percent from the three-point arc.
"I think we're doing a good job of getting the ball inside," said senior forward Kenny Inge. "When we go inside and they start doubling down, we can kick it outside for open shots. We're getting good looks at the basket, and when we get a good look, we knock it down nine times out of ten. We feel real good about the way we're playing on offense."
Leading the Pack parade has been junior guard Anthony Grundy, who is averaging 17.1 points per outing. Grundy is also the team leader in steals (32), minutes played and is tied with Cliff Crawford for No. 1 in assists with 47.
Forward Kenny Inge (15.2), guard Archie Miller (13.9), and forward Damien Wilkins (10.9) are also averaging double-figure scoring. Since returning from an ankle sprain that caused him to miss three games, Wilkins is putting up an average of 16.3 points per contest.
Coach Pete Gillen's Virginia arsenal features a wealth of weaponry, including guards Roger Mason (15.2 ppg.), and Donald Hand (12.2). Former ACC Rookie of the Year Chris Williams, a 6-7 junior, averages 14.6 points per game and rugged center Travis Watson goes for 13.2 points and 9.4 rebounds per night.
NC State center Ron Kelley, who has been out of action since undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery on December 11th, returned to practice on a limited basis Thursday. The 6-9 native of Emory, Texas will dress for Saturday's game, but it's still not known if he'll play against the Cavaliers.
"Ron continues to make great progress," Sendek said. "I don't know for sure if he'll be able to do anything in the game. If so, it would be in a limited way. At the very most, he would only have two partial practices under his belt."
Kelley has averaged 16.4 points per game in his career against Virginia.
