North Carolina State University Athletics
Gary's Game Notes
12/28/2001 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 28, 2001
NC STATE (10-2) vs. #8 MARYLAND (9-2)
DATE: Sunday, December 30, 2001 @ Entertainment & Sports Arena (19,722)
TIME: Tip-off: 6:00 p.m. EST
RADIO: Wolfpack Capitol Sports Network.
AIRTIME: 5:30 p.m.
TELEVISION: Fox Sports Net South (Regional Cable)
OPPONENT-- Maryland got the confidence-building springboard it needed in its final game before the start of the Atlantic Coast Conference season. Juan Dixon had 19 points and a career-high nine assists and Byron Mouton added a season-high 19 points as the eighth-ranked Terrapins used a pressing defense and sank a team-record 13 three-point field goals in a 103-75 rout of William & Mary.
Coming off an upset loss at No. 12 Oklahoma on Dec. 21, Maryland (9-2) improved to 22-8 all-time against the Tribe (3-6) with its ninth consecutive victory at Cole Field House. Five Terrapins scored in double figures in the team's biggest offensive output of the season. Maryland hit 100 points for the first time this year, the deepest into a season the Terrapins have gone without reaching the century mark since 1990-91, when it took them 18 games.
Mouton had 12 first-half points, helping Maryland to a 50-35 halftime lead. The Terrapins struggled to establish their inside game - finishing 15-for-36 from the field in the first half - and William & Mary kept close by going 6-of-19 from 3-point range. The Tribe (3-6) cut the Maryland lead to 23-22 midway through the first half, before the Terps went on a 15-8 run and finished the half with a 9-0 burst. Maryland scored the first six points of the second half, with Dixon's 3-pointer from the left corner extending the run to 15-0 and giving the Terrapins a 56-35 lead.
Maryland has one of the top inside-outside combinations in college basketball in Dixon and center Lonnie Baxter in addition to one of the nation's top playmakers in point-guard Steve Blake. Dixon leads the team in scoring and steals (3.0 spg.) while Baxter is the Terps top rebounder and shot blocker. Blake has averaged 8 assists a game over his last six outings.
Mouton may be Maryland's hottest player right now. He's averaged 14.2 points in his last four games. Others who are playing well at the moment include forwards Tahj Holden and Chris Wilcox. Wilcox is averaging 12.0 points and 8.6 rebounds in his last three games. He led the Terps in their loss at Oklahoma with 15 points and 9 rebounds.
Dealing with Maryland's size and strength inside, rebounding, and handling the Terps pressure defense will be important factors for NC State.
PROBABLE MARYLAND STARTERS
25 Steve Blake G 6'3 Jr. 7.1 ppg. 3.8 rpg. 7.1 apg.
03 Juan Dixon G 6'3 Sr. 17.8ppg. 4.1 rpg. 3.2 apg.
35 Lonnie Baxter C 6'8 Sr. 14.5ppg. 9.0 rpg. 1.7*
45 Tahj Holden F 6'10 Jr. 7.0 ppg. 2.5 rpg. 1.4*
01 Byron Mouton F 6'6 Sr. 9.6 ppg. 4.5 rpg. 1.3 apg.
TOP RESERVES:
12 Drew Nicholas G 6'3 Jr. 6.5 ppg. 2.5 rpg. 2.2 apg.
54 Chris Wilcox C/F 6'10 So. 10.1ppg. 7.6 rpg. 1.5*
33 Ryan Randle F 6-9 Jr. 3.6 ppg. 3.7 rpg. 0.0 * Blocked shots per game
A WIN--Would give the Wolfpack its first six game winning streak of the season and mark the Pack's ninth home victory against one loss. The Wolfpack would earn a 1-0 ACC start for the first time since beating Maryland at home on January 6, 2000, and stop a four game Maryland winning streak in the series (including ACC Tournament games)
A LOSS--Would drop the Wolfpack to 10-3, ending a five game winning streak that equaled the longest of the season. NC State would open its ACC campaign 0-1 for the second straight year and suffer its fifth straight loss to Maryland in the series.
DEFENSE TO OFFENSE --NC State scored 18 points off 15 Houston turnovers on 12/23 and is forcing an average of 18 turnovers a contest (214) and has notched 59 turnovers in its last 3 outings.
THE BOARDS --The Wolfpack was outrebounded by Houston 47-34 including 18-13 on the offensive glass. However, in the three games leading up to the Houston contest, the Pack won the boards by a 107-79 margin. For the season, NC State is holding an average edge vs. opponents of 35-33 on the boards.
PINE POINTS-- The Wolfpack's young, but deep bench is averaging nearly 18.3 points a game (219) this season. Freshmen have accounted for nearly 41 percent of the team's total minutes played.
SHOTS AND OPPONENTS ARE FALLING -- The Pack has shot 50 percent or better in six games this season and won all six. After a .377 shooting effort at Houston, NC State is shooting a combined .472 (135-286) from the field and .341 from the three-point arc (40-117)in its last 5 games. The Pack is 4-2 when it has shot below 50 percent.
MUCH BETTER AT THE LINE --NC State's free throw shooting has really improved this season. The Pack is shooting .750 from the charity stripe (176-235) and .774 in its last 7 games (134-173). Last season, the Pack shot .673 from the line.
DOWNTURN IN TURNOVERS-- Overall, NC State has done a good job taking care of the ball this season by averaging only 13 turnovers a game (156). Last season, the Wolfpack turned the ball over nearly 17 times a contest.
NEXT FOR THE PACK-- NC State will visit Virginia on Saturday, January 5, 2002. The game will be carried live on the Wolfpack Capitol Sports Network with an airtime of 1:30 p.m. EST.
ARCHIE MILLER-- In a rare event, the Wolfpack captain was held scoreless at Houston on 0-5 shooting. Miller leads the team in minutes per game (30.2) and assists (3.9 apg.) and is No. 2 in steals (23). He leads the ACC in assist-to-turnover ratio with a 4.3-to-1mark and has only 4 turnovers in his last 7 games. The fifth-year senior is fifth in the school record book for career three-point field goals made (169) and is fourth in career three-point percentage (fifth in ACC history) at .426 (169-396).
ANTHONY GRUNDY-- The senior guard had possibly his finest game in a Wolfpack uniform. at Syracuse on December 8th when he finished with 26 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists and 4 steals while shooting 10-16 from the field. Currently, he leads the team in scoring (14.3 ppg.), steals (24), and is No. 3 in rebounding (5.3 rpg.). He's also the team's leading backcourt shooter, hitting .474 of his shots from the field (64-135), but has slumped at the three-point line in his last 6 games (10-30). The Louisville, Ky., native ranks fourth in school history with 193 career steals (fifth-best mark in the ACC).
JULIUS HODGE-- The 2001 McDonalds and Parade High School All-American continues to have a solid rookie season. He's averaging 10.4 points and 4.3 rebounds a game and is currently the Pack's No.2 three-point shooter at .364 (16-44) and is No. 3 in free throw shooting at .816 (31-38). He played 27 minutes at Houston and finished with 13 points, 4 rebounds and a career high 4 assists. New York's "Mr. Basketball" as a senior and the New York Daily News High School Player of the Year, Hodge averaged 21.5 points, 8.5 rebounds and 3.2 assists during his senior year at St. Raymond's High School in Bronx, NY. Rated as the No. 1 shooting guard in the nation by ESPN.com.
MARCUS MELVIN--The sophomore forward was the Pack's hero at Houston, winning the game with a desperation three-pointer from the left wing at the buzzer. Melvin led NC State in scoring and rebounding in that game with 18 points and 7 boards. It was the second straight game in which he's led the team in points scored. Melvin is the Pack's leading rebounder (6.0 rpg.) and three point shooter (.387) and is averaging 11.7 points a game (140). In his last 5 games, Melvin is averaging 15.2 points (76) while shooting .683 from the field (28-41).
JOSH POWELL-- Although he was held to only 6 points and 6 rebounds at Houston, Powell has been very good over the last five games, averaging 14.3 points (63), 6.5 rebounds (32) and shooting .700 from the field (28-40). The 6-9 freshman won his second ACC Rookie of the Week award this season after combining for 32 points and 16 rebounds in victories over Wofford and Syracuse while shooting 15-18 from the field (.833). Powell pulled down a career-high 9 rebounds vs. Syracuse. He scored a career high 18 points on 8-of-9 shooting from the field vs. Wofford on 12/5/01. Powell has started every game this season and leads the team in field goal percentage at .625 (55-88). He's also the Pack's leading offensive rebounder (29) and shot blocker (12), but leads the team in turnovers (28). Powell was named Metro Atlanta Player of the Year by the Atlanta Tip-Off Club following his senior year at Riverdale High School. He averaged 22.7 points and 13 rebounds in his senior year and is the only player in school history to have his jersey retired.
SCOOTER SHERRILL--Has seen action in every game this season after playing in 29 contests a year ago as a reserve guard. He's averaging 4.4 points a game (53). Sherrill scored 10 points in 19 minutes vs. Wofford on 12/5/01 and added 3 rebounds and 3 assists.
CLIFF CRAWFORD-- The junior guard played well vs. Wofford and Syracuse combining for with 17 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists. An above average defender, Crawford is tied for No.3 on the team in steals with 14. His top performance this season came in the opener vs. Prairie View when he notched 12 points, 3 rebounds and 4 assists and shot 5-of-6 from the field.
ILLIAN EVTIMOV-- A native of Bulgaria, Evtimov lived in France for most of his life before moving to the United States. He averaged 21.5 points, 14 rebounds and 5.2 assists a game as a senior at Bishop McGuiness High School in Winston-Salem, NC. As a freshman at NC State, Evtimov is averaging 11.5 minutes a game and 3.1 points a contest (37). He's seen action in every game. His best outing of the season was against UNC-Asheville with 6 points and 5 rebounds. He's the brother of former UNC forward Vasco Evtimov who is now playing professionally in Greece.
LEVI WATKINS-- A 2001 Parade High School All-American, earned his first career start vs. Charleston Southern on 12/19 and played 11 minutes, scoring 2 points. His best performance of the season came vs. UNC-Asheville when he finished with 8 points and 5 rebounds. Watkins averaged 23.2 points and 11.2 rebounds a game during his senior year at Montrose Christian in Rockville, MD. He's played in every game for the Wolfpack this season and is shooting 38 percent from the field (13-34) as he continues to learn the NC State system. He's the team leader in free throw percentage at .833 (5-6).
JORDAN COLLINS-- The 6-10 freshman played 10 solid minutes at Houston and finished with 4 points and 3 rebounds. He had a career high 7 points and 2 rebounds vs. UNC-Asheville on 12/15. He's played in 10 games for the Wolfpack this season in limited minutes (6.3 mpg.). Collins was a four-year starter at DeMatha Catholic in Hyattsville, MD for legendary coach, Morgan Wooten. He averaged 15 points and 10.3 rebounds as a senior while leading DeMatha to a 27-5 record.
