North Carolina State University Athletics
Relief, Smiles Greet NCAA Tourney Berth
3/10/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
March 10, 2002
By Tony Haynes
It was shortly after six o'clock on Sunday night when the NC State basketball team learned that it had indeed landed the long awaited NCAA Tournament bid that had eluded the Wolfpack for 11 long years. Watching the pairings show in a ball room at the Hilton Executive Park in Charlotte, coaches and players clapped and exchanged smiles when it was announced that NC State would meet Michigan State at the MCI Center on Friday night.
It was a rather subdued reaction for a team that had overcome so many obstacles to reach its goal. But following three days of intense basketball in the ACC Tournament, physical exhaustion and mental fatigue had set in. There wasn't much left in the old gas tank by the time Friday's pairing appeared on the television screen.
"The overall weekend basically wore everybody out," said senior guard Archie Miller, who now knows that his career will be extended for at least one more game. "To have that name pop up so early was really a relief."
The relief eased the pain of a 30-point loss to Duke in the ACC Championship game earlier in the day. In Michigan State, the Wolfpack will be facing a program that's only two years removed from a national title. By their standards, the Spartans had a sub-par year. But even a sub-par season at Michigan State is good enough for a spot in the NCAA Tournament.
"They are a team that has a wealth of experience in tournament play. They played really well down the homestretch," said NC State head coach Herb Sendek, whose team will be seeded seventh in the East. "We're happy to be in the field and expected to have a difficult challenge in the first round."
Despite losing to Indiana in the Big Ten Tournament over the weekend, Michigan State won eight of its last 11 games to finish 19-11 on the season. The Spartans are led by all-conference guard Marcus Taylor, who averaged 16.7 points and 5.3 assists per game. The 6-3, 195 sophomore also hit 38.4 percent of his shots from three-point range.
It's somewhat ironic that the Wolfpack's first NCAA Tournament game since 1991 will be played in D.C. given the fact that the last time NC State appeared in the tournament, the site was Cole Field House in College Park Maryland, just a stone's throw from the Washington city limits. The placement means that neither the Wolfpack nor its fans will have to travel a great distance for Friday's first round game.
"I don't think the actual site was a big priority for us" Sendek said. "But it's a lot better for our fans who won't have to go somewhere as far away as Albuquerque or Sacramento. [Playing on Friday] was really welcome for our team. Having played three games like we just did, we really needed some extra time."
NC State expended a lot of energy in an ACC Tournament run that included impressive victories over Virginia and second ranked Maryland. But on Sunday, the Pack simply ran into a Duke team that was hitting on all cylinders.
FIRST, SECOND ROUNDS:
East Region (Times TBA)
Friday-Sunday at MCI Center, Washington, D.C.
(1) Maryland vs. (16) Alcorn State-Siena winner
(8) Wisconsin vs. (9) St. John's
Thursday-Saturday at Edward Jones Dome, St. Louis
(5) Marquette vs. (12) Tulsa
(4) Kentucky vs. (13) Valparaiso
Friday-Sunday at United Center, Chicago
(6) Texas Tech vs. (11) Southern Illinois
(2) Georgia vs. (14) Murray State
Friday-Sunday at MCI Center, Washington, D.C.
(7) NC State vs. (10) Michigan State
(2) Connecticut vs. (15) Hampton
