NC State
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UNC Asheville
Wolfpack Defense Bogs Down Bulldogs
11/21/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 21, 2003
By Tony Haynes
Raleigh, NC--UNC Asheville came into its season opener Friday night hoping No. 24 NC State might be ripe for an upset. Instead, the Bulldogs encountered a Wolfpack team that was eager to get its 2003-04 season underway. Picking up where he left off last year when he was a first team All-ACC selection, junior Julius Hodge opened with a double-double, scoring 24 points to go along with 11 rebounds, as the Pack rolled to an easy 71-46 victory over its UNC system neighbors from the western part of the state.
Also getting in on the act for NC State were seniors Scooter Sherrill (14 points) and Marcus Melvin (11 points), along with junior Levi Watkins (12 points, 7 rebounds). All helped the Wolfpack improve to 8-0 in season openers under coach Herb Sendek.
"We did some good things on defense, especially in the first half," said Sendek. "It was really good to finally get the season started. I think our team really needed to play. Now the games will come fast and furious."
It was a smothering man-to-man defense that ignited a first half run that allowed the Pack to jet out to a 38-11 advantage at the half. Forcing a number of difficult shots, NC State held UNC Asheville to just 23.8 percent shooting (5-21) in the first 20 minutes. The pressure also ignited numerous transition opportunities that led to layups and open 3s on the other end of the floor.
"We want to strike in transition and if we have open shots, we want our guys to shoot them with great confidence," Sendek said. "If the shots aren't there and the defense is back, we have to recognize that as well. Then we want to execute our offense."
NC State's best stretch of the night came over the last 7:54 of the first half when it knocked down 8-of-11 shots and outscored the Bulldogs 20-4. The decisive run started with Melvin finishing a fast break with a layup that put the Pack ahead 18-7. Sherrill then took over, scoring on a lay in that was followed by a pair of long-range bombs to push the advantage out to 17 at 26-9. Hodge, who made 9-of-12 shots for the game, then added two 3s of his own to make it 34-11.
"Hodge is very, very good," UNCA coach Eddie Biedenbach said. "He's emotional and is always ready to play every night. He does a lot of good things."
Said Hodge: "Our No. 1 thing was to try to intimidate them with our communication. By the second half it was an easy game for us."
Maybe too easy. Armed with its big halftime lead, NC State lost some of its edge after intermission, while the Bulldogs continued to play hard to the final horn.
"The defense was very good in the first half. The guys were really focused and intense," Sendek said. "I would have liked to have seen us keep the same intensity for the entire 40 minutes. I thought we let our guard down too many times in the second half, but maybe we can learn from that."
A concern of Sendek's during the preseason, rebounding was not a big problem on Friday as NC State won the battle of the boards 42-36 and shot 40 percent (27-67) as a team. After their cold start, the Bulldogs recovered to hit 35.7 percent (20-56) of their field goal attempts.
"It's good for us to play a team like UNC Asheville, a team that played in the NCAA Tournament last year," said Melvin, who five rebounds and two blocked shots to go along with his 11 points. "We came out and played hard in the first half, but had a little letdown in the second half. Those are things we'll have to address in practice and be prepared for in our next game."
UNC Asheville, which earned a spot in the NCAA Tourney field after winning the Big South Conference Tournament last season, was led by guard Bryan McCullough, who finished with 13 points. Rugged power forward Joseph Barber added 12.
"NC State did a nice job preparing for the game tonight," said Biedenbach, a former NC State player and assistant coach. "They're always tough defensively; Herb does a good job of teaching them defensive principles. I was disappointed in our play. It wasn't a good game for UNC Asheville. We can shoot the ball better than that, but State's defense keeps you off balance."
Coming off the season-ending knee injury he suffered in an exhibition game last year, NC State forward Ilian Evtimov had a tough shooting night, going 0-for-4 from the floor. The 6-7 redshirt sophomore did contribute in other ways, tallying six rebounds and four assists.
The Wolfpack will be back in action at the RBC Center on Tuesday night when it hosts Howard at 7:30.
