North Carolina State University Athletics
Gary's Game Notes: Maryland vs. NC State
2/28/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 28, 2003
NC STATE (15-9, 8-5) vs. No. 14 MARYLAND (18-7, 10-4)
DATE: Sunday, March 2, 2003 @ RBC Center, Raleigh, NC (19,722)
TIME: Tipoff: 8:12 p.m. EST
RADIO: Wolfpack Radio Network.
AIRTIME: 7:30 p.m.
TELEVISION: Fox Sports Net (National)
OPPONENT --Before his final home game Tuesday night against Clemson, Steve Blake had his No. 25 jersey raised to the rafters at the Comcast Center becoming the 15th Maryland player to receive that honor. The senior guard is the only player in ACC history to accumulate more than 1,000 points, 800 assists, 400 rebounds and 200 steals. He didn't disappoint the crowd. Blake had 14 points and seven assists as part of a balanced attack as the Terrapins easily disposed of the Tigers 91-52.
The Terps pulled away after building a 36-31 halftime edge. Blake drilled back-to-back 3-pointers to cap a 13-2 run that started the second half and opened a 49-33 advantage. The Terps hit eight of their first ten shots after intermission. The final score was the game's largest lead and marked the second straight rout by Maryland after Saturday's 96-56 waxing of North Carolina. It was the biggest set of back-to-back blowouts in school history.
Ryan Randle led four players in double figures with 18 points as Maryland shot a season-high 63 percent (34-of-54), the seventh highest total in school history. Drew Nicholas and Jamar Smith each each netted 13 points. Clemson (15-9, 5-8) had a three-game winning streak snapped and fell to 1-6 on the road. Sharrod Ford, a Maryland native, led the Tigers with 12 points and 11 rebounds.
Clemson's backcourt of Christie and Edward Scott combined to make just 8-of-29 shots for 21 points. The Tigers shot just 32 percent (20-of-63) and were 2-of-14 from beyond the arc. Maryland held a commanding 25-8 margin in fast break points.
The Terps have a good mix of veterans and rookies and they are very deep (especially up front) with as many as nine players averaging at least 13 minutes a game. Nicholas is among the ACC leaders in scoring while Randle and Blake are near the top in rebounding and assists respectively. Holden one of the league's top shot-blocker. The Terps get to the free throw line an average of 22 times a game and shoot 71 percent from the stripe. They average 14.1 offensive rebounds a game.
Blake is 74 assists shy of becoming the fourth Division 1 player in history to reach 1,000 assists. The only others are all former ACC players--Bobby Hurley, Chris Corchiani and Ed Cota
Defensively, Maryland is at or near the top of the ACC in scoring defense (65.7 ppg.), field goal percentage defense (.372), three-point percentage defense (.305), steals (10.8) and blocked shots (6.8). The Terps have held 9 opponents to less than 35 percent shooting and 11 under 35 percent. Offensively, the Terps are among the league leaders in assists (19.2), scoring (81.8), field goal percentage (.470) and three-point shooting (.406).
A month ago in College Park, Maryland used a 17-3 second-half run to take control and beat NC State 75-60. The Terps scored 25 points off 21 Wolfpack turnovers, shot 65 percent in the second half and held a 12-4 offensive rebounding advantage. Blake led Maryland with 20 points and 7 assists while Marcus Melvin and Julius Hodge combined for 29 NC State points.
Handling Maryland's pressure defense as well as rebounding, playing sound defense without fouling and trying to control the game with its half court offense will be important for NC State. The Terps are 3-3 this season on the road. State is 13-1 at home.
PROBABLE MARYLAND STARTERS
No. Name
05 Calvin McCall,G/F, 6'3
45 Tahj Holden, F, 6'10
33 Ryan Randle, C, 6-9
25 Steve Blake, G, 6'3
12 Drew Nicholas, G, 6'3
TOP RESERVES:
22 Nik Caner-Medley,F, 6'8
04 Travis Garrison, F/C,6'8
01 Jamar Smith, F/C, 6'9
11 John Gilchrist, G, 6'3
A WIN--Would give the Wolfpack its fourth victory in six games, first over Maryland since beating the Terps in last year's ACC Tournament and would assure NC State of no worse than a 9-7 ACC regular season record. NC State would improve to 16-9 overall and 14-1 at home. NC State would gain a split of the regular season series with Maryland for the first time since the 2000 season.
A LOSS--Would be the Pack's third in its last five games, dropping NC State to 15-10 overall and 8-6 in the ACC. The Pack's home record would drop to 13-2 overall and 6-1 in the ACC. Maryland would sweep the regular season series with the Wolfpack for the third straight year and improve its ACC record to 11-4, including 4-3 on the road.
HITTING FROM THREE EQUALS VICTORY-- In its 15 victories, the Pack is shooting .384 from the arc (132-344) while only .270 in its 9 losses (56-207). A total of 33-percent of the Pack's scoring has come via three-point shooting.
PROBLEMS DIALING LONG DISTANCE--Over the last 4 games, the Wolfpack has shot only .274 from beyond the three-point arc (20-73). NC State has lost 2 of those 4 outings. However, the Pack has shot a respectable 46 percent from the field during that stretch (94-205).
NIFTY FIFTY -- NC State has shot 50% or better in 8 games this season (including 2 of its last 3) and is 7-1 when hitting the big five-zero. The Pack is 8-8 when shooting less than 50%. Combined, the Pack is shooting .491 from the field in its 15 wins (393-800) and only .399 in its 9 losses (200-501).
PLEASE FIND THE HANDLE --In Its last two games, the Pack has turned the ball over 43 times and opponents have capitalized for 46 points. For the season, State is averaging 14 turnovers a game.
THINGS ARE FINE AT THE LINE --NC State's free throw shooting has been impressive. The Pack tied a school record by going 22-22 from the line at UNC. State is shooting .767 from the charity stripe (373-486) this season.
FEW POINTS FROM THE PINE-- Last season, the Wolfpack bench averaged nearly 20 points a game. This season is a different story. So far, the bench has scored 267 points for an 11.1 average. Its season-low production was vs. Coppin State and UNC with zero points. Its best was 34 against Fairleigh-Dickinson.
LEAD AFTER 20.....WIN AFTER 40--NC State has posted an 12-4 record when leading at the half this season. The Wolfpack is 3-5 when trailing at the break.
DIRTY GLASS--The Pack outrebounded UNC 43-28 on 2/26, but has been outrebounded in 7 of its last 11 games, including a 117-87 margin on the offensive glass during that stretch.
NEXT FOR THE PACK-- NC State will visit Clemson on Wednesday, March 5, 2003. Airtime from Littlejohn Coliseum will be 6:30 p.m.
WOLFPACK PLAYERS TO WATCH
JULIUS HODGE-- One of the top scorers in the ACC at 18.3 ppg. (439), Hodge bounced out of a recent slump with 60 points on 21-40 shooting from the field (.525) in his last 3 games. His jump shot with :08 to play sent the game at UNC on 2/25 into overtime. Hodge had 21 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 assists against the Tar Heels. However, he continues to struggle from 3-point range. In his last 7 games, Hodge has made only 4 of 27 shots from the arc (.148). In addition to his scoring, Hodge ranks among the ACC leaders in field goal percentage, free throw percentage, rebounding, assists, and steals. He leads the Pack in rebounding at 6.0 (144) and minutes played with 837 (34.9). Hodge scored a career-high 30 points and added 10 rebounds vs. UNC on 1/26. He's scored 20 or more points 10 times this season. On 12/14/02 Hodge became the first NC State men's player to record a triple-double with 11 points, 12 rebounds, and 10 assists vs. NC A&T.
MARCUS MELVIN--This versatile junior appears to have broken out of a recent slump, scoring 44 points in his last 3 games on 13-28 shooting from the field (.464). Melvin has not been to the free throw line much lately (11-12 in his last 7 games), but has been one of the Pack's better rebounders averaging 7.4 rebounds in his last 5 games (37). The Fayetteville native led the Pack at FSU on 1/18 with 21 points and 10 rebounds and was 3-5 from the three-point line. He scored a career-high 23 points vs. Northwestern on 12/4/02 and has scored in double-figures in 18 of 23 games. Last season, Melvin was a difference-maker in the Pack's upset of eventual national champion Maryland in the ACC Tournament with 19 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists on 7-12 shooting from the field.
JOSH POWELL-- The sophomore center has made 10 of his last 15 field goal attempts over a two-game span and has averaged 14.5 points and 6.5 rebounds during that stretch. His 15 point effort vs. UNC on 2/25 was his third double-figure scoring effort in his last 7-games. The Georgia native leads the Pack in field goal percentage at .559 (104-186) and has shot .642 from the field (43-67) in his last 10 games. Powell was outstanding vs. UNC on 1/26 with 17 points and 9 rebounds. He tied a career-high with 23 points and added 9 rebounds in the loss to Boston College on 1/16.
SCOOTER SHERRILL--After averaging only 7.4 points in his previous 16 games, Sherrill came alive against UNC on 2/25 with 22 points, including 4-8 shooting from three-point range to lead the Pack. State's leader in three-point attempts and makes (49-132) is also one of the team's better free throw shooters. This season Sherrill has made 31-35 attempts from the charity stripe (.886). The junior guard scored a career-high 22 points vs. Gonzaga on 12/17/02. In his last 3 games, he's scored 44 points on 11-24 shooting from the field.
CLIFF CRAWFORD-- The Wolfpack lone senior has been steady in his last 7 games, averaging 9.6 points (67), 5.6 rebounds (39), 3.9 assists (27) and 2.7 steals (19) while playing solid defense. Crawford pulled down a career high 9 rebounds at UNC on 2/25 and recorded a game-high 5 steals vs. Georgia Tech on 2/12. He led the Pack at WFU on 2/6 with 19 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals while shooting 8-13 from the field. Crawford was sensational vs. Duke on 1/22 with 21 points, 6 assists and played tremendous second-half defense on J.J. Redick. The Duke Freshman was held to only 4 points in the final 20-minutes. In his last 14 games, Crawford has shot .500 from the field (48-96). He leads the Pack in assists (102) and steals (57). Against Wofford on 12/29/02, Crawford scored a career high 22 points while hitting 9 of 11 field goal attempts. Crawford is the team's best defender and leads the Pack in deflections. He is among the ACC's Top-10 in assists and steals.
LEVI WATKINS--The Maryland native led the Pack with a career-high 18 points vs. Georgia Tech on 2/12. He has played well in his last 7 games, averaging 7.9 points (55) and 3.6 rebounds (25) while shooting 45 percent from the field (21-47). Against WFU on 2/6, Watkins recorded 11 points on 4-6 shooting from the field. In the win over Duke on 1/22, the sophomore contributed with 10 points and 3 rebounds in 27 minutes off the bench. Scored 15 points at GT on 1/11 and hit 4 of his 5 attempts from the three-point arc. A 2001 Parade High School All-American, Watkins suffered a torn knee ligament (ACL) vs. Maryland on 12/30/01 and was lost for the remainder of the 2001-02 season.
