North Carolina State University Athletics
NC State
Elon
No. 19 Wolfpack Whips Elon, 71-45
11/18/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 18, 2004
Box Score | Photo Gallery
By KEITH PARSONS
AP Sports Writer
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - Julius Hodge had the type of complete game that exemplifies his career - 21 points, seven rebounds and five assists.
"He's been so versatile," North Carolina State coach Herb Sendek said. "He's done everything."
Add something else to the list.
Playing on his 21st birthday, Hodge joined an exclusive group in the Atlantic Coast Conference and led No. 19 N.C. State past Elon 71-45 Thursday night in the semifinals of the BCA Invitational.
The Wolfpack (2-0) advanced to the final, where they will play East Carolina.
Hodge now has 1,505 points and 303 assists in his career, becoming the 18th player in the 52-year history of the ACC to record at least 1,500 points, 500 rebounds and 300 assists. Anthony Grundy is the only other N.C. State player to reach those totals.
And how did Hodge plan to celebrate his achievement and his birthday? Well, after going only 5-of-9 from the line, he headed to the practice gym to shoot 100 free throws.
"There's no celebration, we have another game tomorrow," Hodge said. "It's definitely a great accolade. It shows all that I've done for the team so far, and hopefully, I can add to it."
Teammate Ilian Evtimov added 10 points.
A night after scoring the first 11 points against New Orleans, the Wolfpack jumped to a 13-2 lead in this one. The Phoenix (1-1) made their second basket nearly nine minutes into the game, and they had more turnovers (nine) than points until Steven Harvin's jumper with 2:06 left in the half made it 27-10.
"We're not ready and we're not tough enough to take advantage of our opportunities," Elon coach Ernie Nestor said. "We have to make shots to play in this setting. We need positive reinforcement."
Matt Nowlin had 16 points for Elon, which shot just 38 percent. Jackson Atoyebi, the team's leading scorer last season, finished 0-for-2 from the field with only two points.
"Jackson's usually the focal point of our offense," Nowlin said. "When our shots weren't falling, we should have went right to Jackson."
The Phoenix had scoring droughts of 4{ minutes and six minutes in the first half - they trailed 27-8, then closed with a bit of a flourish. They hit their final four shots, including 3-pointers by Nowlin and Harvin, and were within 11.
But N.C. State ran a perfect inbounds play with about 10 seconds left, and Levi Watkins made an open 3 to give the Wolfpack a 32-18 lead at the break.
The margin still was 14 early in the second half before N.C. State went on a 16-4 run. Freshman Andrew Brackman, who didn't score in the season-opening victory over New Orleans, started it with a layup, and Hodge followed with another after Harvin missed a 3-pointer.
"We have talked about the fact that really good teams have different guys stepping up on different nights and making big plays," Sendek said. "I thought we got some of that from Andrew Brackman. He gave us some really good minutes for a young guy."
Later, Engin Atsur drove down the lane for a running hook, then finished off the spurt with a 3 from the corner to make it 59-34.
