North Carolina State University Athletics
NC State
VMI
N.C. State Cruises Past VMI 75-55
11/23/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 23, 2005
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - Ilian Evtimov had 18 points and Andrew Brackman added a season-high 15, helping sluggish North Carolina State hold off VMI 75-55 Wednesday night.
The Wolfpack (4-0) played without point guard Tony Bethel, who still is nursing a groin injury suffered last season in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament. Without him, points were hard to come by against an ever-changing defense used by the Keydets.
They alternated a variety of zones along with some man-to-man, and N.C. State never seemed sure of what offense to run. Yet it was a victory, the fourth consecutive lopsided decision for the Wolfpack. They next begin a two-game road trip in Indianapolis, where they face Notre Dame in the Wooden Classic before traveling to Iowa as part of the ACC-Big Ten Challenge.
Cedric Simmons finished with 14 points for N.C. State, while teammates Cameron Bennerman and Engin Atsur each had 10.
The Keydets (0-2) hardly looked like the team that lost its opener to Army at home. They scored only 49 points in that one, but shredded N.C. State's defense for 21 in the first 12 minutes. Everybody got in the act. Seven different players scored the first seven baskets.
A 3-pointer by Travis Holmes gave VMI took a 21-10 lead, helped by the Wolfpack's reliance on 3s. Eight of their first nine shots came from beyond the arc, which was bad since they made two. Finally, they started looking inside, with Simmons finishing off a nice pass from Gavin Grant for a dunk.
That started a 13-1 run which featured another Simmons' jam along with two layups for Grant and N.C. State led 23-22. The margin grew steadily from there, even though VMI continued to put up a fight.
It was 47-38 following a 3-pointer from Chavis Holmes with about 12 1/2 minutes remaining, but the Keydets followed that with a brutal stretch of five turnovers in six possessions. The Wolfpack took advantage with perhaps their best stretch of the night.
Bennerman got loose for a breakaway dunk to electrify the crowd and Simmons added four points in a span of about 70 seconds. When he converted a pair of free throws, N.C. State led 57-40, and the Keydets finally were done.
Reggie Williams scored 10 points to pace VMI, which matched the Wolfpack's 37 percent shooting but had 18 turnovers.
