North Carolina State University Athletics
Gary Hahn's Scouting Report: Maryland
2/16/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 16, 2005
NC STATE (14-10, 4-7) vs. MARYLAND (15-7, 6-5)
DATE: Wednesday, February, 16, 2005 @ RBC Center, Raleigh, NC (19,722)
TIME: Tipoff: 9:00 p.m. EST
RADIO: Wolfpack Radio Network
AIRTIME:8:30 p.m.
TELEVISION: Raycom-Jefferson Pilot Sports (ACC Network)
OPPONENT--The elevator ride that has been Maryland's ACC basketball season is heading up again. Starters Travis Garrison, John Gilchrist and Chris McCray combined for 53 points while Mike Jones came off the bench to add 15 and the Terps wore down No. 7 Duke 99-92 in overtime on Saturday night at the Comcast Center.
Personal fouls were a major factor for Duke (18-3, 8-3). Five players fouled out either in regulation or overtime, including starters, Shelden Williams (23 points, 16 rebounds), Daniel Ewing (23 points, 4 assists) and Shavlik Randolph (0 points, 3 rebounds).
With Maryland up 91-90 in overtime, Garrison scored on a follow and McCray made two foul shots for a five-point cushion, and the Blue Devils couldn't muster enough firepower for a comeback. J.J. Redick, who scored 21 points for Duke, was held to 5-19 shooting from the field.
Maryland had to rally to send the game to an extra period. Duke led 86-82 with 1:34 left in regulation, but three-point plays by Gilchrist and Ekene Ibekwe put the Terrapins ahead 88-86 with 39 seconds left. Williams fouled out on Ibekwe's basket, but Duke's DeMarcus Nelson scored on a drive to tie it with 34 seconds left. The Terps had two chances to win in regulation, but Gilchrist and Nik Caner-Medley missed shots before the final buzzer.
Duke scored only 7 points off 10 Maryland turnovers and had no fast break points in the game, but sank 11 of 28 three-point shots. Maryland's won the boards 50-41 and converted 29 of 39 free throws, including 9 of 12 in overtime.
The victory was Maryland's second straight following two consecutive losses and its third in-a-row over Duke in the series. It marked the Terps first regular season sweep of the Blue Devils since 1995.
Lately, Maryland's backcourt has really stepped up. McCray has been the Terps' most consistent player. The senior guard has averaged 16.6 points, 3.2 rebounds and 4 assists over his last 5 games.
Gilchrist has also started to play his best ball of the season. The MVP of the 2004 ACC Tournament seems to have found the balance between being a scorer and distributor. In his last two games, Gilchrist has averaged 19 points, 7.5 rebounds and 9.5 assists.
Off the bench, Jones has made a recent impact. A dangerous three-point shooter, Jones has averaged 14 points and 4.3 rebounds in his last 3 appearances.
Caner-Medley is capable of having a big game anytime, but even when he's not shooting well he is productive in other areas. Against Duke he made only 5 of 18 shots from the field, but grabbed 9 rebounds. Garrison is inconsistent, but when he plays well (17 points, 11 rebounds against Duke), Maryland usually wins.
Against ACC opponents, The Terps are the fourth highest scoring team in the league (78.8) and they have grabbed more total rebounds than any other ACC team (453). However, Maryland has also given up more rebounds (469) than any other team in the conference. Inconsistent shooting has also been a problem. In ACC games, the Terrapins are hitting 43 percent of their shots from the field and a league-low 28 percent from the three-point arc. However, Maryland is improved at the foul line (.723).
Defensively, Maryland has come up big at times. The Terps held Duke to only 39 percent shooting on Saturday and has limited ACC opponents to 42 percent for the season. However, Maryland is giving up a league-worst 81.3 points a game in conference play and only Miami and Virginia have allowed more three-point field goals in ACC games.
State beat Maryland 85-69 at Comcast Center on January 23rd by holding off a second half Terrapins rally. Julius Hodge led the Pack with 20 points and 11 rebounds. Engin Atsur added 17 points and was 5-10 shooting from the arc while Ilian Evtimov recorded 16 points and 9 rebounds. The Wolfpack was 12 of 26 from three-point range, committed only 9 turnovers and scored 21 points off 19 Maryland turnovers.
Despite 40 percent shooting from the field, Maryland stayed in the game by sinking 28 of 41 foul shots and outrebounding the Wolfpack 37-32. Caner-Medley led the Terps with 15 points and 10 rebounds.
NC State must control the game with its offense by taking good shots and limiting turnovers and continue taking steps to improve its defense and rebounding as it did at Georgia Tech on Sunday. Four of the last five Wolfpack regular season games are at home.
A WIN--Would be the Wolfpack's second in-a-row, marking State's first winning streak of 2005 and improving the Pack to 15-10 overall and 5-7 in the ACC with four regular season games left. State would sweep the regular season series with Maryland for the first time since the 1988-89 season. The Wolfpack improves to 10-4 at home, breaking a 2-game home losing streak. Maryland would drop to 15-8 overall and 6-6 in the ACC while losing on the road for the sixth time in seven games this season.
A LOSS--Would be the fourth in the last five games for NC State, dropping the Pack to 14-11 overall and 4-8 in the ACC. The Wolfpack would suffer its third straight home loss, dropping to 9-5 at the RBC Center this season with three home dates remaining. Maryland would win its third straight game overall, salvage a split in the season series with State and improve to 16-7 overall and 7-5 in the ACC. The victory would be only the second for Maryland on the road this season (2-5).
A WEEK'S WORTH OF DIFFERENCE --What a week for Julius Hodge. The senior bounced back from a season-low 6 points against Virginia on 2/5 to tie his season-high of 27 points in a loss at Wake Forest. Then, he recorded a double-double in a win at Georgia Tech on 2/13 with 15 points and 10 rebounds.
BETHEL'S BACK --The return of guard, Tony Bethel, who missed an extended period due to illness, has made a huge difference. The redshirt junior hit the game-winning basket at Georgia Tech on Sunday and in his last 5 games he has averaged 12.6 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.6 assists while shooting .525 from the field (21-40). Prior to his illness in late December, Bethel was among the team leaders in assists, steals and rebounds. The Wolfpack was 3-6 while Bethel was either out or severely limited.
CLOSE, BUT NO CIGAR -- Four of State's ACC losses were by a combined 10 points. The Wolfpack is No. 2 in scoring defense in ACC games (72.5).
THE TURK COMES CALLING -- Engin Atsur, a native of Istanbul, Turkey, has committed only 15 turnovers all season in ACC games. Atsur is No.3 in the ACC in assist to turnover ratio in league games (2.33). In his last 7 games, Atsur has averaged 10.7 points and shot 49 percent from three-point range (17-35). Against Clemson on Jan. 29th, Atsur scored a career-high 21 points and shot 5 of 8 from three-point range. He's also played some tough defense this season, holding Duke's J.J. Redick to 8 points, Georgia Tech's Jarrett Jack to 16 and Maryland's John Gilchrist to 13 points.
LEAVING POINTS ON THE TABLE --After leading the nation in free throw shooting a year ago, the Wolfpack's production has fallen off dramatically this season. State is shooting only .694 at the foul line (358-516).
DIALING LONG DISTANCE --State is the No. 4 three-point shooting team in the ACC against league opponents (.390) and No. 2 in three-point field goals per ACC game (8.2).
TURNOVER TALE --The Wolfpack is averaging only 12.9 turnovers per game. Although State turned the ball over 20 times at Wake Forest on 2/10, the Pack is averaging 13.1 turnovers in its 7 ACC losses.
CAM THE MAN -- Junior guard Cameron Bennerman returned to the lineup on Feb. 10 after missing the previous 5 games with an elbow injury. In two games since his return, Bennerman has averaged 21 minutes, 7.0 points and 2.5 rebounds while shooting 5-11 from the field. Unfortunately, senior forward Levi Watkins will miss a minimum of two more weeks after suffering a sprained right medial collateral ligament during practice on February 2nd.
SIMMONS STEPS UP --Cedrick Simmons has stepped up his game lately. The freshman reserve center scored a career-high 16 points against Virginia on Feb. 5. In his last 7 ACC games, Simmons has averaged 7.3 points, 3.3 rebounds and has shot .612 from the field (19-31) during that span.
