North Carolina State University Athletics
Gary Hahn's Scouting Report: Boston College
2/24/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Herb Sendek Talks About Boston College Part 1
Herb Sendek Talks About Boston College Part 2
Feb. 24, 2006
No. 15/14 NC STATE (21-6, 10-4) vs. No. 11/13 BOSTON COLLEGE (21-6, 8-5)
DATE:Saturday, January 25, 2006 @ RBC Center, Raleigh, NC (19,722)
TIME: Tip-off: 3:45 p.m. EST
RADIO: Wolfpack Sports Network.
AIRTIME: 3:00 p.m. EST
TELEVISION: CBS
OPPONENT--Virginia was hot and Boston College was cold on Tuesday night in Charlottesville. The result was a 72-58 Cavaliers' upset victory that ended the Eagles five-game winning streak and put Virginia above .500 in the ACC.
The Cavaliers shot 52 percent for the game, including a sizzling 12-of-21 from three-point range. J. R. Reynolds led the way with 28 points, including 4-of-7 from beyond the arc to help Virginia take control early.
The Eagles, who fell behind by 18 points in the first half, managed only 13 points on their first 24 possessions and missed 6 of their first 9 free throws. A last-second 3-pointer by Tyrese Rice cut the deficit to 38-28 at halftime, but Virginia never let the lead get below 10 in the second half. BC finished the game shooting only 35 percent, including an anemic 3-of-16 from the bonusphere.
Sean Singletary added 16 points for Virginia (14-10, 7-6) while Mamadi Diane and Adrian Joseph combined for 18 more by hitting 6-of-9 three-point shots.
Craig Smith led BC with 22 points and 9 rebounds to join Danya Adams as the only Eagles players with 2,000 career points and 1,000 rebounds. However, Jared Dudley and Sean Marshall were held to a combined 11 points on 4-of-16 shooting from the field.
Since losing to NC State 78-60 at home on January 10th, Boston College has won 10 of its last 12 games. The only other set back during that stretch was an 83-81 home loss to Duke on Feb. 1st.
The Eagles are a veteran team and the only one in the ACC to have used the same starting lineup all season. BC's five starters have played a combined 449 college games, making 436 starts.
Smith and Dudley lead the way for the Eagles. Both rank among the ACC's top-15 in scoring, rebounding and field goal percentage. Most of the Eagles efficient inside-oriented "Flex Offense" runs through that duo and together they average 33.2 points, 15.3 rebounds and 5.9 assists while shooting a combined .528 from the field.
Marshall and point guard, Louis Hinnant form a talented, veteran backcourt. Hinnant leads the team in assists and three-point percentage (.437). He's also near the top of the ACC in assist-to-turnover ratio (2-to-1) while Marshall is the team's No. 3 scorer and rebounder. However, in his last 6 games, Marshall has scored in double-figures only twice.
Rice, a lightening-quick guard, provides a spark off the bench. He tops the team in 3-point field goals and attempts (51-126) while shooting .405 from the arc. Over his last 5 games, Rice is averaging 10.6 points and 2.2 assists.
BC has won the rebounding battle in 8 of its 13 ACC games and outrebounded Virginia 16-5 on the offensive glass on Tuesday night. The Eagles get back an impressive 47 percent of their missed shots. They lead the ACC in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.45) and average only 13 turnovers a game.
In ACC games, BC has averaged 70 points, but gives up that many a game. The Eagles defense is also allowing league opponents to shoot .425 from the 3-point arc. The Wolfpack was 10-of-17 from the bonusphere in its win at Boston College on Jan. 10th and outrebounded the Eagles 33-31. However, State was beaten badly on the offensive glass 21-7.
This game will be the only the second between the two schools as members of the ACC. The last meeting at the RBC Center went to BC 93-81 in 2003. NC State's Herb Sendek is one win shy of tying Everette Case for 14th place on the ACC's all-time coaching victory list. Sendek has 190 wins in 10 seasons with the Wolfpack.
A WIN--Would be the Wolfpack's 7th in the last 9 games, improving NC State to 22-6 overall and 11-4 in the ACC. The Pack would remain in sole possession of second-place in the ACC, better last season's win total, equal the Pack's best ACC win total under Herb Sendek and sweep Boston College in the regular season series. State would finish its regular season home schedule at 16-2 (7-1 ACC), the best home record since the 1990-91 season (13-1). The victory assures that State will go through the regular season without back-to-back losses for the first time since the 1973-74 season. The Pack also secures a bye for the ACC Tournament. The Pack would even its record against ranked teams this season to 4-4 while sending Boston College to its second straight loss. The Eagles would drop to 21-6 overall and 8-6 in the ACC.
A LOSS--Would mark the Pack's first 2-game losing streak of the season and drop State to 21-7 overall and out of sole possession of second place in the ACC at 10-5. The Wolfpack would finish its regular season home schedule with a 15-3 record (6-2 ACC) and drop to 3-5 against ranked teams this season. Boston College would win for the 11th time in its last 13 games and improve to 22-6 overall and 9-5 in the ACC while earning a split in the regular season series with the Wolfpack. BC becomes the fourth ACC team with at least 9 league wins this season.
REGROUP RAPIDLY -- North Carolina handed NC State its worst loss of the season on Wed. night. The Pack surrendered a season-high 95 points and 54 percent shooting from the field and was pounded on the boards 43-26, including a 19-8 margin on the offensive glass. The Wolfpack shot only 6-of-25 from the 3-point arc. The only bright spot for State in the 95-71 loss was ball security. The Pack committed only 8 turnovers, a season-low in an ACC game.
SHOOTING AND SCORING -- The Wolfpack is averaging 77.0 points a game while shooting .487 from the field in ACC games. The Pack shot 64 percent from the field (28-44) and made 13 of 23 three-point shots in its win over Florida State on 2/15.
BOMBS ON TARGET --State leads the ACC in three-point shooting in league games (.440) and has made more three-points shots overall (255) than any ACC team this season. The Pack has made 12 or more three-pointers in 5 of its last 6 games. Over its last 8 games, State is averaging 8.4 made three-point field goals. For the season, 45 percent of the Pack's shots come from 3-point range.
BETHEL'S THE LEAD BOMBADIER --Guard Tony Bethel leads the ACC in 3-point field goal percentage (.531) versus league opponents (43-81), but was 0-4 from the arc against UNC on Wed. However, Bethel is more than just a shooter. He's NC State's best perimeter on-the-ball defender and is also a highly skilled playmaker and rebounder. The redshirt senior is averaging 12.3 points (86), 3.7 rebounds (26) and 2.9 assists (20) in his last 7 games. He recorded 5 steals vs. Wake Forest on Jan. 21.
HOW MAY I ASSIST YOU? --NC State is averaging an assist on an impressive 66 percent of its field goals (448-682) this season. The Pack had 22 assists on 28 field goals in its win over FSU on 2/15.
CLAMPING DOWN --Consistent defense is a hallmark of Wolfpack basketball under Herb Sendek. Overall, the Pack leads the ACC in field goal percentage defense (.404) and is allowing ACC opponents only .432 shooting from the field. In its last 7 games, the Pack has held its opponents to an average of 70.4 points a game.
THR IRON TURK-- Nobody on the Wolfpack team has played more minutes this season than Engin Atsur.. The native of Istanbul, Turkey, is one of the most versatile players in the ACC. The 6-4 junior leads the Pack in assists (103), steals (44) and minutes (33.1) while averaging 11.3 points a game. In his last 5 games, the junior has averaged 15.0 points (75) while shooting 53 percent from the field 24-45. Against FSU on 2/15, Atsur recorded a season-high 19 points and 8 assists.
BULGARIAN BOMBER --Ilian Evtimov, a native of Sofia, Bulgaria, is one of the Pack's most valuable players. The 6-8 forward sprained a ligament in his left foot late in the first half against FSU on 2/15 and did not play at Virginia Tech on 2/18. However, he did return against North Carolina on Wed., playing 15 minutes, finishing with 2 points and 3 assists. Not many forwards in the ACC shoot better than 40 percent from the three-point arc, but Ilian Evtimov is one of them (.427). He has made 11of his last 21 three-point shots (.524). The native of Sofia, Bulgaria, is also an excellent free throw shooter, making 19 of his last 21from the foul line. In the 6 games prior to his injury, Evtimov averaged 13.5 points (81) points and 5.8 rebounds (35).
W-I-N @ R-B-C-- State is 15-2 at the RBC Center, including a 6-1 ACC mark. Seton Hall and North Carolina are the only teams to beat the Pack this season at home. Away from home the Pack is 5-4 (4-3 ACC).
CAM'S IN FOCUS --Cameron Bennerman has played a major role in the Pack's success this season. The athletic senior tied his career-high with 26 points including 10-of-10 at the foul line in the Pack's win at Virginia Tech on 2/18. Bennerman sank eight of his free throws in the final 55-seconds when the game was in doubt. The Pack's top scorer has averaged 15.0 points (315) over his last 21-games while shooting .529 from the field (115-217) during that span. Bennerman sank a clutch 3-pointer to force overtime at Clemson on 1/29 and scored 23 points in the Pack's double-overtime win at Miami on 2/8.
A FRIENDLY FOUL LINE-- Over its last 4 games, the Wolfpack is shooting 83 percent from the foul line (78-94). State is hitting an impressive 78 percent of its free throws in ACC games (241-310). The Wolfpack was 22-of-25 from the line in its double overtime win at Miami on 2/8/06.
HEY, MR. POSTMAN --Cedric Simmons has given NC State a low post scoring and defensive threat that was missing the last two seasons. The sophomore is the team's No. 2 scorer (12.1) while leading the Pack in rebounding (6.5) and blocked shots (2.78). Simmons' field goal percent of .612 also leads the team. However, in his last 6 games, he's averaged only 9.5 points (57). Simmons recorded a career-high 28 points at Duke on Jan. 18th along with 9 rebounds, 7 blocked shots and 3 steals. He blocked six shots at Virginia Tech on 2/18.
INJURIES --Freshman forward Brandon Costner could miss his 23rd consecutive game for the Wolfpack with a leg injury.
