North Carolina State University Athletics
Gary Hahn's Scouting Report: Maryland
2/4/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 4, 2006
No. 18/17 NC STATE (17-4, 6-2) vs. MARYLAND (14-6, 4-3)
DATE: Sunday, February 5, 2006 @ RBC Center, Raleigh, NC (19,722)
TIME: Tipoff: 2:00 p.m. EST
RADIO: Wolfpack Sports Network.
AIRTIME: 1:30 p.m.
TELEVISION: Regional Sports Network
OPPONENT-- Reyshawn Terry scored 20 points and keyed a decisive second half run that helped North Carolina beat Maryland 77-62 on Thursday night at the Comcast Center. The Tar Heels defense was outstanding and held the Terps to only 22 points after the intermission.
Terry caught fire, scoring seven points during an 11-2 spurt that gave the defending national champions a 57-48 lead with 8:18 remaining. Maryland closed to 57-54, but Terry's dunk, a 3-pointer by Danny Green and a basket by Tyler Hansbrough pushed the margin to 10 and the Terps couldn't recover.
Hansbrough finished with 15 points and 8 rebounds while teammate David Noel recorded 19 points and 12 boards for Carolina (13-5, 4-3). Nik Caner-Medley scored 15 points for Maryland and D.J. Strawberry added 14, all in the opening half.
The Tar Heels defense held the Terps to 35 percent shooting from the field, including 3-for-16 from 3-point range. Maryland was able to stay within striking distance by scoring 23 points off 24 North Carolina turnovers. The loss kept Gary Williams within a victory of becoming Maryland's winningest coach. Williams is tied with Lefty Driesell at 348 wins.
The Terps have lost 2 of 3 games since Chris McCray was declared academically ineligible on Jan. 23rd. The senior guard was one of the best defenders in the ACC and was averaging 15.2 points a game when his career ended. McCray's loss was a huge blow to Maryland, but two players have stepped up to try to fill the void.
Caner-Medley has made the biggest jump. The senior forward is averaging 25.3 points and 8.0 rebounds in his last 4 games and leads Maryland in scoring and rebounding against ACC opponents. He scored 33 points at Georgia Tech and 30 at Temple in back-to-back games last week
Mike Jones has replaced McCray at shooting guard and is averaging 14.7 points and 5.0 rebounds in his last 3 games. A streaky three-point shooter who has a "green light" to shoot anytime, Jones has found the range lately, hitting 37-of-80 three-point shots for a blistering 46.3 percent.
The point guard position was a major issue earlier this season, but redshirt junior D.J Strawberry looks more comfortable and mature in his role. Strawberry, a shooting guard until this season, has played well enough to rank 6th in the ACC in assists and 5th in steals. Sterling Ledbetter and Parrish Brown have also played minutes at point guard.
The Terps are athletic and skilled on the front line and their first option is to take the ball inside as much as possible. Center Ekene Ibekwe has improved his offensive game and is better able to play away from the basket. Ibekwe, Travis Garrison and Caner-Medley are all among the ACC's top-20 rebounders.
Maryland desires to play an up-tempo game and outscore opponents. In each of their last 5 wins, the Terps have scored 80 points or more and they're 11-and-1 this season when scoring at least 80 points.
Overall, the Terps are No. 2 the ACC in scoring (81.7) and 3-point percentage (.393) and third in free throw shooting (.744 ). However, defense and ball handling have been problem areas.
In ACC games, the Terps are averaging 18 turnovers and they're near the bottom in scoring defense, allowing opponents a hefty 77.1 points a game. In its six losses, Maryland has allowed an average of 82.3 points. League teams are also knocking down 3-point shots at nearly a 40 percent clip against Maryland's defense. Carolina was 9-of-22 from the arc (.409) against the Terps.
State swept its two-game series with Maryland last season, but this meeting will be the only one between the two teams during the 2005 regular season due to ACC expansion. Following Sunday's contest, three of the next four NC State games are on the road.
A WIN--Would be the Wolfpack's fourth in its last 5 games, improving NC State to 18-4 overall and 7-2 in the ACC. The Pack would earn its fourth victory in the last 6 games over Maryland in the series, including 3 straight. NC State would improve to 14-1 at home this season (5-0 ACC) while sending Maryland to its third loss in-a-row. The Terps would drop to 14-7 overall and 4-4 in the ACC. This game will be the only regular season meeting between the two teams due to ACC expansion.
A LOSS--Would be the Wolfpack's second in the last 5 games and mark State's first ACC home loss of the season. The Pack would drop to 17-5 overall and 6-3 in the ACC. Maryland would break a two game overall losing streak and a two game losing streak to NC State in the series. This game will be the only regular season meeting between State and Maryland due to ACC expansion.
IN THE HOOP--The top shooting and No. 2 scoring team in the ACC against league competition is NC State. The Wolfpack is averaging 79.4 points a game while shooting .504 from the field in ACC games.
R-B-C MEANS W-I-N-- State is 13-1 at the RBC Center, including a 4-0 ACC mark. Seton Hall is the only team to beat the Pack this season at home.
GETTING STOPS --Consistent defense is a hallmark of Wolfpack basketball under Herb Sendek.. Overall, the Pack leads the ACC in field goal percentage defense (.394) and is allowing opponents only 65.2 points a game. ACC opponents are averaging 75.1 points, but only .426 shooting from the field.
HEY, MR. POSTMAN --Cedric Simmons has given NC State a real low post threat. The sophomore center recorded a career-high 28 points at Duke on Jan. 18th along with 9 rebounds, 7 blocked shots and 3 steals. This season, he is the team's top scorer (12.9) while leading the Pack in rebounding (6.9) and blocked shots (2.95) while shooting a team high .624 from the field.
LOVIN' THE LINE--State sank 37-of-43 free throw attempts in its win over Wake Forest on January 21st. The Pack is shooting and outstanding .761 from the line in ACC games (147-193).
LONG DISTANCE OPERATORS --State leads the ACC in three-point shooting in league games (.442) and has made more three-points shots overall (188) than any ACC team this season. The Pack was 15-of-29 from the arc in its win at Clemson on Jan. 29. About 44 percent of the Pack's field goal attempts come from behind the arc (493-1119).
BETHEL BOMBS AWAY --Senior guard Tony Bethel leads the team in 3-point field goal percentage (.472) and has made 28 of his last 53 shots from the three-point arc (.528). In his last 9 games, he is shooting 43-of-84 from the field (.512). Bethel is NC State's best perimeter on-the-ball defender and is also a highly skilled playmaker and rebounder. In the win over Virginia on Feb. 1, Bethel led the Pack with 16 points and 7 rebounds while adding 5 assists. He recorded 5 steals in a win over Wake Forest on Jan. 21. In his last 4 games, he's averaging 15.0 points (60) and 5.3 rebounds (21).
TURKISH DELIGHT-- 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 (86), steals (35) and minutes (32.6) while averaging 11.0 points a game. Atsur has started 79 consecutive games.
A TALE OF TURNOVERS --With only a few exceptions, the Wolfpack has done a good job taking care of the ball. State is averaging only 13.5 turnovers a game this season.
BULGARIAN BOMBER --Ilian Evtimov was the Pack's leading scorer and rebounder in the win at Clemson with 22 points and 10 rebounds. The native of Sofia, Bulgaria, also played a big role in State win over Virginia on Wed. In his last two games, Evtimov has averaged 16.0 points and 8 rebounds. He has made 15 of his last 17 free throws.
CAM'S THE MAN --Cameron Bennerman has elevated his game. The athletic senior, who hit a clutch 3-pointer in the win at Clemson on Jan. 29, to send the game into overtime, is the team's No. 2 scorer (12.85). In his last 15 appearances, Bennerman has averaged 14.7 points a game (221) while shooting 57 percent from the field during that span (87-of-152). The Greensboro native is among the ACC leaders in free throw shooting (.883) and has made 23 of his last 25 foul shots.
MR. HELPER --NC State is averaging an assist on an impressive 65 percent of its field goals (350-of-541) this season. The Pack has 20 assists on 27 field goals in the win over Virginia on Wed.
IT'S A BATTLE FOR BOARDS-- Rebounding has been a challenge for the Wolfpack this season. State has won the battle of the boards in 3 of its 8 ACC games (with one tie). In the Pack's double-overtime win at Clemson on Jan 29, State outrebounded the Tigers by a 43-36 margin.
INJURIES --Freshman forward Brandon Costner could miss his 17th straight game for the Wolfpack with a leg injury.
