North Carolina State University Athletics
Pack Will Have Hands Full With Cal's Powe
3/14/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
March 14, 2006
By Tony Haynes
Raleigh, N.C. - When NC State head basketball coach Herb Sendek answered the question, the audience in attendance at his weekly radio show on Monday night let out a collective groan. The question? What player in the ACC does California's Leon Powe remind you of? Sendek's answer: Craig Smith of Boston College. Smith, a first-team All-ACC selection, certainly earned the respect of ACC fans everywhere this season with his relentless power game in the paint. The 6-8, 240-pound Powe was even more dominant in the Pac-10, leading the league in both scoring (20.7 ppg.) and rebounding (10.0). NC State will get a close up view of one of the best players on the West Coast Friday night (7:20) in Dallas when it tangles with the Golden Bears in a first-round NCAA Tournament game.
Powe, a sophomore from Oakland, has more than lived up to expectations following a stellar high school career in the bay area. A first-team Parade All-American at Oakland Tech, Powe became the most celebrated recruit ever signed by coach Ben Braun when he chose California. In 2003-04, he became the first freshman in the history of the league to lead the Pac-10 in rebounding. He then missed all of last season after undergoing reconstructive knee surgery.
Cleared to return to the basketball court last May, Powe has come back with a vengeance, and is the main reason Cal is back in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2003.
But like many top players out west who aren't seen on the East Coast because many of their games come on TV so late, Powe probably doesn't receive as much notoriety as some of the other top players around the country. Obviously, however, that could change now that he's carried the Golden Bears into the NCAA Tournament.
"I think knowledgeable basketball fans know who the top players are coming into the tournament," said Braun, now in his 10th year at California. "I don't think he needs to go out and make any statements; he just needs to play the way he's played. I think he'll handle it well."
Powe certainly made a statement on Friday night, hitting 14-of-17 shots in a 41-point outburst against Oregon in the semifinals of the Pac-10 Tournament. Overall, he recorded 14 double-doubles for the Bears this season.
Powe's strength in the low-post certainly concerns Sendek, whose team had no answers for hulking center Eric Williams in back-to-back games against Wake Forest the last two weeks. In those two Deacons victories, Williams scored a total of 42 points, hitting 15-of-24 shots.
And while Powe might not be as physically imposing as Williams, he's probably quicker and more skilled.
"Of what I've seen so far, they're not just going to give up easy position," Braun said of NC State's potential defensive strategy against Powe. "I think they're solid defensively. They're defensive field goal percentage is very good; it's just slightly over 40 [percent], so they've been one of the top defensive teams in the ACC."
If the Wolfpack can find a way to get a handle on Powe, it will certainly enhance its chances for advancement since Powe and point guard Ubaka Ayinda (14.8 ppg.) are the only Golden Bears scoring in double-figures. NC State, on the other hand, offers up more balance offensively with four players averaging 10 points or more.
"How many teams in the country are there that have four guys in double-figures?" Braun said. "They've got four guys in double-figures and their next three guys are at nine, eight and eight. They're close to having six or seven guys in double-figures. That's pretty impressive. That means you can't key on one or two guys, you've got guard their team."
Braun and Sendek are no strangers to each other, having faced off in the MAC Conference when Braun was at Eastern Michigan and Sendek at Miami (Ohio) in the mid-90s. Their most recent meeting came in the first-round of the 2003 NCAA Tournament, a game won by the Golden Bears in overtime, 74-72. This will mark California's first tourney appearance since then, while NC State is back in the `Big Dance' for the fifth consecutive year, something only 14 other schools have accomplished during that same time span.
"I think it's a great accomplishment," Braun said. "Getting into the NCAA Tournament is no longer a right; I don't care where you are. I know Gary Williams and I have a tremendous amount of respect for his teams and his program. But here's a former national champion that's not in the NCAA Tournament today. It's not a given. That will show you how tough the NCAA is and how much there is parity now. The teams that are consistently finishing in the upper half of their leagues to get into the tournament, I think that's a tremendous thing."
