North Carolina State University Athletics
Gary Hahn's Scouting Report: Wake Forest
3/2/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
March 2, 2006
No. 22/ 19 NC STATE (21-7, 10-5) vs. WAKE FOREST (14-15, 2-13)
DATE:Saturday, March 4, 2006, @ Joel Coliseum, Winston-Salem, NC (14,665)
TIME: Tip-off: 4:00 p.m. EST
RADIO: Wolfpack Sports Network
AIRTIME: 3:30 p.m. EST
TELEVISION: CBS
OPPONENT--Wake Forest had no answer for the Boston College frontcourt duo of Craig Smith and Jared Dudley. The star forwards combined for 45 points and Eagles pulled away from the Deacons for an 80-65 win Tuesday night at Conte Forum.
Wake Forest enjoyed an early 19-11 lead before Dudley scored seven points during a 10-0 BC run to put the Eagles up 21-19. Dudley and Smith combined for 26 of the team's 34 first-half points as the Eagles went into the break with a five-point advantage.
Smith continued to assert himself after the intermission by helping BC to a 47-36 lead when he scored on a layup and was fouled. However, a short time later, the senior had to leave the game with a sore shoulder when he collided with Deacons' reserve Kyle Visser during a loose ball scramble. Smith, who scored 23 points, did not return until 9:46 to play.
By then, Wake Forest had closed to within 53-46 on a 3-point play by Eric Williams, but BC guard Louis Hinnant sank a 3-pointer to increase the lead to 10-points and the Deacons failed to get any closer. The Eagles shot 52 percent from the field in the second half.
With its seventh win in eight games, Boston College (23-6, 10-5) gained the inside track to earning second seed in next week's ACC Tournament. Wake Forest lost for the tenth time in its last 12 games and is destined to be the 12th seed.
Trent Strickland led Wake Forest with 15 points. BC held the Demon Deacons top two scorers, seniors Justin Gray and Williams, to 10 points apiece.
Most of Wake Forest's problems have been on the defensive end of the floor. In ACC games, the Deacons are last in the league in scoring defense (79.0), field goal percentage defense (.470) and 3-point field goal percentage defense (.418). Plus, they force only 13 turnovers a game.
Overall, Wake Forest is last in the ACC in turnover margin (-3.07), but against league opponents the Deaks have done a better job taking care of the ball (-1.93).
Williams, Gray and Strickland are the main offensive threats for the Deaks. The trio accounts for 64 percent of the scoring for Wake Forest and 61 percent of its field goal and free throw attempts. Gray and Strickland launch 64 percent of the Deacons 3-point field goals.
Gray, who operates off the ball after an early season experiment at point guard, ranks in the top-10 in several ACC statistical categories. The senior is the No.4 scorer in the ACC and is 8th in assists. He's also third in 3-point field goal percentage (.382) and fifth in free throw shooting (.835).
Williams is one of the top big men in the ACC. He's scored in double-figures in 25 straight games and leads the ACC in field goal percentage (.616) while ranking third in rebounding.
After losing three starters and a key reserve from a squad that won 27 games, Wake Forest does not have the offensive punch it had last season and averages 72 points a game against ACC opponents. However, the Deacons continue to seek a high possession game and push the ball up the court at every opportunity.
Wake Forest is shooting 43 percent from the field and 38 percent from the 3-point arc in ACC games. In its last 8 games, Wake Forest has shot 50 percent or better only twice. The Deacons can be dangerous from 3-point range, but they have cooled off lately, shooting only 30 percent from the bonusphere in the last 3 games.
The great equalizer for the Deacons is rebounding. They lead the league in offensive rebounds (14.8) in ACC games and are fourth in rebounding margin (+2.0). Wake Forest gets back an impressive 46 percent of its missed shots.
The Deaks pounded the Wolfpack on the boards 49-31 in a 92-82 loss to NC State on Jan 21 in Raleigh and dominated the offensive glass 22-7. However, the Pack was 37-of-43 at the free throw line and scored 15 points off 14 Wake Forest turnovers. State trailed by as many as 13 points twice in the first half, but shot .583 after the break while holding the Deacons to .368 from the field in the second half. The Pack also held Gray to 14 points on 5-of-22 shooting.
In his last 4 games against NC State, Gray has averaged 16.0 points and 5.0 assists. Saturday's game will mark the final home appearance for Gray and Williams. For the Wolfpack, Cam Bennerman, a Greensboro native, will play his final regular season game. Bennerman scored 26 points against the Deaks on Jan 21. State has won 5 of the last 7 games in the series, but has lost 13 of the last 15 meetings at Joel Coliseum.
A WIN--Would break a Wolfpack 2-game losing streak and give State some positive momentum going into next week's ACC Tournament. The Pack would end the regular season at 22-7 overall and 11-5 in the ACC. State would better last season's win total while equaling the Wolfpack's best ACC win total under Herb Sendek. The Pack would improve to 6-4 on-the-road (5-3 ACC) and finish the regular season by winning 4 of its last 5 road games. State would beat Wake Forest for the third straight time in the series and for the sixth time in the last eight meetings. The Deacons would end the regular season with three straight losses and drop to 14-16 overall and 2-14 in the ACC.
A LOSS--Would mark the Pack's first 3-game losing streak of the season and drop State to 21-8 overall and into a fourth place regular season finish in the ACC at 10-6. The Pack would drop to 5-5 on-the-road (4-4 ACC). State would lose for the 14th time in the last 16 games at Joel Coliseum.Wake Forest would snap a 2-game overall losing streak and a 2-game slide to NC State in the series. The Deacons would beat the Pack for the second straight season at Joel Coliseum and earn a split in the regular season series after a 92-82 loss in Raleigh on Jan. 21. Wake Forest would end the regular season 15-15 overall and 3-13 in the ACC.
REGROUP -- The Wolfpack will try to end its first losing streak of the season on Saturday. In back-to-back losses to North Carolina and Boston College, the Pack shot a combined ,417 from the field (48-115) and .283 from the 3-point arc (17-60). State was outrebounded a combined 89-60 and 38-21 on the offensive glass. Starting guards Engin Atsur and Tony Bethel were a combined 13-of-41 from the field (.317) in the two games with only two assists.
OFFENSIVE OBSERVATIONS -- The Wolfpack is averaging 76.7 points a game while shooting .479 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. That was the last time the Wolfpack shot 50% or better from the field.
BOMBS ON TARGET --State leads the ACC in three-point shooting in league games (.427) and has made more three-points shots overall (266) than any ACC team this season. The Pack has made 12 or more three-pointers in 5 of its last 7 games. For the season, 46 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 (.505) versus league opponents (46-91), but he's only 3-of-14 in his last two games (.214). Bethel is also NC State's best perimeter on-the-ball defender and is also a highly skilled playmaker and rebounder. The redshirt senior is averaging 11.9 points (95), 3.8 rebounds (30) and 2.6 assists (21) in his last 8 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 65 percent of its field goals (461-707) 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 (.406) and allows ACC opponents only .432 shooting from the field. In its last 8 games, the Pack has held its opponents to an average of 70.9 points a game (567).
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 (104), steals (46) and minutes (33.4) while averaging 11.3 points a game. In his last 6 games, the junior has averaged 13.7 points (82) while shooting 51 percent from the field (27-53). 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. He led the Pack in scoring in the loss to Boston College on 2/25 with 16 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists and shot 5-of-10 from the field. Not many forwards in the ACC shoot better than 40 percent from the three-point arc, but Ilian Evtimov is one of them (.432). He has made 15of his last 29 three-point shots (.517). The native of Sofia, Bulgaria, is also an excellent free throw shooter, making 21 of his last 23 from 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 was 15-3 at the RBC Center, including a 6-2 ACC mark. Seton Hall and North Carolina were 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. He also led the Pack with 26 points in a win over Wake Forest on 1/21.The Pack's top scorer has averaged 15.0 points (329) over his last 22-games while shooting .521 from the field (119-228) 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.
THE BEST THINGS IN LIFE ARE FREE-- Over its last 5 games, the Wolfpack is shooting 82 percent from the foul line (89-109). State is hitting an impressive 78 percent of its free throws in ACC games (252-325). The Wolfpack was 22-of-25 from the line in its double overtime win at Miami on 2/8/06 and 37-43 in a home victory over Wake Forest on 1/21..
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 (2.7). Simmons' field goal percent of .614 also leads the team. However, in his last 7 games, he's averaged only 9.8 points (69). 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 24th consecutive game for the Wolfpack with a leg injury. Ilian Evtimov continues to recover from a sprained foot ligament suffered on 2/15 while Cam Bennerman is nursing a pulled hamstring that occurred on 2/25.
