North Carolina State University Athletics
Tony Haynes: A Home Stand For Pack
2/14/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
BY TONY HAYNES
RALEIGH, N.C. – The last time NC State’s players walked off their home court, the floor itself was flooded with euphoric Wolfpack fans who were celebrating their team’s improbable 83-79 triumph over then third-ranked North Carolina. Since that magical day in early February, however, there have been no celebrations and no parties on Hillsborough Street. Last week, the reality of the road broadsided NC State, as coach Sidney Lowe’s team suffered a pair of frustrating losses at Georgia Tech and Miami.
In terms of the competition level, there will be no reprieves this week, although the Wolfpack (13-10, 3-7) will at least have the opportunity to play once again in much friendlier confines. A Wednesday home game against Maryland (7 p.m.) will be followed by another home tilt versus Virginia Tech on Sunday. Call it the ‘last stand’ for NC State, which will be playing back-to-back home games for the final time this season.
Following Sunday’s rematch with the Hokies, three of the Pack’s last four regular season games will be on the road.
“These are probably the most important home games we’ve had all season,” said NC State center Ben McCauley. “We have to get back on a winning streak. To go back to Raleigh with our home crowd there, they’re going to be ready for us to play.”
Lowe questioned whether a few of his players were ready to play after Saturday’s 80-65 loss at Miami, a game in which NC State was outrebounded 42-25 and 21-8 on the offensive glass. Singling out guard Courtney Fells and reserve Trevor Ferguson as the two players who did play with energy and effort, Lowe implied that others were not at the level that they needed to be, especially on the defensive end of the floor.
“The thing we talk about is every time you step out on the floor you should play hard,” Lowe said. “You may not always shoot the ball well, but you can always play hard. We expect that from our guys and they’ve done that pretty much throughout the year. There were a couple of times there where I didn’t feel like we went after it as a group. If one guy out there isn’t getting it done, then we’re not doing it as a team.”
Taking into consideration its upcoming schedule along with its 13-10 overall record and 3-7 mark in the ACC, it appears the Wolfpack would need to make a miraculous run to the ACC Tournament title in order to land a spot in the NCAA field. Still, Lowe thinks it’s important for the Pack to be able to do what is necessary to at least qualify for the NIT, meaning his team would have to finish with a .500 record or better at season’s end.
“I think it’s very important that we keep our sights on that,” Lowe said. “We have to have something that we’re shooting for just to remind us every single day, not only in games, but when we’re practicing. If we get us a nice roll going, get us a few in a row, anything can happen, especially in our conference the way teams are beating up on each other. You never know where you might end up.”
Following a two-year absence from the NCAA Tournament, Maryland certainly knows where it wants to end up in March. At 18-7 overall and 4-6 in the league, the Terps have the look of a classic bubble team, which makes Wednesday’s contest even more vital. They certainly took a big step in ending their NCAA Tournament drought by drilling Duke on Sunday, 72-60.
“Hopefully we can continue to be consistent and play with the energy that we played with against Duke,” said Maryland coach Gary Williams. “If we can do that, then we can go on the court and play our best game. We’re the type of team that needs to play with a lot of energy. We’ll see if we can do that on Wednesday.”
Reaching that same energy level on the road has been a problem for the Terrapins, who dropped their first four ACC road games before knocking off Wake Forest on February 3.
With Ekene Ibekwe leading the ACC in blocked shots (65) and teammate James Gist ranking No. 3, Maryland is the best shot-blocking team in the league. Veteran guard D.J. Strawbery averages 14.5 points per game to pace the Terps in scoring. While Maryland has won more games than NC State, both teams have been on a roller-coaster ride in conference play. The Wolfpack has posted back-to-back ACC wins only once, while the Terps will be looking to win consecutive conference games for the first time on Wednesday.
“They certainly can play,” Williams responded when asked about NC State. “Any team that beats North Carolina, that gets your attention. State has a great homecourt and obviously the crowd will be with them. We have to go in there and play tough. State has played very well in some big games this year.”
Lowe hopes he’s finally found an answer to his team’s back-up point guard problems. After watching starter Engin Atsur wear down against Georgia Tech’s relentless fullcourt pressure last week, he gave Ferguson 29 minutes of playing time at Miami. One of the few silver linings for the Pack in that game, Ferguson played hard on defense and turned the ball over only once. If the freshman can continue to improve, Lowe can then rest Atsur without having to use either shooting guard Fells or wing forward Gavin Grant at the point.
“He certainly did a great job in the Miami game and we’re going to need that same type of effort against Maryland,” Lowe said. “Taking care of the basketball as a point guard is key; you can’t turn the ball over. With Trevor, he has the ability to make a shot as well, so if he’s open and he’s in rhythm, he should look to take the shot. The things that he must do are take care of the basketball and play defense.”
The match-up in the paint with McCauley trying to score against Maryland’s shot-blockers could be worth watching on Wednesday. When teams have chosen to play McCauley straight-up in the post without doubling down, he’s shown an ability to burn them. Over his last four games, the 6-9 sophomore has hit 31-of-39 field goal attempts (79.4 percent) and ranks second in the ACC in field goal percentage (61.4%). McCauley is also averaging 16.3 points per game to lead NC State, followed closely by redshirt freshman forward Brandon Costner (16.1). Costner’s average of 7.9 rebounds per contest is second only to Boston College’s Jared Dudley (9.0).
By night’s end, Maryland and NC State will be quite familiar with each other, and that familiarity will likely carryover to their next meeting on March 3, which will be the last regular season game for both teams.
