North Carolina State University Athletics
NC State's 1973-74 Outlook
11/1/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
“We’ll have another outstanding team,” says coach Norm Sloan, “but I didn’t expect us to go undefeated last season, and it follows that I don’t expect to this season, even though we may have the strongest team in NC State’s history.”
The basis for Sloan’s positive outlook lies in the return of three starters David Thompson, Tommy Burleson and Monte Towe from the 1972-73 club, which raced through the rugged Atlantic Coast Conference unscathed during the regular season and then climaxed the astonishing campaign with a pressure-packed 76-74 victory over
Thompson, of course, needs no introduction to friends or foes of the Wolfpack. The 6-foot-4 leaping phenom garnered just about every honor possible as a sophomore last year making every All-America team announced, leading the ACC in scoring parade with a 24.7 average, being voted both Player of the Year and Athlete of the Year in the conference, and being the only performer to rank among the top seven in all four of the league’s major statistical categories.
As an encore, the peerless Thompson, this past summer, led the
While Thompson is the Pack’s most talked-about artist excelling in every phase of the game the towering Burleson and the miniature Towe are bona fide stars in their own rights.
Burleson, who will be winding up a sterling career with the Wolfpack, employs his imposing 7-foot-4 frame as a dominant force around the boards at both ends of the court. An All-America selection in many quarters last season and a two-time All-ACC choice, he has led the league in rebounding the last two years while, at the same time, being among the top four point-makers with an overall 19.5 average. Like Thompson, he was a standout member of the
Small, baby-faced and popular, the 5-foot-7 Towe looks more like a water boy than a team leader. But that’s exactly what he is filling the role of quarterback, ball-handler, play-maker and oftentime scorer with an exquisite and daring style. As a sophomore last season, he defied a rash of injuries to pace the team in assists (115), score at a 10-points-per-game clip and baffle opposition with his ability to break a press.
Sloan, who must replace starters Joe Cafferky and Rick Holdt, has a number of standout candidates from which to choose. Senior Steve Nuce, junior Tim Stoddard and sophomore Phil Spence, a junior college transfer, will vie for Holdt’s vacated spot in the front court, while junior Mark Moeller and Moe Rivers, another JC product, are the best bets to become Towe’s running mate at guards.
Lettermen Greg Hawkins and Craig Kuszmaul will see action in backup roles, while other possibilities include freshmen Ken Gehring, Mike Buurma and Bill Lake, all 6-foot-9 or taller.
