Thompson Kicks Off Red & White Tour in Grand Style
11/8/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 8, 1973
BY TIM PEELER
GREENSBORO, N.C. NC State hopes this is where the 1973-74 basketball season ends in the NCAA Championship finals at the Greensboro Coliseum.
On Thursday night, however, the Wolfpack began its quest for the school’s first NCAA championship in men’s basketball in the Grimsley High School gymnasium, which was packed to the rafters with 3,200 fans eager to watch the team that could challenge the UCLA dynasty.
David Thompson, a unanimous All-America selection last year as a sophomore, showed that he had no lingering effects from the knee surgery he had last spring to clean out torn cartilage in his right knee.
Thompson scored 30 points for the Red team in a 92-79 victory over the White team. He was joined on the Red squad by senior center Tommy Burleson, forward Tim Stoddard and guards Morris Rivers and Monte Towe.
It is the first of six preseason Red & White games the Wolfpack will play at different locations across the state.
Thompson said in September that he was not bothered at all by the knee while helping the United States win the gold medal at the World University Games in Moscow, U.S.S.R., where he averaged a team-high 21 points in eight games. He seemed to be fine throughout the 13-game exhibition series in the U.S., Poland, Czechoslovakia and Bulgaria.
“It didn’t bother me at all,” Thompson said after returning from Moscow. “About a week after I started playing after the operation, I was going full speed, using all my fakes and cuts. I didn’t even think about it in Moscow.”
And Thompson, who led the ACC in scoring at 24.7 points per game last year, certainly seemed at mid-season form Thursday night.
Wolfpack coach Norm Sloan, as always, was impressed with his superstar junior and his increased mobility.
“David is stronger physically because he’s playing on two legs now,” said Sloan, who was the ’73 ACC Coach of the Year. “He’s quicker laterally.”
Sloan is similarly impressed with Burleson, the 7-4 center who has spent the last two summers playing in high-level international competition, the ’72 Olympics and the ’73 World University Games.
Now, however, he is focused on helping the defending ACC-champion Wolfpack, which will likely be ranked No. 2 in the preseason behind the John Wooden’s Bruins, succeed on U.S. turf. Last year, the Wolfpack completed the first undefeated season in school history, 27-0, but was not allowed to participate in the NCAA Tournament because of NCAA sanctions.
Thursday, however, Burleson managed only four points in the intrasquad contest. But Moe Rivers, who joined the program from Gulf Coast (Fla.) Junior College in the off-season, had an auspicious start to his Wolfpack career, scoring 20 points. Stoddard, the burly forward, pumped in 19 points and Towe added 12.
For the White team, Steve Nuce scored a team-high 16 points, followed by Phil Spence, another junior college transfer who hopes to see lots of action this year, with 15. Greg Hawkins had 14 points and Mark Moeller added 10.
The Pack lost only Rick Holdt and Joe Cafferky from the undefeated squad that finished ranked No. 2 in both the Associated Press and coaches national polls. But Sloan sees room for improvement.
“I feel we can play better defense,” Sloan said. “I am hoping we can cause more action on defense.”
The Wolfpack plays its next exhibition game on Saturday night at Rocky Mount Senior High School.
Sloan and his team open the season at 8 p.m. on Dec. 5 against East Carolina at Reynolds Coliseum.
You may contact Tim Peeler at tim_peeler@ncsu.edu.
Official Basketball Box Score
Red vs. White
11/8/1973 at Grimsley High School, Greensboro, N.C.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
VISITORS: RED
## Player Name FG-FGA FT-FTA R PF TP
42 Stoddard, Tim 9-12 1-1 9 3 19
44 Thompson, David 15-23 0-0 7 3 30
24 Burleson, Tommy 2-7 0-0 6 2 4
10 Rivers, Morris 10-20 0-0 1 2 20
25 Towe, Monte 4-7 4-4 0 2 12
12 Gehring, Ken 1-3 3-4 2 1 5
15 Dayhuff, Bruce 1-4 0-0 0 2 2
17 Smith, Steve 0-1 0-0 1 0 0
TEAM
Totals.............. 42-77 8-9 26 15 92
TOTAL FG% Game: 54.5%.
FT% Game: 88.9%
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
HOME: WHITE
## Player Name FG-FGA FT-FTA R PF TP
10 Kuszmaul, Craig 3-4 0-0 1 0 6
14 Hawkins, Greg 6-12 2-3 4 2 14
52 Nuce, Steve 8-16 0-0 5 3 16
30 Spence, Phil 5-11 5-6 3 2 15
40 Moeller, Mark 5-7 0-0 1 3 10
11 Buurma, Mike 3-7 0-0 4 3 6
16 Lake, Bill 0-2 0-1 0 0 0
9 Johnson, Dwight 4-7 0-0 2 3 8
14 Hunt, Jerry 2-3 0-0 2 0 4
TEAM
Totals.............. 36-69 7-10 22 16 79
TOTAL FG% Game: 52.2%.
FT% Game: 70.0%
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Technical fouls: none.
Fouled out: none.
Attendance: 3,200.
Score by Periods 1st 2nd Total
Red 48 44 92
White 39 40 79