North Carolina State University Athletics
Fifth-ranked Pack Rolls Over Youthful Villanova
12/28/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 28, 1973
BY TIM PEELER
NEW ORLEANS After 10-day layoff for Christmas, NC State’s fifth-ranked basketball team went to New Orleans for the Sugar Bowl basketball tournament hoping to fine-tune itself for the upcoming Atlantic Coast Conference season.
Coach Norman Sloan’s team led from the outset of the opening-round game against Villanova, but it was a sloppy affair from tip to buzzer.
The Wolfpack took a 97-82 victory at New Orleans’ Municipal Auditorium, with David Thompson scoring 26 points and Tommy Burleson adding 20, but Sloan’s team had 27 fouls and 26 turnovers against a team that featured four freshman starters.
State (4-1) now faces Memphis State in Saturday’s Sugar Bowl Championship game, which is slated to tip off at 4:15 p.m. (Eastern) at Municipal Auditorium.
The Wildcats (3-4) committed 19 fouls in the first half alone and finished the game with 30. It also committed 25 turnovers against a faster, quicker and taller Wolfpack team. State recorded a 51-41 advantage on the boards, with Burleson leading the way with 12 rebounds.
Sloan’s team jumped out to a 14-5 lead in the opening minutes and scored the final four points of the first half to lead 46-35 at intermission.
Thompson and Burleson rolled in the second half, as the Wolfpack got its fast-break offense in gear, with point guard Monte Towe and forward Tim Stoddard making multiple high-lob passes to Thompson and Burleson. It led by as much as 20 points in the second half.
Freshman Larry Herron led Villanova with 22 points, followed by Bobby Melchionni’s 12 points.
Memphis State advanced with an 85-81 victory over LSU-New Orleans in the double-header tournament’s other opening round game.
You may contact Tim Peeler at tim_peeler@ncsu.edu.
