North Carolina State University Athletics
Gary Hahn's Scouting Report: Maryland
2/8/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
NC STATE (15-7, 4-4) @
DATE: Saturday, February 9, 2008 @
TIME: Tipoff: 8:00 p.m. EST
RADIO: Wolfpack Sports Network
AIRTIME: 7:30 p.m. EST
TELEVISION: Raycom/
OPPONENT Things can be better the second time around. They certainly were for
The sophomore guard cost the Terrapins a chance to beat BC in early December when he was whistled for a technical foul and fouled out with less than 11 minutes to play and the Terps leading by 14 points.
Wednesday night, Vasquez got even in the rematch by playing the best game of his career. In 38 minutes he recorded 25 points, six rebounds, eight assists, two steals and only three turnovers. James Gist was the only other player in double figures for
By scoring the last eight points of a 10-0 run, Vasquez built
On the next possession, Vasquez struck again, finding Eric Hayes open in the corner. Hayes nailed the three-pointer and the BC threat was all but over. It was the only shot Hayes made in the second half.
The Terrapins led 36-34 at halftime and BC kept it close with some outstanding long-range shooting. The Eagles nailed 8 of their first 12 shots from beyond the 3-point line with John Oates going 5-for-5. The 6-10 forward led BC with a career high 21 points. Rice was held to only 13 points on 5-of-10 shooting.
The victory was the ninth for
Since losing its first two ACC games,
Better offensive production usually equals winning and that’s certainly the case with the Terps. In the last five games, they’ve exploded for an average of 81.8 points and 52 percent shooting from the field (148-284).
In mid-January the Terps were looking for a leader. They’ve found one. Vasquez has stepped up with help from two
James Gist and Bambale “Boom” Osby have become one of the best inside tandems in the ACC. Gist who scored 22 and 26 points in back-to back games against UNC and Duke is among the top-30 scorers in
Gist has averaged 20.4 points and 8.6 rebounds over his last five games. In the same span, Osby has recorded 14 points and 8.4 rebounds a contest.
While Osby does most of his damage in the paint, Gist is more versatile. He has expanded his range and must be respected outside--even beyond the 3-point arc. He’s knocked down 12, 3-pointers this season.
More consistent play from Vasquez has been the key ingredient. The Terps scoring and assist leader has done a better job of being a more complete player by averaging 18.0 points, 4.8 rebounds and 7.6 assists over the last five games.
The native of
Hayes is learning to be more of a catch-and-shoot guard after being mostly a distributor in his rookie season. After missing three games in early January with an injury, Hayes has returned to form. He has recorded 31 assists in his last 4 games while scoring in double-figures twice.
Milbourne’s scoring average has improved 7.2 points from a year ago and he’s also a factor on defense.
Three-point shooting is not
UM is connecting on 34 percent of its bombs against the league, but Hayes (.394) and Milbourne (.389) are threats along with the streaky shooting Vasquez who leads the team in 3-point attempts and makes (46-143).
Second shots can be tough to get against the Terps. They lead the league in defensive rebounds in ACC games.
Oddly enough, as
Opponents have been getting more scoring opportunities thanks to
Forcing turnovers with full court pressure used to be a
State was swept by
PROBABLE
No. Name Pos. Ht. Class PPG RPG APG
15 James Gist F 6'9 Sr. 15.8 7.9 2.3*
01 Landon Milbourne F 6’7 So. 8.2 3.7 1.0*
21 Greivis Vasquez G 6'6 So. 17.1 5.2 6.3
05 Eric Hayes G 6'3 So. 10.8 3.3 5.7
50 Bambale Osby F 6'8 Sr. 11.6 6.9 2.1*
TOP RESERVES:
35 Dave Neal F 6'7 Jr. 2.5 1.6 --
22 Adrian Bowie F 6'2 Fr. 3.3 1.9 1.0
24 Cliff Tucker G/F 6’6 Fr. 4.3 2.1 1.5
04 Braxton Dupree C 6’8 Fr. 2.6 2.3 --
* Blocked shots per game
A WIN--Would give the Pack its first 3-game ACC winning streak of the season and put State one-game over .500 in the league for the first time this season. The Wolfpack would improve to 16-7 overall and 5-4 in the ACC and stop
A LOSS--Would snap the Wolfpack’s 2-game winning streak and deny State a plus .500 record in the ACC for the first time this season. State would drop to 15-8 overall, 4-5 in the ACC and would lose to
START IT UP Better starts in five of its last six games have been a key factor for the Wolfpack. State is 4-2 during that stretch. Against Virginia Tech on Tuesday, the Pack shot 56 percent in the first half and scored 37 points to take a 14-point halftime lead. Slow starts were a major problem in early January. In four games from January 5th through January 15th, State averaged only 20.3 points (81) and shot 3-of-32 from the 3-point arc (.093).
“DOUBLE G” IN DOUBLE FIGURESGavin Grant has been a factor in State’s success over the last six games. During that span the senior forward has averaged 16.3 points (98) while shooting .518 from the field (29-56). That includes a 26-point outing at Duke on Jan. 31. In ACC games, Grant is shooting .524 from 3-point range (11-21). Three times this season, Grant’s heroics in the final seconds have won games for the Wolfpack. His steal and layup with 2.1 seconds left in overtime gave State a 79-77 victory over
THE POINT OF IT ALL Due to a season-ending knee injury to Farnold Degand on December 23rd, the Wolfpack has been forced to rotate two inexperienced point guards. Freshman Javier Gonzalez and sophomore transfer Marques Johnson are learning the hard wayon the job. In the last 6 games, all of Gonzalez’s numbers have improved. During that stretch, he’s averaged 7.3 points (44), 3.5 rebounds (21), 3.5 assist (21) and only 2 turnovers (12) while coming off the bench. Gonzalez scored a career-high 11points and 5 rebounds against Virginia Tech on Tuesday.
BIG BEN Ben McCauley’s one-handed slam at the buzzer was the game-winner in State’s thrilling 67-65 win over
BIG TIME ROOKIEJ.J. Hickson was chosen as the ACC Rookie of the Week for the third time on Jan. 28th after he averaged 14 points and 10 rebounds in games against Georgia Tech and FSU. In his last 5 games, the big center, who leads all ACC rookies in scoring, is averaging 14.6 points (73), 9.6 rebounds (48). In four of those games, Hickson recorded a double-double. He leads the Pack in scoring and rebounding and tops the ACC in field goal percentage (.606).
FELLS VS. THE ACC Courtney Fells has scored in double-figures in 7-of-8 ACC games this season and leads the Pack in scoring in league games (14.6) while shooting 43-78 from the field (.551) and 22-44 from the 3-point arc (.500). His clutch 3-pointer with 18-seconds to play in overtime was a big part of State’s come-from-behind victory over
DIALED IN FROM DOWNTOWN After shooting only 9-of-27 (.333) from the 3-point arc in its first two ACC games, State has the range. In its last 6 outings, the Pack has shot .435 from 3-point land (44-101).
ENEMY BOMBING ACC opponents have combined to shoot 38 percent from the 3-point arc against the Wolfpack this season (48-125). UNC shot the best long-range percentage against the Pack (.545) on 6-11 from the bonusphere. Overall, State is giving up 75.4 points and 47 percent shooting from the field in ACC games.
HOLD THAT LINE Free throw shooting has been a big weapon for the Wolfpack. State has made more free throws this season than its opponents have attempted (395-to-304). Overall, State is shooting 71 percent from the stripe. The Pack has outscored its opponents 378-to-204 at the foul line this season and 133-99 in ACC games.
GO FIGURE State has struggled with rebounding this season, but outrebounded Virginia Tech 28-23 on Tuesday. In ACC games, the Pack has a minus 3.0 rebounding margin and has outrebounded only 3-of-8 ACC opponents.
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